Behind The Scenes At The WTO
by - 02.09.2005 21:14
The Real World Of International Trade Negotiations
Authors: Jawara, Fatoumata/ Kwa, Aileen:
(London/ Bangkok: Zed Books and Focus on the Global South, 2003)
Behind the scenes at the WTO
The real world of international trade negotiations
Fatoumata Jawara and Aileen Kwa
September, 2003
'Any country whose political system operates the way the WTO presently does, would rightly be condemned by the international community as corrupt and undemocratic, and would face a constant threat of revolution. No develo ped country would contemplate running its government in this way; and yet they are happy both to exploit the system and to defend it against pressure for democratic reform at the international level'. (Jawara and Kwa, p. 277)
"Behind the Scenes" is a shocking book for anyone who believes that the WTO is a multilateral trading system, with rules to fairly regulate trade and hence protect the weak from the law of the jungle.
The book, based on extensive interviews with government delegates and the WTO Secretariat, highlight the patently unfair rules of the WTO. These rules are skewed to protect and ensure the corporate interests of the major powers. Precisely how this is done is the subject of the book.
see also:
http://www.focusweb.org
http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/71227/1/5294
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-globalization
http://www.portoalegre2003.org/publique/cgi/public/cgilua.exe/web/templates/htm/1P4OP/view.htm?user=reader&editionsectionid=73&infoid=7354
Contents
Figures, tables and boxes viii
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
Chronology xiii
Preface Ajit Singh and Branislay Gosovic xv
Chapter 1
The devil you know - an introduction to the WTO 1
Why the WTO matters 2
The multilateral trading system before the WTO 5
The Marrakesh Agreement - the birth of the WTO 9
WTO bodies and decision-making 13
Democracy in the WTO 18
The size of the WTO missions 21
Key regional groups and alliances within the WTO 22
Chapter 2
The battleground - the key issues in Doha 25
Industrial tariffs and market access for non-agricultural
products 25
Agriculture 26
The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) 31 Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) 36 The new issues 39
Implementation issues - addressing the imbalances of the
Uruguay Round 44
Special and Differential Treatment - a public relations
exercise? 46
Chapter 3
Setting the stage -the pre-Doha mini-ministerial meetings 50
The prelude to Bretton Woods 51
Agendas: who wanted what in Doha? 53
The prelude to Doha - widening the circle 56
The Mexico mini-ministerial 59
From Mexico to Singapore 62
Singapore 64
The location for the Fourth Ministerial 65
From Singapore to Doha 67
After Singapore 67
A rules-based organization? 72
A balance of unhappiness'? 73
Stuart Harbinson: the case for the defence 75
The 'new issues' 76
Conclusion 77
Chapter 4
A controlled bedlam - the Doha Ministerial 2001 80
The Bretton Woods Conference 80
Thursday 8 November 83
Friday 9 November 88
Saturday 10 November 90
Outside the conference 92
Sunday 11 November 93
Monday 12 November 97
TRIPs and public health 99
Tuesday 13 November 101
The green room meeting - 13-14 November 104
The green room - the final hours 105
Wednesday 14 November - the morning after 108
The final hours 110
Conclusion 111
Chapter 5
Look back in anger - post- Doha reflections 114
After Bretton Woods 114
After Doha 115
The shadow of September 11th 117
Winners and losers: who got what? 118
What happened on the 'old' issues? 122
Delegates' reactions to the Doha process and outcome 127
The role of India 131
The resurfacing of the green room 133
The 'Like-Minded Group' proposals 135
The final twist 138
Appendix: the Like-Minded Group proposal 143
Chapter 6
The gentle art of persuasion - arm-twisting and pay-offs 148
The bullying hierarchy 149
Tools of the arm-twisting trade 150
A 'diplomatic' exchange between two 'friendly' nations 159
Country profiles 160
Conclusion 181
Chapter 7
Mike Moore and the WTO Secretariat - wolves in sheep's clothing 184
The selection of Moore and Supachai as directors general 186
Delegates and Secretariat staff on Moore 191
The deputy directors general 196
The Secretariat from Seattle to Doha 198
Geographical diversity in the Secretariat staff 200
Recruitment - an overview of favouritism in the hiring process 203
The 'neutrality' of the Secretariat 204
A case study of 'neutrality'- the WHO / WTO Guide 211
Conclusion 215
Chapter 8
After Doha - business as usual 218
The Trade Negotiations Committee 218
Another'exception' -the Agricultural Committee chairmanship 227
Mini-ministerials and green room meetings 230
Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi - WTO's first developing country director general 232
Conclusion 235
Chapter 9
The Doha development agenda - 'everything but development' 237
The 'new issues' 237
Trade and the environment 244
Industrial tariffs and market access for non-agricultural
products 245
TRIPs and public health 246
Agriculture 257
Services 260
Implementation issues 264
Special and Differential Treatment 264
Conclusion 266
Chapter 10
Conclusion 269
The problems 271
The official level tinkering with the wiring and its limitations 278
The subterranean level - arm-twisting and threats 293
The ideological level - trade, growth and poverty 301
Do we need the WTO? 302
Conclusion 304
Bibliography 310
Index 319
Figures
1. 1 The WTO structure (February 2002) 14
3.1 Circles of power 57
7.1 The structure of the WTO secretariat (July 2002) 185
Tables
1. 1 WTO members and observers 10
1.2 Professional staff in Geneva missions (April 2OO1) 20
3.1 Participation in the Mexico and Singapore mini-ministerials 61
Boxes
1.1 The dispute settlement mechanism 6
2.1 Thai rice farmers: hunger amidst plenty 28
3.1 The role of multinational corporations in the WTO 54
3.2 TRIPs and public health 68
3.3 Statements to the General Council on the Second Draft Ministerial Declaration, 31st October 2001 70
4.1 The key players - Zoellick and Lamy 84
6.1 Limits to the economic benefits of GSP programmes 154
6.2 Views on the benefits of the ACP waiver 157
7.1 How the deal was made 188
9.1 Letter from assistant USTR Rosa Whitaker to sub-Saharan African trade ministers 250
9.2 Making the point 254
9.3 Service sectors covered by the EC's GATS request to Nigeria 261
10.1 External transparency: involving local and international NGOs and CSOs in WTO debates 286
Book ISBN - 1842773119
The real world of international trade negotiations
Fatoumata Jawara and Aileen Kwa
September, 2003
'Any country whose political system operates the way the WTO presently does, would rightly be condemned by the international community as corrupt and undemocratic, and would face a constant threat of revolution. No develo ped country would contemplate running its government in this way; and yet they are happy both to exploit the system and to defend it against pressure for democratic reform at the international level'. (Jawara and Kwa, p. 277)
"Behind the Scenes" is a shocking book for anyone who believes that the WTO is a multilateral trading system, with rules to fairly regulate trade and hence protect the weak from the law of the jungle.
The book, based on extensive interviews with government delegates and the WTO Secretariat, highlight the patently unfair rules of the WTO. These rules are skewed to protect and ensure the corporate interests of the major powers. Precisely how this is done is the subject of the book.
see also:
http://www.focusweb.org
http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/71227/1/5294
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-globalization
http://www.portoalegre2003.org/publique/cgi/public/cgilua.exe/web/templates/htm/1P4OP/view.htm?user=reader&editionsectionid=73&infoid=7354
Contents
Figures, tables and boxes viii
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
Chronology xiii
Preface Ajit Singh and Branislay Gosovic xv
Chapter 1
The devil you know - an introduction to the WTO 1
Why the WTO matters 2
The multilateral trading system before the WTO 5
The Marrakesh Agreement - the birth of the WTO 9
WTO bodies and decision-making 13
Democracy in the WTO 18
The size of the WTO missions 21
Key regional groups and alliances within the WTO 22
Chapter 2
The battleground - the key issues in Doha 25
Industrial tariffs and market access for non-agricultural
products 25
Agriculture 26
The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) 31 Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) 36 The new issues 39
Implementation issues - addressing the imbalances of the
Uruguay Round 44
Special and Differential Treatment - a public relations
exercise? 46
Chapter 3
Setting the stage -the pre-Doha mini-ministerial meetings 50
The prelude to Bretton Woods 51
Agendas: who wanted what in Doha? 53
The prelude to Doha - widening the circle 56
The Mexico mini-ministerial 59
From Mexico to Singapore 62
Singapore 64
The location for the Fourth Ministerial 65
From Singapore to Doha 67
After Singapore 67
A rules-based organization? 72
A balance of unhappiness'? 73
Stuart Harbinson: the case for the defence 75
The 'new issues' 76
Conclusion 77
Chapter 4
A controlled bedlam - the Doha Ministerial 2001 80
The Bretton Woods Conference 80
Thursday 8 November 83
Friday 9 November 88
Saturday 10 November 90
Outside the conference 92
Sunday 11 November 93
Monday 12 November 97
TRIPs and public health 99
Tuesday 13 November 101
The green room meeting - 13-14 November 104
The green room - the final hours 105
Wednesday 14 November - the morning after 108
The final hours 110
Conclusion 111
Chapter 5
Look back in anger - post- Doha reflections 114
After Bretton Woods 114
After Doha 115
The shadow of September 11th 117
Winners and losers: who got what? 118
What happened on the 'old' issues? 122
Delegates' reactions to the Doha process and outcome 127
The role of India 131
The resurfacing of the green room 133
The 'Like-Minded Group' proposals 135
The final twist 138
Appendix: the Like-Minded Group proposal 143
Chapter 6
The gentle art of persuasion - arm-twisting and pay-offs 148
The bullying hierarchy 149
Tools of the arm-twisting trade 150
A 'diplomatic' exchange between two 'friendly' nations 159
Country profiles 160
Conclusion 181
Chapter 7
Mike Moore and the WTO Secretariat - wolves in sheep's clothing 184
The selection of Moore and Supachai as directors general 186
Delegates and Secretariat staff on Moore 191
The deputy directors general 196
The Secretariat from Seattle to Doha 198
Geographical diversity in the Secretariat staff 200
Recruitment - an overview of favouritism in the hiring process 203
The 'neutrality' of the Secretariat 204
A case study of 'neutrality'- the WHO / WTO Guide 211
Conclusion 215
Chapter 8
After Doha - business as usual 218
The Trade Negotiations Committee 218
Another'exception' -the Agricultural Committee chairmanship 227
Mini-ministerials and green room meetings 230
Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi - WTO's first developing country director general 232
Conclusion 235
Chapter 9
The Doha development agenda - 'everything but development' 237
The 'new issues' 237
Trade and the environment 244
Industrial tariffs and market access for non-agricultural
products 245
TRIPs and public health 246
Agriculture 257
Services 260
Implementation issues 264
Special and Differential Treatment 264
Conclusion 266
Chapter 10
Conclusion 269
The problems 271
The official level tinkering with the wiring and its limitations 278
The subterranean level - arm-twisting and threats 293
The ideological level - trade, growth and poverty 301
Do we need the WTO? 302
Conclusion 304
Bibliography 310
Index 319
Figures
1. 1 The WTO structure (February 2002) 14
3.1 Circles of power 57
7.1 The structure of the WTO secretariat (July 2002) 185
Tables
1. 1 WTO members and observers 10
1.2 Professional staff in Geneva missions (April 2OO1) 20
3.1 Participation in the Mexico and Singapore mini-ministerials 61
Boxes
1.1 The dispute settlement mechanism 6
2.1 Thai rice farmers: hunger amidst plenty 28
3.1 The role of multinational corporations in the WTO 54
3.2 TRIPs and public health 68
3.3 Statements to the General Council on the Second Draft Ministerial Declaration, 31st October 2001 70
4.1 The key players - Zoellick and Lamy 84
6.1 Limits to the economic benefits of GSP programmes 154
6.2 Views on the benefits of the ACP waiver 157
7.1 How the deal was made 188
9.1 Letter from assistant USTR Rosa Whitaker to sub-Saharan African trade ministers 250
9.2 Making the point 254
9.3 Service sectors covered by the EC's GATS request to Nigeria 261
10.1 External transparency: involving local and international NGOs and CSOs in WTO debates 286
Book ISBN - 1842773119