RI to raise textile and clothing issues at WTO

RI to raise textile and clothing issues at WTO

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia plans to raise textile and clothing
issues at the upcoming ministerial meeting of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) while rejecting any inclusion of contentious
issues like human and labor rights.

Minister of Industry and Trade Tunky Ariwibowo said yesterday
that Indonesia had been disappointed by a virtual backslide by
developed countries in implementing a multilateral agreement on
textiles and clothing trade.

Tunky acknowledged that some textile importing countries --
mainly industrialized nations -- had cut their tariffs on
textiles and textile products and removed other textile trade
barriers.

"However, they only cut the tariffs on products which are
rarely traded, so the measure does not benefit textile exporting
countries like Indonesia," Tunky said after reporting to
President Soeharto on preparations for next week's WTO
ministerial meeting in Singapore.

Tunky said Indonesia would express its concerns over the slow
integration of the multi-fiber arrangement, which governs
international trade on textiles and garments, into the WTO.

"Indonesia, as a textile exporting country, wants a speedy
integration of the arrangement into the WTO. We also want textile
importing countries to abolish their quota systems," Tunky said.

Tunky, who will head the Indonesian delegation at the WTO,
said Indonesia would reject any declaration by the WTO that
includes contentious issues such as human rights and labor
standards.

Indonesia would also oppose the inclusion of issues such as
competition, investment and government procurement policies, he
added.

"Decision making in the WTO is by consensus and we will oppose
the wishes (of some countries) to enforce their will," Tunky
said.

He conceded it would be hard to conclude agreements on some
issues raised in the WTO draft declaration.

Several developed countries have been pushing for the
inclusion of non-trade issues, including human and labor rights,
into the WTO declaration to be issued at the end of the Singapore
meeting.

The bid to include these issues has been staunchly opposed by
many developing countries, including Indonesia.

"Indonesia will reject the inclusion of social issues, such as
human rights and labor standards because the discussion of such
issues is not the responsibility of the WTO but of the ILO (the
International Labor Organization)," the minister said

Tunky said Indonesia would also reject a proposed multilateral
investment policy because the proposal by some developed
countries concerned matters which violated states' sovereignty.

"We do need foreign investment. However, we should have the
right to regulate it," the minister said.

Some developed countries, notably the United States, Japan and
those in the European Union, want the meeting to agree on a
multilateral investment treaty to make member countries treat
foreign and domestic investors equally.

Tunky said Indonesia would reject the inclusion of competition
policies if they covered competition within Indonesia. "We should
manage our own domestic competition policy, and I think we have
done it correctly."

He added that Indonesia wanted the WTO to study anti-
competitive moves such as complaints by several countries against
dumping, arguing that some antidumping measures had been used as
a form of protectionism by developed countries.

Indonesia would reject any inclusion regarding government
procurement policies because state purchases were the prerogative
of any sovereign state, Tunky said.

"In the case of government procurements, it is the government
which has the money. So, the government should have the right to
decide on which products it wants to purchase; the sellers cannot
not rule the buyer.

"Besides, I guarantee that our international tenders for
government procurements will continue to be conducted
transparently because our rulings say so and we will continue to
do it fairly," Tunky said.

But Tunky said Indonesia would agree in principle to a U.S.
proposal to liberalize trade in computers and related
information-technology products by 2000.

But Indonesia would require that special treatment be given to
developing countries to eliminate tariffs on some related
products, he added. (rid)