Former minister criticized protectionism in rich nations

JAKARTA (JP): A former minister has criticized industrial countries for trying to protect their domestic industries through pretexts of linking trade with human rights issues.

Emil Salim, an economist who is a former state minister of population and environmental affairs, said in a one-day seminar on Saturday that Indonesia does not oppose industrial countries' demands for improvement in the protection of human rights in Indonesia "but we disagree on their political moves of linking trade with human rights matters."

"We cannot tolerate their ways in trade negotiations with us," Emil said.

He cited an example on how the United States linked labor rights in its recent trade negotiations with Indonesia recently.

The United States administration has given Indonesia until August to improve workers' rights before deciding whether to revoke GSP (Generalized System of Preferences) trade privileges on Indonesia's exports, he said.

Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Indonesia is a member, said in their annual meeting in Bangkok Saturday that links between trade concessions and labor rights will stifle world trade and restrict employment in developing nations.

The inclusion of so-called social clauses in the agenda of the World Trade Organization will result in more protectionism, they said.

Emil said on Saturday that industrial countries' trade-related policies should be consistent with the new principles of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which demand free trade and revocation of non-tariff barriers.

Issues related to workers' rights can be discussed at the forums of international organizations dealing with social matters, such as the International Labor Organization (ILO).(02)