RI wants fair game at WTO
By Riyadi
SINGAPORE (JP): Indonesia is urging the inaugural World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference here to establish level playing fields, review the implementation of commitments by member states and resume negotiations on unfinished business.
Speaking at the opening of the inaugural WTO conference yesterday, Minister of Industry and Trade Tunky Ariwibowo said Indonesia would continue to resist efforts by developed countries to link trade with domestic competition policy.
"We are of the view that discussions on this issue in the WTO should be focused on the international aspects of competition such as the so-called restrictive business practices and the malpractice of antidumping rather than competition laws and policies applied at national level," Tunky said.
Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong officially opened the WTO ministerial conference, which is being dogged by divisive issues.
Tunky stressed in his plenary statement that Indonesia was concerned by the many antidumping investigations that had been conducted against developing countries.
Indonesia was also concerned about the proliferation of safeguard actions by some developed countries that had accompanied the implementation of the agreement on textiles and clothing, he added.
"Our experience has shown continuing difficulties in market access. Besides, we also note with concern the emerging symptom of marginalization, especially among the least-developed countries, as well as the diminishing attention to the development dimension," he said.
The minister argued that developed countries should not inhibit the economic development of developing countries by demanding too much of them.
Developing countries face many hurdles in implementing the Uruguay Round of tariff-reduction agreements, especially on services, intellectual property rights, investment measures and other complex areas.
"To ensure the full and effective implementation of the Uruguay Round commitment by all, there is an urgent need to intensify technical assistance to developing countries with the view to facilitating the fulfillment of their commitments," Tunky said.
He said Indonesia supported efforts to conclude negotiations on services sectors, which were built into the WTO's agenda. And that Indonesia was reviewing its appropriate degree of commitments.
"With regards to the built-in agenda, my delegation is prepared to endorse the relevant conclusions and recommendations of the various bodies," Tunky said.
In his opening speech, Prime Minister Goh Chok called on member countries to pursue sustained efforts to settle looming contentious issues such as labor standards and a multilateral investment treaty.
"It is clear that low labor costs are a legitimate comparative advantage for developing countries, and that labor standards should not be used as disguised protectionist measures," Goh said.
On investment, Goh said no one disputed the link between trade and investment, but there was no agreement on when and how best to address the issue within the WTO.
He suggested that developing economies be given time to adjust to the changes brought about by the Uruguay Round in terms of rules and the pressure of market opening measures.
He said the WTO should not be unnecessarily distracted from its central goal of promoting and safeguarding the multilateral free trade regime.
"If protectionist and insular sentiments surface and roll back the significant gains the WTO has achieved, then global economic prospects for the future will become dimmer, instead of brighter," Goh said.
In his report to the meeting, WTO Director General Renato Ruggiero stressed that world trade had increased massively because of falling trade and investment barriers.
World trade has grown 10 percent yearly on average from US$50 billion in 1947 -- the birth of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (WTO's predecessor) -- to US$5.6 trillion in 1995.
This expansion has driven growth in both the developed and developing countries. Developing countries grew more than 4 percent annually on average over the last thirty years, and are expected to grow at an even higher rate of 5.2 percent in the next decade.
The Uruguay Round agreements, the basis of the WTO, are estimated to potentially increase global income by US$500 billion by 2005.
The WTO has 125 members; and by Dec. 13, it will have 128 members with Bulgaria, Cameron and Niger as its newest members. About 30 other countries are applying for WTO membership, including major economic players like China and Russia.
Goh suggested that WTO should look at reasonable ways to expedite accession applications so that countries aspiring to become members did not have to wait too long. Related stories -- Page 11-12