WIPO GENERAL ASSEMBLY UNDERWAY
The 33rd annual General Assembly (GA) of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) opened on 25 September. WIPO’s senior decision-making body faces a sizable agenda for its week-long session, which will run until 3 October. It is set to tackle controversial issues including ongoing negotiations on a ‘development agenda’ for the organisation; a proposed treaty on broadcasters’ rights; discussions on patent law harmonisation; and work on generic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore. Divisions among member states have left some of these processes at an absolute standstill.
The ‘development agenda’ negotiations spring from a September 2004 proposal from the ‘Friends of Development,’ a 14-member group of developing countries, calling for wide-ranging changes to integrate UN developmental objectives into every aspect of WIPO’s mandate and functioning. Talks on the numerous proposals on the ‘development agenda’ broke down amidst bitter divisions during the June meeting of the WIPO committee that had been examining them (see BRIDGES Weekly, 5 July 2006). The General Assembly must decide on how to proceed with the development agenda. Negotiations thus far suggest that member states are interested in continuing the discussions, albeit for a limited time period such as one or two years.
Discussions on a proposed treaty for the protection of the rights of broadcasting organisations remain suspended, with no consensus on whether a ‘diplomatic conference’ should be convened to finalise and adopt an agreement (see BRIDGES Weekly, 20 September 2006). With countries divided the General Assembly has proposed that the chair of the committee dealing with the issue hold informal consultations aimed at getting countries to move forward in a common direction.
Negotiations on a proposed Substantive Patent Law Treaty (SPLT), which would determine whether countries should harmonise their distinct national patent systems, have been adrift since April. Sources report that the US has suggested postponing talks on the SPLT until next year. The General Assembly is expected to address a report by an intergovernmental committee on genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore (IGC) later in the week.
ICTSD reporting.
CHILE REJOINS ANDEAN COMMUNITY AFTER 30-YEAR ABSENCE
Three decades after it pulled out of the regional cooperation organisation, Chile rejoined the Andean Community of Nations (CAN) as an associate member on 20 September. During the UN General Assembly meeting in New York, Andean foreign ministers from Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru agreed unanimously on Chile’s membership. Under the agreement, a joint commission will be set up before the end of the year to define the scope of Chile’s association. Chile may also be invited to attend CAN meetings.
"I believe that this will give the Andean Community a fundamental boost. Now we must begin working towards a free-trade pact with the EU which will give us several options for free commerce and not just one," said Peruvian President Alan Garcia.
Chile has already signed bilateral ‘economic complementarity agreements’ with Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru opening the door to free circulation of goods and services, as well as other forms of cooperation. Such accords are a prerequisite for associate membership in CAN. Chile is also in the process of negotiating broader trade agreements with Peru and Colombia.
Chile already has more than fifty free trade deals, including one with China. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has suggested the agreement with China would now strengthen South America’s ties with the dynamic Asia-Pacific region. "The Asia-Pacific zone is probably the most dynamic economy today… Countries that look towards Asia can make individual treaties, but we can also collectively unite and offer a greater strengthened market," she added.
The agreement reportedly raised concern in Mercosur countries — Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Venezuela — that it would contribute to a Pacific-Atlantic divide on the continent, rather than increased regional integration.
CAN faced a setback earlier this year when Venezuela withdrew in order to join Mercosur. Chile is also an associate member of Mercosur.
The agreement is expected to increase trade between CAN and Chile, which reportedly grew by 38 percent during the first six months of this year.
ICTSD Reporting: "Garcia: Chile’s return to Andean Community is a fundamental boost," LIVINGINPERU, 21 September 2006,; "Colombia to Sign Free Trade Deal with Chile", SANTIAGO TIMES, 22 September 2006; "Andean Community Accepts Chile’s Return to Bloc," BLOOMBERG, 20 September 2006; "Chile Becomes Full Member of the Andean Community," SANTIAGO TIMES, 22 September 2006; "Andean Foreign and Trade Ministers Approve Chile’s entry into the CAN as an Associate Member," ANDEAN COMMUNITY PRESS RELEASE, 20 September 2006.
BUSH SIGNS US-OMAN FTA INTO LAW
US President George W. Bush signed the US-Oman Free Trade Agreement (FTA) into law on 26 September. US Trade Representative Susan Schwab commended the bill as holding "promise for the people of Oman and the United States."
The Bush Administration had been pushing for the deal, citing Oman’s long history as a strategic ally, as part of its broader goal of establishing a ‘Middle East Free Trade Area’ by 2013. The US already has FTAs with Israel, Jordan, Morocco, and Bahrain.
The Oman FTA immediately eliminates all duties on industrial and consumer products sold between the two countries, with a further provision that Oman will remove duties on 87 percent of US Agriculture imports and eliminate all tariffs within 10 years. Annual bilateral trade in 2005 was less than USD 1.2 billion. The accord also includes comprehensive protections for foreign investors.
US opposition to the accord came primarily from Democrats, who believe that it does not do enough to protect labour rights and the environment. Oman has previously been cited by the US State Department for abuses of foreign workers, who comprise 30 percent of the Omani population, as well as human trafficking. Opponents also cite the National Labor Committee’s study on Jordan following the implementation of the US FTA with that country in 2001. It documented cases in which foreign factory workers had their passports seized and pay denied, or were physically abused and deported, among other kinds of mistreatment.
In a royal decree issued on 9 July, Oman responded to these concerns, reforming its labor laws with special attention to union rights.
Nevertheless, many Democrats remained unconvinced, particularly as the Bush Administration refused to modify the bill to include new wording, passed unanimously by a key Senate committee, which would have denied FTA privileges to any goods produced in Oman through illegal labour practices. Republicans counter that the FTA contains appropriate measures for dealing with labour rights, a result of which additional provisions are unnecessary.
"Bush signs U.S.-Oman free trade agreement into law," PEOPLE’S DAILY ONLINE, 27 September 2006; "H.R. 5684 — The United States-Oman Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act," U.S. SENATE REPUBLICAN POLICY COMMITTEE, 18 September 2006; "Free Trade Agreement with Oman Gains Final Passage by Senate," WASHINGTON FILE, 19 September 2006.