METHYL BROMIDE HALTS MOMENTUM AT OZONE CONFERENCE
The fifteenth meeting of the parties (MOP-15) to the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer was held from 10-14 November in Nairobi, Kenya. Items on the agenda included various issues relating to "critical use exemptions" of ozone-depleting substances (ODS) from control measures. The MOP is usually a routine event where scientists and politicians make adjustments to what is widely held as the most successful international environmental treaty to date. Particularly controversial at this meeting was developed nations’ proposed phase-out of the pesticide methyl bromide, a significant ozone depleting substance, by 1 January 2005. The US, EU and Japan had all previously agreed to cut the use of the chemical by 30 percent relative to 1991 levels. However, at the MOP, the US — responding in particular to pressure from Californian farmers — argued that it needed more time to find effective substitutes, and requested a two-year exemption from the proposed 2005 ban on production and importation. Many parties, led by the EU and Japan, opposed the exemption and were unwilling to reverse on progress already made. The meeting failed to reach consensus on the issue, and will hold an extraordinary meeting from 24-26 March 2004 in Montreal, Canada.
In related news, new studies place illegal trade of CFC’s at 15 percent of total production, threatening the integrity of the Protocol. This problem was not, however, discussed at the meeting. The Montreal Protocol is one of a core group of six multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) which many WTO Members have begun to focus on in the context of negotiations on the relationship between WTO and MEAs as part of the Doha round.
For a final analysis of the 15th meeting of the Montreal Protocol, visit: http://www.iisd.ca/ozone/mop15/.
"Summary of MOP-15," IISD’S EARTH NEGOTIATIONS BULLETIN, 17 November 2003.
EUROPE ESTABLISHES GREEN DIPLOMACY NETWORK
The EU recently announced an initiative to enhance its capacity to negotiate effectively on environmental issues. This "Network of Diplomats and Experts on European Diplomacy on Environment and Sustainable Development" was established some months ago, and will draw on existing diplomatic resources in the new, enlarged EU-25. It has identified efforts to encourage Russia to ratify the Kyoto Protocol as a first activity. Other targets include effective negotiations at a meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in February 2004, and efforts to promote renewable energy and marine environmental protection. In terms of methods, the network will gather intelligence on the positions of other actors, and will play an active role through, among other things, setting up campaigns to get the EU message out across the world. The initiative will seek to redress the problem of EU negotiators spending much of their time in internal processes, thereby moving toward a more proactive — rather than reactive — approach in their negotiating tactics.
For more information visit http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/international_issues/green_diploma cy_en.htm.
"Europe to put muscle behind its green vision," ENVIRONMENT DAILY, 12 November 2003.
CANADIAN CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS CALL FOR CHANGES TO DRAFT DRUG LAW
Various civil society groups in Canada have called for changes to current draft legislation that would amend the Canadian Patent Act C-56 to allow generic pharmaceutical companies to produce and export patent- protected drugs to countries unable to manufacture their own. The Canadian legislation is an attempt to implement an agreement on intellectual property rights and public health adopted by WTO Members before the Cancun Ministerial (see BRIDGES Weekly, 15 October 2003). The draft bill went through a second reading in the Canadian Parliament on 7 November and will now be submitted to Parliamentary committee for hearings before being re-submitted to the Parliament for a final reading. While welcoming the government’s initiative to amend the Patent Law, the NGOs — including Médicins Sans Frontières and the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network — expressed a number of concerns regarding the current draft. Specifically, they noted that the draft contained provisions permitting patent-holders to block licences for generic manufacturers, thereby providing a disincentive for these manufacturers to negotiate contracts with developing countries. They also pointed out that the legislation included only a limited list of pharmaceutical products and excluded some developing countries that are not Members of the WTO from benefiting from the legislation (see http://www.aidslaw.ca/home.htm for further details).
In related developments, the US-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation is planning to file a lawsuit against the South African subsidiary of GlaxoSmithKline, seeking damages on behalf of people it said died because they could not afford HIV/AIDS medicines. The group offered to drop the plan if the company agreed to create a USD 150 million fund for free HIV/AIDS drug treatment in South Africa.
"Amendment to Canada’s Patent Act to authorise export of generic pharmaceuticals," CANADIAN HIV/AIDS LEGAL NETWORK, 10 November 2003; "U.S. group to sue Glaxo S.Africa over AIDS drugs," REUTERS, 13 November 2003.
AG THE STICKING POINT IN EU-MERCOSUR NEGOTIATIONS
Trade negotiators from the Mercosur member states — Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay — met with EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy and EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner Chris Patten on 12 November in Brussels to discuss their planned free trade accord. Sensitive issues, such as Mercosur access to the protected European agricultural market, resurfaced during the meeting. While the EU included 91 percent of all agricultural products in its initial market offer, some vital Mercosur products (meats, cereals, oil and processed foods) were left out. Mercosur negotiators had hoped to decrease restrictions for olive oil, dairy products, juices, meats and fruit. Martin Redrado, Argentine Secretary of Commerce, indicated some progress by pointing out that, "we agreed to find creative mechanisms such as lower tariffs and changes, for example, in the Hilton (primer beef) quota currently entitled to Mercosur", indicating some progress. The EU generally favours linking their Mercosur talks to negotiations at the WTO, preferring a compromise in agriculture pertinent to both agreements.
The EU and Mercosur talks aiming at an Association Agreement began in June 1999, and ten rounds of negotiations have since taken place. The talks are scheduled to conclude by October 2004, and five meetings have been scheduled before then, starting in December in Brussels and followed by a round in Buenos Aires next February.
"EU, Mercosur aim to conclude trade deal next year," EU Business, 12 November 2003; "Mercosur-EU seek "creative" mechanisms," MERCOPRESS, 14 November 2003; "EU-Mercosur: Ministerial meeting to roadmap free trade negotiations," EU PRESS RELEASE, 12 November 2003.
CSR CONFERENCE REVEALS UNRESOLVED ISSUES
The UN Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) hosted a conference on "Corporate Social Responsibility and Development: Towards a New Agenda?" from 17-18 November. The conference covered the themes of: corporate social responsibility (CSR) and development; research perspectives; new relations with transnational corporations (TNCs); UN- business partnerships; beyond CSR; corporate accountability and international regulation of TNCs — the role of the UN. Discussions focussed on, inter alia, areas where voluntary accountability for sustainable development was insufficient. Participants pointed to situations related to foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade in which company profits and interests dominated. Some gave examples of governments yielding to corporate interests, marginalising health, labour, food security and environmental issues.
On the role of the WTO, some participants and speakers criticised the fact that the multilateral trading system did not regulate trade and investment issues in accordance with good corporate citizenship (GCC) principles. A speaker from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) presented six options for including GCC practices in international investment agreements: including GCC principles in the form of non-binding instruments; linking voluntary instruments to legally binding ones; granting treaty benefits only to investments made in accordance with national laws and regulations of the host country; creating mandatory procedural obligations for governments; placing GCC in preambles of investment agreements; and incorporating legally binding provisions.
ICTSD reporting.