Trade and rights<\/p>\n
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations member countries
\nhave formally rejected the inclusion of workers' rights, labor
\nstandards and environmental issues in international trade
\nagreements. A joint statement issued at the end of the ASEAN
\nforeign ministerial meeting in Bangkok last weekend cited among
\nthe reasons for the refusal the possibility of market access
\nrestrictions and their impact on employment opportunities in
\ndeveloping countries.<\/p>\n
The ASEAN members believe that the developed countries' move
\nto link human rights and environmental issues with international
\ntrade agreements is a mere pretext for protectionism.<\/p>\n
As has been known for some time, many Asian governments have
\ngrown more and more irritated in the last several years by what
\nthey see as the high-handed habit of forcing values and standards
\non Asian countries on the part of a number of developed nations.<\/p>\n
Initially those Asian countries, which badly need market
\naccess and capital from the West, tended to bow under the
\npressure. Later, however, they became convinced that what they
\ninitially perceived as being a genuine concern over human rights
\nand the environment was turning out to be a smokescreen to hide a
\nplot to stamp out the growing threat of Asia's newly
\nindustrialized countries.<\/p>\n
For one thing, while acknowledging that there is, indeed, a
\nreal concern among many Western communities and non-governmental
\norganizations over human rights and environmental issues, these
\nAsian countries believe that some Western countries are adopting
\na double standard in imposing their values.<\/p>\n
The United States' failure to cut China's most favored nation
\ntrade status last June, after President Clinton was forced to bow
\nto U.S. business pressure, has further convinced Asian countries
\nthat the United States' main concern is its national interests.
\nThis has encouraged other Asian countries to take a more hard-
\nline stance on human rights and environmental issues.<\/p>\n
One can expect that following ASEAN's hardened stance,
\nconfrontation will be the menu of the day in the weeks to come.
\nAlthough we do not think that a full-scale trade war will start
\nin the near future, one can expect that lengthy bickering may
\noccur.<\/p>\n
A trade war aside, our concern is the possible impact on our
\nhuman rights movement of the newly decided ASEAN common stance on
\nthe human rights issue. It is no secret that in the past some of
\nour human rights activists relied rather heavily on international
\npressure in the belief that such nudging would move the
\ngovernment to improve our human rights condition.<\/p>\n
Such a notion may have been correct a few years ago, but of
\nlate we have seen that the government has tended to ignore such
\nnudging, perhaps because of a growing confidence that the so-
\ncalled \"international pressure\" is nothing but the roar of a
\npaper tiger. For example, a few months ago nobody would have
\nbelieved that with the APEC Summit due to be held here in
\nNovember the government would dare to clamp down on the press.<\/p>\n
Moreover, such an international linkage has its drawbacks: It
\nhas caused the authorities to question the validity and \"honesty\"
\nof the human rights movement here, and to suspect that it could
\nbe a vehicle for undermining national stability.<\/p>\n
However, one should not forget that in the last several years
\nthere have been many improvements in the human rights condition
\nhere. Thus we believe that a real political will exists in the
\ngovernment to improve the human rights condition in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
What we hope to see most, given the apparent prevailing
\nsymmetry in principle, is our commonly shared ideal of a just
\nsociety achieved without unnecessary delay or shocks.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/trade-and-rights-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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