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#4384: Poor nation dilemma: How to shape world trade without being there (fwd)
From:nozier@tradewind.net
WIRE:06/25/2000 12:14:00 ET
Poor nation dilemma: How to shape world trade without being
there
GENEVA (AP) _ Renald Clerisme is the first to admit he doesn't always
understand what's going on at the World Trade Organization. How can
he, when he can't be everywhere at once? Clerisme is head of the Haiti
delegation to the world's top Rule-making body for trade. He's also the
entire delegation.Haiti, with 7 million people, is one of many poor
countries that lack sufficient representation in an organization whose
decisions influence commerce, consumer prices and jobs around the
world. In contrast to rich and powerful nations whose WTOelegates take
limousines to work and have staffs of two dozen or more,
representatives from places such as Haiti are poorly equipped to fight
for trade rights. Clerisme (pronounced cler-iz-MAY) works from an
office above an appliance shop in a shabbier quarter of Geneva about a
mile from WTO's lakeside headquarters.The Haitian delegation doesn't
have a car. So while European Union Ambassador Roderick Abbott and
other diplomats ride in chauffeur-driven limousines to work, Clerisme
takes the bus. Clerisme scrambles to attend meetings because the
WTO has more than 30 different committees,subcommittees and working
groups on its schedule,covering subjects from textiles to patents to
the environment. Several meetings may take place at once. "I feel that I
don't understand very fully what is going on. Sometimes they will deal
with things I don't know anything about," Clerisme said. With 137
members, the WTO was created in 1995 on the theory that open markets
benefit everyone. Its binding decisions determine how trade is
conducted between nations and what restrictions countries can
impose to protect their own producers. The dichotomy in WTO
representation can overpower its poorest members. One key issue is the
eagerness of large nations to export products at below-market prices to
poorer nations, squeezing domestic businesses. "Dumping"goods can help
an exporter corner a local market and may sometimes result from
production subsidies by governments.Clerisme says WTO dispute settlement
_ where a country can air a complaint and a panel of experts
issues a legally binding judgment _ could help combat rice dumping, a
big issue in Haiti. But Haiti can't use the system because it doesn't
have lawyers with enough understanding of international trade law, he
says.Twenty-nine countries _ mostly in African and the Caribbean _ have
no permanent representative in Geneva at all."The question that arises
is how much influence has a small country got over WTO decision-making
processes? Very little indeed," said George Williams, who is
ambassador for the Caribbean island of Dominica in London and gets to
Geneva for about six days a year. The WTO has sparked riots from Geneva
to Seattle and protests in other places in part because of the
impact economic globalization has on the world's poor. For their part,
Clerisme and other WTO representatives from developing countries
believe free trade can help their people. But the expense of
running diplomatic missions in Geneva is a barrier to reaping those
benefits. Western diplomats estimate it costs their governments
$300,000 to keep each of them here. Japan has the largest delegation,
with 21 diplomats and lawyers listed in the WTO directory. The United
States has 13. That doesn't include secretaries,technicians and
drivers. The EU is harder to count because it lists only 10
names, but it can muster a much larger force when it includes the
staffs of each of the 15 member nations.The big nations also have major
support in their home capitals. The U.S. Trade Representative in
Washington has up to 170 staff and a budget of $70 million. That's
about two-thirds of Haiti's entire yearly export earnings.Clerisme says
he is reluctant to disagree with other countries if he is unable to
understand an issue. "If they ask you to join a consensus, in the end
you finish by accepting something that is not in your interests."
WTO Director-General Mike Moore came into office last September
promising to help countries that can't afford to have a permanent
delegation in Geneva. Moore, who is from New Zealand, describes himself
as a Pacific islander who knows the problems of small, isolated
nations. "Many can't afford to subscribe to all the newspapers,"
Moore said in an interview. Others can't even pay for fax paper.
Moore spoke on a day when a discussion over whether to admit the West
African island nation of Cape Verde to the organization had to be
postponed because nobody from the country was able to attend the
meeting. Cape Verde, with a population of 405,000, is classified
with Haiti as a "least-developed" country.Since his arrival, Moore has
put in place training courses and "Geneva Weeks" for delegations with
little or no regular representation at the WTO.The WTO even tries to
provide newspaper clippings to needy missions.But for Clerisme it's a
vicious circle.If trading opportunities do not improve for his
country,it won't be able to afford to send a bigger,better-trained
staff to Geneva. And without a bigger staff, he cannot see how trading
opportunities will improve."I think Mike Moore is doing his best,"
Clerisme said."But it comes down to our bilateral and multilateral
partners. We will carry this problem with us for a long time."