From: David Sangurima <sangu@igc.apc.org>
Newsgroups: soc.culture.latin-america
Date: 01 Sep 92 22:28 PDT
Subject: IPS: NAFTA Brings Home
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1473800288:000:4794
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!sangu    Sep  1 22:28:00 1992


From: David Sangurima <sangu>
Subject: IPS: NAFTA Brings Home

/* Written  1:54 pm  Aug 25, 1992 by hrcoord in cdp:reg.latinameri */
/* ---------- "IPS: NAFTA Brings Home" ---------- */
From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: IPS: NAFTA Brings Home

/* Written 12:15 am  Aug 25, 1992 by newsdesk in
cdp:ips.englibrary */ Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all
rights reserved.  Permission to re- print within 7 days of
original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: LATIN AMERICA: NAFTA BRINGS HOME NEED TO SPEED UP
INTEGRATION

an inter press service feature

by gabriel canihuante

rio de janeiro, aug 22 (ips) -- the recent signing of the north
american free trade agreement (nafta) has forced the countries in
the south of the american continent to become aware of the need to
speed up their integration efforts.

now that nafta has been signed, the time schedules set for making
the southern cone common market (mercosur) operational should be
brought forward, said brazil's deputy foreign minister marcos de
azambuja.

de azambuja was among speakers at an aug. 21 seminar here on ''the
challenges of hemispheric integration,'' who emphasized the
urgency of accelerating latin american integration.

''prudence walks quickly today,'' brazil's economy minister
marcilio marques moreira warned at the seminar, also attended by
participants from argentina, chile, mexico and the united states.

''for decades and even centuries, brazil looked down on
neighbouring markets and it is only now that we have realized
their importance,'' marques moreira admitted.

representatives of the brazilian and argentinian governments
expressed fears that nafta, which, if ratified, would link canada,
mexico and the united states in a free market of some 360 million
consumers, would hurt south american exports, to the benefit of
mexico.

brazil feels it could be hardest hit since ''the index of real and
potential competition between mexican and brazilian exports on the
u.s. market is higher than (that between mexico and) any other
latin american country,'' in the words of brazilian foreign
minister celso lafer.

''the potential for a ''derailing'' of our exports to the united
states as a result of nafta would be presumably higher than in the
case of other countries,'' he added.

lafer said it was necessary to verify whether nafta would not
create a type of ''administered trade'' with a preference for
mexican finished products by the united states, as opposed to the
''trade liberalization'' theoretically advocated by the u.s.
government.

''if the intention of nafta is to be a first step in the
'inititiative of the americas,' extreme care should be taken by
its (nafta's) members to ensure that it does not harm third
countries,'' he said.(more)
----

the ''initiative of the americas'' is a proposal launched by u.s.
president george bush in june 1990 for free trade throughout the
americas.

rubens barbosa, one of brazil's representatives in mercosur,
stressed the need for meeting the timetable set for bringing on
stream the integration pact, which would link argentina, brazil,
uruguay and paraguay in a free trade area from 1995.

''the first challenge is fulfilling the (asuncion) treaty (the
agreement by the four countries to form mercosur). failure to meet
deadlines and fulfill agreements would be a blow to the
credibility of the four countries,'' he warned.

the brazilian foreign minister said the asuncion treaty responds
to ''contemporary international needs and is already included by
multinational companies in their strategies, which shows the
vitality of the external trade of the four member countries.''

according to felix pena, argentina's under-secretary for mercosur
and inter-american economic relations until july this year, the
countries of the southern cone (the mercosur four and chile)
''cannot afford to fail to do what the whole world is doing --
going out and competing on the international market.''

the argentinian official said his country should participate ''in
a network of alliances and not in just one alliance.''

pena sees mexico's membership of the association for latin
american integration (aladi) as a factor to be borne in mind in
any debate on the preferential treatment mexican products will
receive on the north american market and the effects of this on
the rest of latin america.

under a 1980 treaty, any advantage granted to an aladi member
state ''should be extended to the other member countries,'' the
argentinian lawyer said.

other possible ways to resolve the contradictions between nafta
and aladi, pena said, are for mexico to reject aladi or for the
association to be partially modified by its member countries,
which he described as the most adequate solution.
(end/ips/trd/so/gc-ug/kb/92)
----