Ministers adopt APEC action plans

By Prapti Widinugraheni & Meidyatama Suryodiningrat

MANILA (JP): Ministers of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum adopted yesterday a plan of action which will put the 18 member countries on a path towards free trade.

The Manila Action Plan for APEC (MAPA) was adopted at the opening day of a two-day joint meeting of APEC foreign and trade ministers.

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Production and Distribution Hartarto described MAPA as the first step in the implementation of trade liberalization in the Asia-Pacific region.

The action plans will be effective as of Jan. 1, 1997.

APEC comprises Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United States.

APEC leaders at a meeting in Bogor, West Java, in 1994 agreed on a free trade deadline of 2010 for developed countries and 2020 for developing ones.

MAPA will reveal detailed plans of how member countries would cut tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade and investment.

Members are expected to continuously improve their individual action plans in the coming years.

Indonesia's plan of action reinforces commitment to trade liberalization by reducing tariffs on almost all commodities to between zero and 5 percent by the year 2003, Hartarto said.

"I think only a few countries presented a program of tariff reduction which expands until 2003," he said as he touted Indonesia's 37-page action plan.

Hartarto admitted that tariffs on agricultural and automotive commodities will be higher than the 5 percent stipulated. "But it won't be too high," he said.

Hartarto was accompanied by Foreign Minister Ali Alatas at yesterday's ministerial meeting.

MAPA consists of four parts: The first is an introduction and highlight of member countries individual action plans; the second is a compilation of their respective action plans in full; the third is a collective action plan in areas which will facilitate business and cut the cost of doing business in the region; the final part focuses on economic and technical cooperation.

Full details of MAPA will be unveiled during APEC's informal leadership meeting in Subic on Monday.

Separately spokesman for Japanese Prime Minister, Hiroshi Hashimoto, said Tokyo's action plan included major steps to breaking down national barriers.

"It takes Japan as far as it can go at this moment," he said.

Japan's 92-page action plan specifies a reduction of average tariffs to 1.5 percent on some 6,700 industrial products.

Some 290 fishery products will have an average tariff of 4.1 percent, 170 forestry products will have an average tariff of one percent and 1,500 agricultural products will drop to an average of 9.3 percent.

Furthermore Japan pledges not to apply non-tariff measures that are not justified under international agreements.

Three of the 18 APEC members -- the Philippines, South Korea and Australia -- yesterday agreed to implement a visa free card for accredited businessmen to ease entry into their countries.

Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary R. Severino said he hoped other APEC members will follow suit.

The card is intended to save businessmen the hassle of obtaining visas when making short intra-APEC business trips.

Hartarto said that even without such a card, Indonesia already facilitates business travels into the country by giving "on arrival" service at major entry points.

Earlier, when opening the ministerial meeting, Philippine President Fidel Ramos urged the forum to begin developing a culture of cooperation to sustain the forum's many gains.

"I am convinced that liberalizing trade and facilitating trade and investment alone cannot do it," he said.

Ramos said it was necessary for APEC to come up with a mechanism for binding the diverse Asia-Pacific region.

He stressed the use of economic and technical cooperation to strengthen the culture of cooperation needed to build a community of APEC economies.

The ministers will end their meeting today with a joint statement. The series of APEC meetings will continue on Monday with a leaders summit in Subic.

Soeharto -- Page 2

Business -- Page 8

Ministers -- Page 9

Members -- Page 12