----- Forwarded message from David McKnight <david@milwr.freeserve.co.uk> -----
Date: Sun, 11 Nov 2001 15:09:03 -0000
Subject: [StopWTORound] Dirty tricks in Doha
A tale of dirty tricks at the WTO
This daily briefing is put together in Doha by CAFOD staff.
Trade Justice Parade, 3 November
As delegates assemble in Doha, bilateral arm-twisting of developing
countries by the powerful nations is already under way. The object? To
divide and weaken developing country positions during debate on the
Draft Ministerial Declaration.
Today's tale is based on an interview with the ambassador of a small
developing country who asked not to be named because 'my country has
too many problems already. We are small and scared, and normally only
the big guys dare to speak out.'
In recent weeks senior officials in the US Trade Representative's
office summoned the country's Washington ambassador for a dressing
down. They were told: At the WTO, the country did not work like an
ally of the US, but supported the 'extremist positions of India and
Pakistan' They said the US was compiling a list of countries that were
its friends, and countries that were not -the ambassador's country was
in the latter list.
The US officials accused the country of trying to open up the TRIPs
agreement, which they described as against US interests. They said
they regretted helping the country with some of its implementation
problems (at a previous session, US officials had said they were 'sick
and tired' of hearing developing countries complain about
implementation issues).
When the ambassador wrote to Robert Zoellick to complain at the
abusive treatment, he received a reply reiterating the accusation that
his country was anti-American.
At the same time, the US has tried to discredit the country's
ambassador in Geneva (a common tactic when Geneva-based ambassadors
speak out). The ambassador says 'I have a campaign against me, just
because I insist on looking at implementation problems and the
inequities of the Uruguay Round.'
The Ambassador added that in other areas, the EU has threatened to
remove it from the list of countries receiving some special EU
preferences, if they did not toe the EU line on a WTO-linked
dispute. One of EU trade commissioner Pascal Lamy's top officials told
the country's ambassador to Geneva 'I don't care about your
rights'. The Ambassador says he is tired of the insults and innuendo,
and that 'no-one speaks out, everyone is scared'.
CAFOD's Duncan Green said, 'We hear these complaints with increasing
regularity, as the powerful countries in the WTO abandon reasoned
arguments and resort to brute force to get the result they want in
Doha. This kind of political bullying has no place in a multilateral
trading system based on respect and the needs of developing
countries.'
For interviews or further information contact Patrick Nicholson in
Doha on 00 974 539 1097, 00447867 908 720 or Chris Holt in London on
020 7326 5558 or 0777 980 4254
----- End forwarded message -----
-- When God wants to punish a country, he makes them invade Afghanistan. -- Afghan epigram
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