3rd December 1999
Final Update: New Trade Round Postponed; Ministerial Meeting Suspended
Talks on the program for a new round of global trade negotiations were suspended at the last minute as Ministers and delegates from the WTO’s 135 member countries failed to reach a consensus on the text of the Ministerial Declaration. Several non-governmental and civil society groups claimed triumph while governments expressed confused views on the outcome.
The failure was primarily attributed to acrimony over procedural issues, specifically the difficulty of managing the negotiating process in a transparent and inclusive manner, together with disagreements over traditionally difficult issues (i.e.: agriculture, textiles and anti-dumping). This outcome evidences the painful change which the multilateral trading system is undergoing as its Members — whose activities are now intensely scrutinised by civil society and legislators — shift the direction of the WTO towards public interest. Said Malini Mehra, Director of People’s Decade for Human Rights Education, ‘The collapse of talks is a great opportunity for the WTO to return to basics. Seattle has dealt a slap to the WTO and the organisation must fundamentally reform itself and reassert the centrality of its social mission to bring benefits to its entire membership and the environment.’
The postponement of the talks also reflects the hefty swing of the system as it strives to service a majority of developing and vulnerable economies. In the words of Ambassador Barshefsky (US), Chair of the Conference, ‘we found that the WTO has outgrown the processes appropriate to an earlier time’.
Delegates involved in the negotiations expressed contradictory views on the balance of winners and losers from this outcome. Many regretted the missed opportunity to insert issues which had practically gained consensual support such as the connections of the WTO regime with globalisation, debt, international financial issues, technology transfer, and strong support and guidance for a real technical cooperation program. Issues such as a commitment to deal with the problematic effects of subsidies and other trade policy measures and fisheries management, both of which appeared in the latest drafts, were put on hold. The biggest concerns expressed by developing countries referred to lost or delayed opportunities for the opening of markets of critical interest for their growth strategies. The lack of operative responses to claims to adequately manage social and environmental concerns within the agreements was also divisive.
Negotiations are scheduled to continue now in Geneva once the Director General’s attempts to build on the ‘progress’ achieved in Seattle yield the necessary conditions. Review and further liberalisation in Agriculture and Services as mandated in the Uruguay Round’s built-in agenda will commence in January.