ASEAN supports Philippine gripe with Australia

ASEAN supports Philippine gripe with Australia

MANILA (Dow Jones): Philippine Assistant Agriculture Secretary
Segfredo Serrano said Monday that the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries have agreed to support the
Philippines' complaint against Australia's ban of Philippine
fruits.

"The Philippines will prepare a paper that will detail our
complaint against Australia. We will present this paper to
international trading bodies like the World Trade Organization
and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation. ASEAN countries have
agreed to support this paper," Serrano said at a press
conference.

Serrano, who recently met with ASEAN ministers of agriculture
and forestry, said Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia also are
having a hard time exporting their farm products to Australia.

Separately, Philippine Agriculture Secretary Edgardo Angaro
said Monday in a press briefing that the Philippines may opt to
drop out from the Cairns Group. The Cairns Group is made up of
agricultural-products-exporting countries who lobbied for the
inclusion of farm products in the General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade.

"Local farmers' groups are pressuring the Philippine
government to withdraw from the Cairns Group because it's headed
by Australia. Australia doesn't practice fair trade, so it's an
option that we're studying," he said.