Folketinget — Udenrigsudvalget Christiansborg, den 30. november 2004 Til udvalgets medlemmer og stedfortrædere Pressemeddelelse og sluterklæring fra den parlamentariske konference om WTO den 24. - 26. november 2004 i Bruxelles Hermed fremsendes vedlagt pressemeddelelse og sluterklæring fra den parlamentariske konference om WTO, som fandt sted den 24. – 26. november 2004 i Bruxelles. Med venlig hilsen Anja Riber Skydt, udvalgssekretær.

- 2 - JOINT PRESS RELEASE The Parliamentary Conference on the WTO urges governments and parliaments to engage in a regular dialogue Brussels, 26 November 2004 Around  300  members  of  parliament  from  80  parliaments  met  in    Brussels  from  24 to  26 November  2004,  at  the  annual  session  of  the  Parliamentary  Conference  on  the  WTO, which was jointly organised by the European Parliament (EP) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union   (IPU).      They   adopted   a   Declaration   in   which   they   "urge   governments   and parliaments  to  engage  in  a  regular  dialogue  so  that  the  latter  can  effectively  exercise parliamentary oversight of the international trade negotiations and their follow-up."   EP  President,  Josep  Borrell,  reminded  participants  at  the  opening  session  that  the European  Parliament  had  been  one  of  the  driving  forces  for  the  development  of  the parliamentary dimension of the WTO ever since the Seattle meeting of 1999.  Parliaments, he said, had a vital role "as a bridge between people protesting in the streets and those negotiating  behind  the  scenes."   If  globalisation  was  to  be fairer  and  better  organised,  it was   essential   to   take   a   balanced   approach   between   "the   three   Ds:   Development, Democracy and Doha," he said. For  IPU  President  Sergio  Paez  Verdugo,  the  fact  that  the  WTO  was  "an  exceptionally powerful international institution, whose influence goes far beyond trade matters"  made it vital for it to interact with parliaments to "ensure it was under democratic control." Parliamentarians  debated  key  areas  of  current  WTO  negotiations,  including    agriculture and  trade  in  services  from  a  development  perspective.  On  Friday  26 November,  an interactive session was held with WTO Director-General, Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, who stated "I cannot emphasise enough the importance of having our colleagues in parliaments involved as closely as possible in the WTO's work of making economic development work for  all  countries.    It  is  always  our  goal  to  promote  multilateralism  -  there  really  is  no alternative  for  sustained  economic  development.    All  countries,  big  and  small,  must  be able to participate in drawing up trade rules which are fair for all." In  the  Declaration,  which  was  adopted  at  the  closing  session,  the  parliamentarians welcomed the July 2004 decision of the WTO General Council concerning the Doha Work

- 3 - Programme, the parliamentarians stated that this   "raised hopes that the impasse of the Ministerial Conference in Cancun has finally been overcome, with a consensual roadmap now in place for moving the multilateral trade negotiations forward."  The Declaration also confirms   the   substantial   contributions   that   parliamentarians   can   make   to   the   WTO negotiations   and   calls   upon   the   respective   governments   to   include   members   of parliaments in their official delegations at the Sixth WTO Conference, in Hong Kong (13 - 18  December  2005),  and  to  include  in  the  final  Ministerial  declaration  the  following paragraph  "Transparency  of  the  WTO  should  be  enhanced  by  associating  parliaments closely with the activities of the WTO".   The parliamentarians decided to hold the next session of the Parliamentary Conference on the  WTO,  on  the  occasion  of  the  Sixth  WTO  Ministerial  Conference  in  Hong  Kong,  in December 2005. For further information: Luisa Ballin  - tel. (41) 796 497 145 e-mail: [email protected] Theresa Cutajar / Ralph Pine - tel. (32-2) 28 31082 / (32-2) 28 42941 email: [email protected]   or  [email protected] IPU web site : www.ipu.org European Parliament web : www.europarl.eu.int

- 4 - BRUSSELS SESSION OF THE PARLIAMENTARY CONFERENCE ON THE WTO 24-26 November 2004 Organised jointly by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the European Parliament FINAL DECLARATION 1. We,  parliamentarians  assembled  in  Brussels  for  the  annual  session  of  the Parliamentary  Conference  on  the  WTO,  welcome  the  July  2004  decision  of  the  WTO General  Council  concerning  the  Doha  Work  Programme.  The  July  package  has  raised hopes   that   the  impasse  of   the   Ministerial  Conference  in   Cancún   has   finally   been overcome,  with  a  consensual  roadmap  now  in  place  for  moving  the  multilateral  trade negotiations forward. 2. While we are encouraged by the renewed momentum, numerous grey areas must  still  be  clarified  in  the  negotiations  in  order  to  ensure  a  positive  end  result. Significant  differences  mark  the  positions  of  WTO  Members  on  issues  currently  in dispute. Determination and political will to fulfil commitments are therefore required of all parties in order to bring the Doha Round to a successful conclusion. Parliaments bear a central share of responsibility in this respect. 3. We  reiterate  our  commitment  to  the  promotion  of  free  and  fair  trade  that benefits people everywhere, enhances sustainable development and reduces poverty. As legitimate representatives of our populations, we shall continue to oversee WTO activities and promote their effectiveness and fairness, keeping in mind the original objectives of the WTO, as set out in the Marrakesh Agreement. 4. To   be   successful,   WTO   negotiations   must   involve   all   members   of   the Organization  at  all  stages,  and  their  overall  results  should  permit  consistency  between national policy objectives and faithful adherence to international obligations. To that end, there  should  be  a  genuine  balance  of  benefit  for  all  WTO  Members  and  acceding

- 5 - countries,  ensuring  fair  and  equitable  relationships  between  exporting  countries  and importing countries as well as between developed countries and developing, with special emphasis  placed  on  ensuring  real  gains  for  developing  countries,  and  especially  the least-developed countries. 5.   We  stress  the  importance  of  lower  industrial  tariffs  in  particular  to  provide improved market access for developing countries, especially LDCs, better market access for non-agricultural products, the reduction or, as appropriate, elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers to environmental goods, and trade facilitation. Clear progress in these areas is needed to help the world trade system to function better and more effectively. 6. We  welcome  the  July  decision  on  agriculture  and  call  on  WTO  Members  to continue working on the three pillars of the negotiation, namely:   elimination of all forms of export subsidies; substantial reduction in trade-distorting domestic support; and market access. 7. We  are  keenly  aware  of  the  existence  of  complex  areas  in  agriculture nego oo otiations tiations  that  are  of  direct  concern  to  producers  and  consumers,  exporters  and importers  alike.  They  reflect  the  critical  importance  of  agriculture  to  the  economic development and growth prospects of the majority of WTO Members and a real step in the right direction, which has to be further elaborated. The Framework for Establishing Modalities in Agriculture, adopted by the WTO General Council on 31 July 2004, fills in some details in this regard, but leaves most of the hard decisions to future negotiations, with no specified deadlines. It is fundamental to define and provide a framework for the notion of "sensitive product" and for the issues of special interest to developing countries such as special safeguard mechanism and special products for developing countries, as stated  in  the  31  July  Agreement.    There  is  also  a  need  to  discuss  further  sectoral initiatives, differential export taxes and geographical indications. 8. Clear  progress  in  these  areas  is  needed  to  help  the  world  trade  system  to function  better  and  more  effectively.    We  note  in  this  regard  that  the  so-called  "peace clause"  has  expired,  and  that  WTO  Members  are  now  free  to  exercise  their  right  to challenge breaches of the rules. We believe that recourse to such challenges should be used  sparingly,  with  the  aim  of  encouraging  the  withdrawal  of  export  subsidies  while

- 6 - avoiding   the   introduction  of  further   tension  and  distractions   at   this   stage   of   the negotiations.   9. We   urge   the   WTO   and   its   Members   to   make   information   available   as extensively  as  possible  on  national  commitments  in  the  agricultural  sector  that  extend over the timeframe of these negotiations and have a direct bearing on the three reform pillars,  as  set  out  in  the  Framework,  namely  market  access,  domestic  support,  export competition. This information would provide a transparent backdrop for all Members, but especially developing countries. 10. We  attach  the  highest  importance  to  the  pressing  needs  of  developing countries dependent on tropical agricultural commodity exports, notably sugar, bananas and  cotton.  Each  of  these  has  been  the  subject  of  disputes  in  the  WTO.  Consideration should  be  also  given  to  the  situation  of  developing  countries  dependant  on  export incomes  from  coffee,  cocoa,  pineapple,  rice,  and  other  monocultures.  Strict  attention should  be  paid  to  the  specific  trade,  finance  and  development  needs  of  developing countries, as enshrined first in the GATT and now in the WTO. 11. At each step of the ongoing negotiations, including those on regional trade arrangements, the concerns of developing countries in respect of poverty reduction, food security and sustainable livelihoods must be kept at the forefront. In order to enable the coexistence of the diverse agricultural systems of various countries, non-trade concerns of  agriculture  which  include  food  security,  land  conservation,  revitalisation  of  rural society and rural employment, as well as the issues of sustainable forestry and fisheries must also be addressed in a satisfactory manner.   12. Hunger and famine are still ravaging the poorest people in many countries. The  issues  of  malnutrition  and  hunger  deserve  sharper  focus  in  the  negotiations  on export  competition. We  emphasise  in  this  regard on  the  one  hand  the  responsibility of developed  countries,  which  produce  and  export  the  bulk  of  food  commodities  and secondly the need, and indeed the obligation, for developing countries to promote bold, proactive rural  development  policies in  earnest.  The  solution  to food security  problems may  lie  in  a  complementary  relationship  to  be  sought  between  developed  countries, which should endeavour to support local production and regional markets in developing countries, and the developing countries themselves, which should set up the necessary production  and  marketing  arrangements  for  agricultural  commodities  with  a  view  to

- 7 - gradually  meeting  their  food  needs.  The  special  negotiations  for  which  disciplines  and commitments  are  to  be  negotiated  must  be  clear,  flexible  and  provide  food-importing countries with the necessary leeway to protect and promote national food security.  There is  also  a  need  to  take  a  close  look  at  the  Food  Aid  Convention,  the  FAO  consultative surplus disposal mechanism and the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius. 13. We welcome the fact that the Framework gives special attention to the least- developed  countries.  We  support  the  proposal  that  the  developed  countries,  and  those developing countries that are in a position to do so, should provide duty-free and quota- free market access for products originating from the least-developed countries. 14. We   note   with   satisfaction   that   cotton   was   given   prominence   in   the Framework,  and  that  a  subcommittee  has  been  established  by  the  WTO  and  given  the mandate to "achieve ambitious results expeditiously". We call on all parties concerned to ensure  that  these  results  reach  the  farmers  in  the  developing  countries  in  a  timely manner. 15. Given the growing importance of the services sector in all economies and the expansion of trade in services, including the movement of natural persons and the cross- border provision of services, we acknowledge the decision of the WTO General Council to approve a number of recommendations aimed at advancing the negotiations on trade in services,  the  overall  pace  of  which  remains  disappointing.  Revised  offers  must  be submitted by WTO Members in this regard by mid-2005, with the aim of satisfying the concerns of all countries concerned.   16. At the same time, caution must be exercised in the liberalisation of trade in services,  especially  those  that  relate  to  basic  human  rights  and  basic  and  essential services  and  needs  such   as   public   health,   education,   culture,   and  social   services: liberalisation of such services should not be imposed by wealthier countries, nor should it be  used  in  negotiations  on  export  subsidies.  This  approach  is  consistent  with  the  key principles   of   the   GATS,   which   allow   for   flexibility   in   opening   services   sectors   to competition  and  for  the  exclusion  of  some  sectors  in  whole  or  in  part.  Longer  time frames  for  the  implementation  of  market  access  will  provide  the  necessary  measure  of margin for to those developing countries where the institutional arrangements are weak and  the  negotiations  on  completing  the  rules  are  still  unfinished.  We  also  believe  that

- 8 - every country has the right to protect its cultural diversity and to conserve and develop public services. 17. We  stress  the  need  to  continue  making  progress  in  the  area  of  TRIPS  and taking action against counterfeiting and piracy by promoting fair forms of competition. We   underline   the   importance   of   technical   assistance   to   developing   countries   to implement  the  TRIPS  rules.  Special  attention  should  be  given  to  the  protection  of biodiversity and access to essential low cost medicines. 18. We are convinced that trade-- -related capacity-- -building through appropriately delivered  technical  assistance  should  remain  an  indispensable  element  of  the  current negotiations. Increased awareness leads on the one hand to more active participation by all WTO Members in the negotiations, and on other hand to better understanding of the relevant  issues  across  the  widest  national  spectrum,  including  members  of  parliament. This makes the outcome of trade negotiations more likely to be acceptable. 19. We  note  in  this  regard  that  the  commitments  made  at  the  Doha  Ministerial Conference  in  2001  are  being  followed  up  through  increased  activities  by  the  donor countries, the WTO and other multilateral bodies. We encourage all parties to do more to build the essential human, institutional and economic capacities required to prepare for, negotiate  and  sustain  the  implementation  of  the  WTO  rules  and  disciplines.  Special attention  should  be  devoted  in  this  regard  to  the  needs  of  parliaments,  particularly  in developing countries, which should become active partners in trade agreements. 20. We are convinced that parliaments can make substantial contributions to the WTO   negotiations.      Parliaments   embody   the   sovereignty   of   the   people   and   can legitimately  contribute  to  expressing  the  will  of  the  people  in  international  fora  and promoting popular support for international agreements. We call on parliaments and their members to help raise citizens' awareness and understanding of trade negotiations and the WTO. We urge governments and parliaments to engage in a regular dialogue so that the  latter  can  effectively  exercise  parliamentary  oversight  of  the  international  trade negotiations and their follow-up. 21. We decide to hold the next session of the Parliamentary Conference on the WTO  on  the  occasion  of  the  Sixth  WTO  Ministerial  Conference,  in  Hong  Kong  (13-18 December 2005).  We call upon all WTO Members to include members of parliament in

- 9 - their  official  delegations  at  the  Ministerial  Conference.    We  also  call  on  our  respective governments participating in that Conference to add the following paragraph to the final declaration:  "Transparency  of  the  WTO  should  be  enhanced  by  associating  parliaments closely with the activities of the WTO." 22. We instruct the IPU and the European Parliament to take the steps required, in the  Steering  Committee,  to  ensure  that  this  declaration  is  followed  up  in  the  WTO Secretariat.