archives: WTO InfoAsia-Pacific nations urged to defend WTO process
Posted: 6:13 PM | Sept. 02, 2003
Martin Abbugao • Agence France-PresseBANDAR SERI BEGAWAN-- Asia-Pacific nations were urged Tuesday to vigorously defend the World Trade Organization (WTO) amid concerns that the proliferation of regional and bilateral trade arrangements could undermine the multilateral process.
While countries in the region have benefited immensely from previous market-opening reforms, political leaders and governments have not done enough to champion negotiations seeking to further liberalize the world trading system, speakers told the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC).
The region, especially East Asia, is instead at the forefront of a trend to promote bilateral and regional free-trade arrangements, which some analysts fear could undermine a rules-based trading system applied globally.
"Asian economies have certainly greatly contributed to, but undoubtedly also immensely benefited from, the open, multilateral trading system," said Jean-Pierre Lehmann, a professor of international political economy at the Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland.
But "in general, it is quite distressing to see how little Asian governments and ... business leaders have contributed to the defense, let alone the promotion of the open world trading system," he told delegates.
"Silence has been, at best, the order of the day."
With the Asia-Pacific expected to continue to account for a large portion of world trade, the region "must not free-ride ideologically," Lehmann said.
The PECC is an advisory body comprising top think-tanks and corporate executives and is holding its meeting in the capital of the sultanate of Brunei ahead of the September 10-14 WTO ministerial meeting in Cancun, Mexico.
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi will address the meeting on Wednesday.
Several speakers Tuesday voiced pessimism that an agreement would be reached in Cancun on pushing forward talks on the sensitive issue of agriculture.
They suggested that the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum play a leading role to rev up the faltering WTO process, which has pushed some countries to negotiate arrangements with key trading partners.
Mari Pangestu, a director at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta, said APEC has "missed a few chances" to play a leading role in the WTO but still has the time to accept the challenge.
APEC groups 21 countries and territories, with the United States playing a dominant role.
Bijit Bora, a counselor in the economic research and statistics division of the Geneva-based WTO, said the multilateral trading system is under scrutiny, while other speakers were concerned that advocates were losing the public relations battle with anti-globalization activists.
"I avoid the word stress (and) crisis but it is certainly in a situation that needs some reflection," Bora said.
He also said that the WTO process needed to be better understood as more than just lowering tariffs — it is about trading rules and a mechanism for settling disputes.
Long Yongtu, China's top negotiator in its entry into the WTO, said there was nothing wrong with regional and bilateral trade arrangements but these must go beyond free trade agreements (FTAs) and must not lead to regional exclusivity.
As such, a planned trading arrangement involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as well as Japan, China and South Korea should be open to admitting key trading partners such as Australia even if it is outside the region, he said.
"If we cannot assure open regionalism, then that kind of regional integration can become a stumbling bloc to economic globalization. It might shake the very foundation of the rules-based trading system represented by the WTO," Long said.
He also suggested that the WTO take a stronger stand and scrutinize the emerging FTAs to see if they are consistent with its rules.
"This is a matter of life and death for this organization," he said.
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