AFTA council compromises on RI farm products
AFTA council compromises on RI farm products
By Riyadi
BANGKOK (JP): A compromise was finally reached by members of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which
capitulated to Indonesia's request to withdraw 15 farm products
from the list of hasty tariff reductions.
In its eighth meeting here yesterday, the Council of the ASEAN
Free Trade Area (AFTA) agreed to create a special category in its
tariff reduction plan, the Common Effective Preferential Tariff
(CEPT), to accommodate Indonesia's request.
The CEPT was previously made up of the "inclusion" list of
products, which require immediate tariff reductions; the
"temporary exclusion list", which gives a five-year grace period;
and the sensitive list, which gives until the year 2010; and the
general exception list.
The new category, called the temporary exclusion list of
unprocessed agricultural products, allows Indonesia to
temporarily exclude the 15 products from the tariff reduction
program.
"I'm really satisfied with the outcome, said Minister of
Industry and Trade Tunki Aribowo after attending the Council's
meeting.
He said that he was grateful to the other member countries for
understanding Indonesia's problem.
Jakarta, however, is required to review the status of the 15
products by the year 2003. It must then decide whether to bring
them into the inclusion list or to determine how long they will
remain on the special category list.
The expiration date of this special list, however, should not
exceed the expiration date of the sensitive list in 2010.
Most of the 15 products -- including rice, sugar, wheat and
clove -- are currently under the control of government state's
regime.
"These products affect millions of our farmers," Tunki said
when asked why Indonesia wanted the 15 products moved off the
temporary exclusion list.
Because of its request for special treatment, Indonesia has
been criticized of becoming more protective and moving away from
its commitment to the AFTA arrangement.
Tunki, however, addressed the criticism by saying that Jakarta
had passed a series of deregulation measures aimed at further
liberalizing trade and investment in the country and in the
region.
Indonesia initially wanted to move the 15 farm products onto
the sensitive list. This would mean that tariffs on the items
would not fall under the AFTA plan to reduce import tariffs to
between zero and five percent by the year 2003.
The Indonesian move, however, met strong opposition from
Thailand, which had threatened to put its 44 farm items on the
temporary exclusion list back onto the sensitive list.
Brunei Minister of Industry and Primary Resources Abdul Rahman
Taib, who chaired yesterday's meeting, said member countries
reached the compromise through the "ASEAN spirit."
"We discussed Indonesia's request with full understanding, and
we approved it to literally transfer these products from the
temporary exclusion list of the unprocessed agricultural
products," Rahman told a media briefing after the Council
meeting.
The Council also endorsed the initiative of the ASEAN
directors general of customs to start implementing an accelerated
customs lane, or the "green lane", for CEPT products by Jan. 1,
1996.
The green lane will expedite clearance for CEPT products by
simplifying procedures and formalities.
The eighth AFTA Council meeting was also attended by Secretary
General of Malaysian Ministry of International Trade and Industry
Asmat Kamaluddin, Undersecretary of the Philippine Department of
Trade and Industry Cesar Bautista, Singapore Minister of Trade
and Industry Yeo Cheow Tong, Thai Minister of Finance Surakiart
Sathirathai, Thai Deputy Minister of Industry Anusorn Wongwan,
Vietnamese Minister of Finance Ho Te and ASEAN Secretary General
Ajit Singh. (rid)