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06 October 2004
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Wednesday
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20 Shaban 1425
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Global talks to set up fair trade regime urged
By Masood Haider
UNITED NATIONS, Oct 5: Pakistan on Monday called for a 'Doha Round' of international trade talks, which is genuinely a 'development round' to establish a fair international trade regime.
Addressing the UN General Assembly's second committee, Pakistan's UN Ambassador Munir Akram said that the elements of such a round could be: (1) Elimination of unequal subsidies and support together with policy space for developing countries to sustain their rural development in a liberalized trade regime.
Cotton would be a test case, he added. (2) Elimination of discriminatory tariff peaks and escalation against products of poor countries. (3) Non-circumvention of market access, for example, for textile through such measures as anti-dumping and special safeguards.
(4) Operationalization of the special and differential treatment in past and future WTO agreements (5) A resolution of the host of implementation issues related to the Uruguay Round Agreements and (6) A development review of the TRIPS and TRIMS Agreements, given "our experience with the whole issue of drugs for HIV/AIDS."
Emphasizing the importance of 2005 for the developing countries, Mr Akram urged the international community to focus on development as a theme for next year. "We must set in motion this year the preparation for this Event and achieve a negotiated outcome adopted by consensus, which upholds and outlines a strategy for development and a partnership for development," said Pakistan's chief delegate.
He said that "another issue outside Doha, which cries for attention, is that of international migration." Mr Akram said: "This must be a central element of any fair trading system. If capital can move and markets are free, surely labour, the other factor of production, must have similar freedom."
"Restrictive policies imposed for nationalistic or security reasons negatively affect both the exporters and importers of labour. And a new dimension in this debate is the question of outsourcing, where again, special arguments are advanced to prevent the market forces from working in favour of the developing countries," he added.
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