RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE WT/GC/M/14
20November 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-4877)
GENERAL COUNCIL
2October 1996
MINUTES OFMEETING
Held intheCentre William Rappard
on2October 1996
Chairman: Mr.W.Rossier (Switzerland)
Subjects discussed: Page
1. Accession ofBulgaria 2
- Report oftheWorking Party 2
2. Accession ofPanama 4
- Report oftheWorking Party 4
3. Approval ofrules ofprocedure ofsubsidiary bodies 6
- Committee onRegional Trade Agreements 6
4. Extensions ofwaivers pursuant toParagraph 2oftheUnderstanding inrespect of
waivers ofobligations under GATT 1994 6
(a) Cuba -Paragraph 6ofArticle XVofGATT 1994 6
(b) United States -Former Trust Territory ofthePacific Islands 6
(c) United States -ANDEAN Trade Preference Act 6
(d) Canada -CARIBCAN 6
(e) Communication from theEuropean Communities 6
- European Communities -Fourth ACP-EEC Convention ofLomé 6
- France -Trading Arrangements withMorocco 6
(f) South Africa -Basedates under Article I:4 6
(g) Zimbabwe -Basedates under Article I:4 6
5. Preparations forthe1996 Ministerial Conference 8
(a) Report bytheDirector-General
(b) Progress reports bytheChairpersons ofWTO bodies 8
(c) Election ofofficers oftheMinisterial Conference 12
(d) Organizational matters 12
(e) Attendance ofobservers attheMinisterial Conference 14
(i) Governments 14
(ii) International intergovernmental organizations 14
(iii) Non-governmental organizations 14
6. Observer status forinternational intergovernmental organizations 19WT/GC/M/14
Page2
1. Accession ofBulgaria
- Report oftheWorking Party (WT/ACC/BGR/5 andCorr.1, Add.1 andAdd.2)
TheChairman recalled thatatitsmeetings inNovember 1986andFebruary 1990, theGATT
1947Council hadestablished aWorking Party toexamine Bulgaria 'srequest foraccession totheGeneral
Agreement onTariffs andTrade. Subsequently, inpursuance oftheDecision adopted bytheWTO
General Council on31January 19951,theGATT 1947Accession Working Party hadbeentransformed
intoaWTO Accession Working Party. TheWorking Party'sreport wasnowbefore theGeneral Council
inWT/ACC/BGR/5 andCorr.1, Add.1 andAdd.2.
Mr.Selmer (Norway), Chairman oftheWorking Party, introducing itsreport, saidthatthe
Working Party hadheldseveral meetings from 1991 to1996 toexamine Bulgaria 'sapplication, and
topursue themarket access negotiations forgoods, including thepreparation ofanagriculture country
schedule, andmarket access negotiations forservices. Addendum 1oftheWorking Party'sreport
reproduced Schedule CXXXIX ongoods, andAddendum 2reproduced Schedule CXXXIX onservices.
Thisdocumentation hadbeenadopted bytheWorking Party on16September 1996onanadreferendum
basis. Members oftheWorking Party hadnoted that,notwithstanding adverse repercussions from
instability intheregion, Bulgaria hadpursued decisively theprocess ofadjustment andtransformation
toamarket economy. Members hadexpressed support andencouragement forBulgaria 'sefforts to
continue toreform andliberalize itseconomy. TheAppendix totheWorking Party'sreport reproduced
adraftdecision onBulgaria 'saccession andadraftProtocol ofAccession. Inaccordance withthe
practice inaccessions totheGATT 1947, theProtocol ofAccession incorporated commitments given
byBulgaria inrelation tocertain specific matters negotiated intheWorking Party. These commitments
concerned, interalia, thesubmission ofinformation concerning developments intheprivatization
program, theintroduction ofanewsystem ofexcise taxes, theelimination ofquantitative restrictions
andother non-tariff measures, thephasing outofatemporary surcharge onimports forbalance-of-
payments reasons, membership intheAgreements onGovernment Procurement andTrade inCivil
Aircraft. Henoted thatBulgaria would bethefirstEuropean country withaneconomy intransition
toamarket economy system tobecome aMember pursuant toArticle XIIoftheWTO Agreement,
andexpressed appreciation fortheopenness, cooperation andflexibility demonstrated byMembers
andbyBulgaria during arduous negotiations onsubjects thathadoftenbroken newanddifficult ground.
Therepresentative oftheEuropean Communities welcomed andsupported Bulgaria 'saccession.
TheCommunity wasaclose trading partner ofBulgaria, andlooked forward toevencloser relations
inthefuture, bothinthebilateral andmultilateral contexts. Bulgaria 'saccession totheWTO Agreement
washistoric, andmarked aparticular phase inthatcountry 'stransition toamore market-oriented
economy. Itwasalsoafurther important steptowards theuniversalization oftheWTO.
Therepresentative oftheUnited States saidthathisGovernment waspleased tosupport approval
ofBulgaria 'saccession package. Having begun itsaccession process under theGATT 1947, andat
atimewhen itstrade regime wasnotresponsive tomarket forces, Bulgaria hadworked diligently
withMembers, especially during thepastthree years, tocomplete afullArticle XIIaccession tothe
WTO Agreement. These years hadnotbeeneasyforBulgaria. Itseconomy hadsuffered aswarraged
nearby, anditseconomic reform program hadstruggled tomaintain itselfunder verydifficult conditions.
YetBulgaria hadpersevered, andhadshown great willingness tomake thenecessary changes inits
traderegimes tomeetthestricter WTO provisions. Notwithstanding itsdifficulties, Bulgaria hadavailed
itself offewtransitions from WTO provisions initsProtocol, andhadworked withMembers upto
thelastminute toimprove itsmarket access offers. TheUnited States believed thatWTO membership
would helpBulgaria complete itseconomic reforms andprovide asolidbasisforfuture economic growth
1SeeWT/GC/M/1, item4(g).WT/GC/M/14
Page3
andprosperity. TheUnited States wished tocommend Bulgaria 'snegotiators fortheirtenacity, patience,
andskillinbringing home thisagreement, andlooked forward toestablishing fullWTO relations with
Bulgaria when itbecame aMember.
Therepresentatives ofalargenumber ofMembers, including Argentina, Australia, Cuba, the
Czech Republic, Egypt, Hungary, Iceland, India, Japan, Malaysia onbehalf oftheASEAN countries,
Norway, Paraguay, Poland, Romania, theSlovak Republic, Switzerland, andTurkey, among others,
wished tobeplaced onrecord aswelcoming andsupporting theaccession ofBulgaria.
Therepresentative ofBulgaria, speaking asanobserver, saidthatBulgaria 'saccession process
hadbeenextremely difficult since ithadcoincided withitsimplementation ofpolitical andeconomic
reforms. Bulgaria wasarelatively small country anditseconomy depended greatly onforeign trade.
Itwasonlylogical thatthetransition from acentrally planned toamarket economy would bring
significant progress interms ofliberalization ofthecountry 'strade regime. Bulgaria maintained no
quantitative restrictions onimports, anditslicensing system wasconsistent withWTO rules. Inits
market access negotiations, Bulgaria hadmade aseries ofimportant commitments leading tothefurther
substantial liberalization ofitsmarket, including commitments toimplement allWTO Multilateral Trade
Agreements without anytransition period notwithstanding itsfinancial andstructural difficulties, and
toenforce theTRIPS andTRIMS Agreements fromthefirstdayofitsWTO membership. Bulgaria
wasalready amember oftheInternational Dairy andBovine Meat Agreements. Itwould become a
signatory totheAgreement onTrade inCivil Aircraft uponaccession, andwould initiate negotiations
foraccession totheAgreement onGovernment Procurement. Bulgaria hadtaken other measures in
recent months tofurther strengthen themarket principles initseconomy andcopewithitscurrent
financialdifficulties.ThesemeasureshadbeendiscussedwiththeIMFandtheWorldBank,andincluded
thefollowing: theannouncement ofalistofloss-making state-owned companies forliquidation and
privatization orisolation from thebanking system, ofwhich 12hadbeenclosed and4privatized by
theendofAugust; anincrease intheprice ofelectricity tocover production costs, andtheadoption
ofamechanism foritsmonthly adjustment inaccordance withthedynamics oftheconsumer price
indexandtheexchangerate;morethan40transactionsforthesaleofstate-ownedenterprises,amounting
toabout US$100million during theJuly-September period; preparation ofaprogramme forthecash
privatization offifteen bigstatecompanies untiltheendof1996; andtheoffering ofupto25per
centoftheBulgarian telecommunications company forprivatization tostrategic investors. Therevenue
from theabove-mentioned saleswasexpected toamount toabout US$1billion bytheendof1996,
andwould beutilized fordomestic andforeign debtservicing andfurther structural adjustment ofthe
economy. TheGovernment andtheCentral Bank were alsoworking onaprivatization programme
inthebanking sector. Anumber ofcomprehensive measures hadbeentaken bytheCentral Bank in
September tore-establish financial stability andconfidence intheBulgarian currency.
Theadoption bytheGeneral Council oftheDecision ontheAccession ofBulgaria andofthe
Working Party'sreport would beaclearmessage bytheinternational community thatthemarket-based
changes inBulgaria 'seconomy wereclearly recognized andthattheprocess ofestablishing amarket
economy wasirreversible. Bulgaria wasfullycommitted totherulesanddisciplines ofthemultilateral
trading system andintended, asaMember, toparticipate actively inthework oftheOrganization.
TheWTO wasfirmly rooted inthetradition ofconsensus-building andcooperation among itsMembers,
andembodied rights andobligations thatwereenforceable through theruleoflaw-noteconomic power -
which wasofsubstantial importance forsmaller countries likeBulgaria. Bulgaria 'saccession
negotiations hadoften broken newanddifficult ground bothintariff-related issues andintheservices
sector, andheexpressed hisGovernment 'sappreciation toallMembers fortheirconstructive dialogue,
theirspirit ofco-operation andflexibility, aswellastotheChairman oftheWorking Party. Bulgaria
considered accession totheWTO Agreement amajor achievement thatwould further reinforce the
market-based principles initseconomy intransition.WT/GC/M/14
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TheGeneral Council approved thetextoftheProtocol ofAccession (WT/ACC/BGR/7) and
thetextofthedraftDecision ontheAccession ofBulgaria and,inaccordance withtheDecision-Making
Procedures under Articles IXandXIIoftheWTO Agreement agreed inNovember 1995(WT/L/93),
adopted theDecision ontheAccession ofBulgaria (WT/ACC/BGR/6). TheGeneral Council then
adopted thereport oftheWorking Party (WT/ACC/BGR/5 andCorr.1, Add.1 andAdd.2), andtook
noteofthestatements andoftheexpressions ofsupport.
2. Accession ofPanama
- Report oftheWorking Party (WT/ACC/PAN/19 andCorr.1, Add.1 andAdd.2)
TheChairmanrecalledthatinOctober1991,theGATT1947CouncilhadestablishedaWorking
Party toexamine Panama 'srequest foraccession totheGeneral Agreement onTariffs andTrade.
Subsequently, inpursuance oftheDecision adopted bytheWTO General Council on31January 19952,
theGATT 1947Accession Working Party hadbeentransformed intoaWTO Accession Working Party.
TheWorking Party'sreport wasnowbefore theGeneral Council inWT/ACC/PAN/19 andCorr.1,
Add.1 andAdd.2.
Mrs. Guarda (Chile), introducing theWorking Party'sreport onbehalf ofitsChairman,
Mr.Tironi(Chile),saidthattheWorkingPartyhadheldseveralmeetingsfrom1994to1996toexamine
Panama 'sapplication, andtopursue market access negotiations forgoods, including thepreparation
ofanagriculture country schedule, andmarket access negotiations forservices. Addendum 1ofthe
Working Party'sreport reproduced Schedule CXLI ongoods, andAddendum 2reproduced Schedule
CXLI onservices. Thisdocumentation hadbeenadopted bytheWorking Party on19September 1996
onanadreferendum basis. Members oftheWorking Party hadnoted thatPanama hadmade remarkable
progress inreforming itseconomy anditsforeign traderegime. These reforms wereaimed atimproving
thestandardofliving,increasingemploymentopportunitiesandachievingdiversificationoftheproductive
sectors. Members hadalsoobserved thatPanama hadcome alongwaytowards ensuring thatitstrade
andeconomic regimes wereinfullconformity withtheWTO. TheAppendix tothereport reproduced
adraftdecision onPanama 'saccession andadraftProtocol ofAccession. Inaccordance withthepractice
inaccessions totheGATT 1947, theProtocol ofAccession incorporated commitments given byPanama
inrelation tocertain specific matters negotiated intheWorking Party. These commitments concerned,
interalia,theapplication ofprice controls, theapplication oftaxandcharges forservices rendered,
theapplication ofthetaxontheTransfer ofTangible Personal Property, theelimination ofquantitative
restrictions andother non-tariff measures, theelimination ofsubsidies, membership intheAgreement
onGovernment Procurement, transparency andnotifications. With Panama 'saccession totheWTO
Agreement, Latin America would befullyrepresented intheWTO. Onbehalf oftheChairman of
theWorkingParty,sheexpressedappreciationfortheopenness,cooperationandflexibilitydemonstrated
byMembers andbyPanama during arduous negotiations onsubjects thathadoften broken newand
difficult ground.
TherepresentativesofGuatemalaonbehalfofthecountriesoftheLatinAmericanandCaribbean
Group (GRULAC), Costa Rica, theUnited States, ElSalvador alsoonbehalf ofGuatemala, Honduras
andNicaragua, Ecuador, Colombia andSingapore onbehalf oftheASEAN countries welcomed and
supported theaccession ofPanama. Therepresentatives ofGuatemala onbehalf oftheGRULAC,
ElSalvador alsoonbehalf ofGuatemala, Honduras andNicaragua, andEcuador saidthatPanama 's
accession would strengthen themultilateral trading system.
2SeeWT/GC/M/1, item4(8).WT/GC/M/14
Page5
Therepresentative ofGuatemala, speaking onbehalf oftheGRULAC, saidthatPanama 's
accession totheWTO Agreement wasthesatisfactory conclusion ofalongprocess ofnegotiations
begun in1991. Panama hadaccomplished considerable progress inreforming itseconomy andforeign
trade regime. Itsdraftlegislation submitted totheWorking Party which aimed atestablishing afree
market economy fullyconsistent withitsobligations within theWTO framework would haveadirect
impact initseconomic, political andsocial spheres. Thecommitments undertaken byPanama inthe
course ofitsaccession negotiations would further liberalize itsforeign trade, establish animportant
starting point foritsparticipation inthemultilateral trading system andresult ingreater access to
international markets. Itsparticipation intheWTO would beveryconstructive. Panama 'saccession
highlighted theimportance thatthecountries oftheregion attached tothemultilateral trading system.
Therepresentative ofUnited States saidthatPanama wasoneofitsoldest andmoststeadfast
trading partners. Panama hadalready implemented many ofitsaccession commitments evenbefore
theapproval oftheWorking Party'sreport. Asadeveloping country, Panama hadhadnodifficulty
intaking onobligations inmany critical areasoftheWTO Agreement. Thequality ofitsmarket access
package clearly demonstrated Panama 'scommitment totrade liberalization andtotheprinciples of
theWTO system. TheUnited States looked forward toworking withPanama inimplementing and
elaborating theWTO system.
Therepresentative ofElSalvador, alsoonbehalf ofGuatemala, Honduras andNicaragua said
thatPanama 'scommitments ongoods andservices anditsacceptance ofWTO rules would greatly
contribute totheliberalization ofworld trade. Inthe1970s, Panama hadinitiated anegotiation process
withitsneighbours ofthesub-region withaviewtotheintegration oftheCentral American economies.
InDecember 1991, ithadsigned theTegucigalpa Protocol which hadsetuptheCentral American
Integration System. ForCentral America, itwasextremely important thattheonlycountry ofthesub-
region whose accession wasstillpending completed itsaccession process assoonaspossible.
Therepresentatives ofalarge number ofMembers, including Argentina, Australia, Bolivia,
Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, Japan, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Switzerland andVenezuela, among others, wished
tobeplaced onrecord aswelcoming andsupporting theaccession ofPanama.
Therepresentative ofPanama, speaking asanobserver, saidthatsinceJune1993when Panama
hadsubmitted amemorandum onitsforeign traderegime forreview bytheCONTRACTING PARTIES
totheGATT 1947, ithadundertaken administrative andlegislative reforms withaviewtoensuring
anefficient andspeedy accession totheOrganization. Panama hadtaken upthechallenge ofadapting
itseconomy tothedynamics ofglobalization andcompetition ininternational markets. Thischallenge
hadimplied therecognition andre-evaluation ofthefunctioning ofitspublic andprivate sectors, the
restructuring ofitseconomic policy andinparticular itsforeign tradepolicy. Itsnewpattern fortrade
conduct required considerable sacrifices andadjustments initsnational economy. Itsmarket opening
policy implied serious changes foritsdomestic productive sectors. Newprovisions oncompetition,
subsidies andcountervailing duties, phytosanitary rules, valuation andintellectual property, interalia,
hadbeenelaborated withaview toimplementing theUruguay Round Agreements which governed
these areas. Elimination oradaptation ofexisting lawswhich were inconsistent withinternational
provisions hadbeenundertaken inorder tofulfiltherecently assumed commitments. Panama 'sefforts
werebased ontheneedtoestablish asolidandpredictable structure fortrade withitstrading partners
andonthedeep-seated belief thatwithin these newrules andeconomic realities itwould achieve
economic development andgrowth. Panama recognized theachievements oftheUruguay Round and
hoped tofully participate infuture rounds ofnegotiations. Itwasconfident thatattheupcoming
Singapore Ministerial Conference, thereview ofconcluded matters andthediscussion onpending issues
would result inabetter framework forinternational trade thatwould atthesame timetakeaccount
ofdeveloping country interests. Convinced thatitshistoric tradition asabridge forworld tradewould
continue tobeconsolidated andgrowinthecoming centuries, Panama hadundertaken important actionsWT/GC/M/14
Page6
overthepasttwoyearsincluding,amongothers,theconstructionofmodernandnewharbourinstallations
byprivate enterprise, theprivatization ofportsmanaged bythestateofPanama, theaccess oftheprivate
sector toformer state-monopolies ofpublic services, entry intotheInternational Organization for
Standardization, andtheratification oftheParis Convention.
TheGeneral Council approved thetextoftheProtocol ofAccession (WT/ACC/PAN/21) and
thetextofthedraftDecision ontheAccession ofPanama and,inaccordance withtheDecision-Making
Procedures under Articles IXandXIIoftheWTO Agreement agreed inNovember 1995(WT/L/93),
adopted theDecision ontheAccession ofPanama (WT/ACC/PAN/20). TheGeneral Council then
adopted thereport oftheWorking Party (WT/ACC/PAN/19 andCorr.1, Add.1 andAdd.2), andtook
noteofthestatements andoftheexpressions ofsupport.
3. Approval ofrules ofprocedure ofsubsidiary bodies
- Committee onRegional Trade Agreements (WT/REG/1)
TheChairmandrewattentiontotherulesofprocedureformeetingsoftheCommitteeonRegional
Trade Agreements adopted bythatCommittee on2July(WT/REG/1), andproposed thattheGeneral
Council approve them.
TheGeneral Council soagreed.
4. Extensions ofwaivers pursuant toParagraph 2oftheUnderstanding inrespect ofwaivers of
obligations under GATT 1994
(a) Cuba -Paragraph 6ofArticle XVofGATT 1994 (G/L/89, G/C/W/51/Rev.1)
(b) United States -Former Trust Territory ofthePacific Islands (G/L/101, G/C/W/53)
(c) United States -ANDEAN Trade Preference Act(G/L/102, G/C/W/54)
(d) Canada -CARIBCAN (G/L/100, G/C/W/52)
(e) Communication from theEuropean Communities (G/L/107)
- European Communities -Fourth ACP-EEC Convention ofLomé (G/L/108,
G/C/W/58/Rev.1)
- France -Trading Arrangements withMorocco (G/L/109, G/C/W/59/Rev.1)
(f) South Africa -Basedates under Article I:4(G/L/104, G/C/W/56/Rev.1)
(g) Zimbabwe -Basedates under Article I:4(G/L/106, G/C/W/57/Rev.1)
TheChairman drew attention tothecommunications fromCuba, theUnited States, Canada,
theEuropean Communities, France, South Africa andZimbabwe containing requests forextensions
ofwaivers previously granted tothem under theGATT 1947, andtotherelated draftdecisions.
Mr.Narayanan (India), Chairman oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods, reporting onthe
consideration ofthese requests bytheCouncil, noted thatCuba'srequest hadbeenbefore theCouncil
on5July1996andthattheCouncil haddecided torevert tothisrequest laterinthelightoftheoutcome
ofconsultations thatwereinprogress inawider context onanumber ofwaivers coming under paragraph
2oftheUnderstanding inrespect ofwaivers ofobligations under theGATT 1994. These consultations
hadledtoanunderstanding thatthese waivers should follow theprocedure setoutinArticle IX:3of
theWTO Agreement. Subsequently, atitsmeeting on19September, theCouncil hadconsidered and
approved therequests forextensions ofwaivers thatwere listed under thepresent agenda item, and
hadforwarded therelated draftdecisions totheGeneral Council foradoption.
Therepresentative oftheUnited States saidthathisGovernment would beunable tojoinin
aconsensus ongranting anyofthese waiver requests. TheUnited States hadnoparticular substantiveWT/GC/M/14
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objection toanyoftherequests. Indeed, atthemeeting oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods on19
September, ithadpermitted thatCouncil tofavourably report thesewaiver textstotheGeneral Council,
eventhough theUSrequest foraone-year extension ofitsownwaiver toimplement itsautomotive
agreement withCanada hadbeenblocked byJapan ongrounds thatthelatter required more information
fromtheUnited States. Since thatmeeting oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods, however, theUnited
States hadneither received anyrequest forinformation norbeengiven anyspecific indication ofa
problem concerning itswaiver request. Thiswasunjustifiable andunfair, anduntilhisGovernment
received asatisfactory explanation from Japan, itwould notbeinaposition tojoininaconsensus
onthese requests.
TheChairman proposed that,inview oftheUnited States 'statement, theGeneral Council
agree torevert tothisissue atitsnextmeeting.
Therepresentative ofCuba recalled thatininformal consultations heldprior totheSeptember
meeting oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods, theprevailing viewhadbeenthateachrequest forawaiver
extension should beanalyzed onitsownmerits eventhough allmight bedealtwithinasingle meeting.
Cuba hadbeenthefirstcountry tofollow theprocedures established andtoputforward itsrequest
forawaiver extension. Hisdelegation wastherefore disappointed thattheprocess agreed tocould
notbefollowed, andthatbecause ofdifficulties withonerequest, theothers werebeing heldhostage.
Henoted thattheUnited States hadnodifficulty withthesubstance ofanyoftherequests thathad
beenconsidered bytheCouncil forTrade inGoods on19September. However, while hisdelegation
believed thatthepresent procedure should notestablish aprecedent, itwould notobject topostponing
consideration ofthese requests untilthenextmeeting.
Therepresentative ofZimbabwe recalled thattherequests before theGeneral Council had
beenapproved byconsensus bytheCouncil forTrade inGoods on19September, andthateachrequest
hadbeenconsidered separately onitsownmerit. Hehoped thatanyagreement topostpone consideration
ofthese requests, assuggested bytheChairman, didnotimply some sortof"single undertaking" with
regard tothewaivers noranycross-linkages between certain issues, andthatitwould notbeprecedent-
setting. Ifconsideration oftherequests werepostponed, itwashisunderstanding thattheywould be
taken upagain atthenextmeeting. Hisdelegation would goalong withthisprocedure given thatthe
waivers inquestion didnotexpire until31December 1996.
Therepresentative ofJapan saidthathisGovernment fullysupported therequests thatwere
before theGeneral Council, andassociated hisdelegation withthestatements byCuba andZimbabwe.
Heregretted thathisdelegation hadbeenunable asyettosubmit questions totheUnited States on
thelatter'srequest foraone-year extension ofthewaiver toimplement itsautomotive agreement with
Canada. Hisdelegation hoped tobeabletocontact theUnited States intheverynearfuture onthis
matter.
TherepresentativeofJamaicasaidhewasunclearastotheproceduresuggestedbytheChairman,
andasked iftheChairman oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods could alsospeak tothisissue sothat
theGeneral Council could beclear astowhatitsdecision wasabout tobe.
TheChairman reiterated hisproposal thatsince there wasnoconsensus onthese requests,
theGeneral Council agree torevert tothem atitsnextmeeting.
TheChairman oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods reiterated hisearlier statement thattheCouncil
hadconsideredtheserequestsandhadagreedtoforwardtherelateddraftdecisionstotheGeneralCouncil
foradoption. Therefore, thefinaldecision onthese requests nowrested withtheGeneral Council.
Herecalled alsothatinconsultations heldprior totheCouncil 'sconsideration ofthese requests, it
hadbeenconcluded thateachwaiver request wasaseparate matter andhadtobeconsidered onitsWT/GC/M/14
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ownmerits. TheCouncil hadmade itsrecommendations, anditwasfortheGeneral Council todecide
ontherequests.
Therepresentative ofJamaica asked whether thisagenda itemwould beresubmitted for
consideration atthenextmeeting initspresent form orwhether there would beadditions toit.
TheChairman saidthattheGeneral Council wasonlydealing withtheitembefore itasit
presently stood. Ifitdecided torevert tothisitem, thenitwould indeed bethisiteminitscurrent
form thatwould bereverted to.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthestatements andagreed torevert tothisitematitsnext
meeting.
5. Preparations forthe1996 Ministerial Conference
(a) Report bytheDirector-General
(b) Progress reports bytheChairpersons ofWTO bodies
(c) Election ofofficers oftheMinisterial Conference
(d) Organizational matters
(e) Attendance ofobservers attheMinisterial Conference
(i) Governments
(ii) International intergovernmental organizations
(iii) Non-governmental organizations
TheChairman saidthat,asdelegations were aware, preparatory work fortheMinisterial
Conference waspresently under wayinthevarious WTO bodies, andconsultations werealsobeing
conducted inparallel bytheDirector-General under theHeads-of-Delegations process. Inview of
this,itwashisintention toconvene anadditional meeting oftheGeneral Council on14October to
look comprehensively atthepreparatory work. Atthatmeeting, theDirector-General andthe
Chairpersons ofthedifferent WTO bodies would beinvited tomake fullprogress reports onthe
preparatory work being undertaken intheirrespective areasofresponsibility. Accordingly, under sub-
items (a)and(b)atthepresent meeting, hewould invite theDirector-General toprovide averybrief
indication ofthestate-of-play intheHeads- of-Delegations process andtheChairpersons ofthethree
sectoral Councils toprovide briefprogress reports.
(a) Report bytheDirector-General
and
(b) Progress reports bytheChairpersons ofWTO bodies
TheDirector-General saidthatconsultations under theHeads-of-Delegations process hadbeen
proceeding asagreed inJuly. Asaresult oftheconsultations, anoutline ofaMinisterial Declaration
hadbeendrawn up,which would becirculated todelegations thatdayanddiscussed atameeting on
7October. Consultations werealsocontinuing onalltheother issues under theHeads-of-Delegations
process, andhewould make afullreport onalltheconsultations attheGeneral Council meeting on
14October.
Mr.Narayanan (India), Chairman oftheCouncil forTrade inGoods, reporting under hisown
responsibility, saidthataninformal meeting oftheCouncil hadbeenconvened on7October todiscuss
primarily theformat andcontent oftheCouncil 'sreport totheMinisterial Conference. Inthis
connection, heintended toaskMembers tostatetheirviews onthefollowing matters: (i)theCouncil 's
treatment ofthereports submitted byitssubsidiary bodies inthecontext oftheMinisterial Conference;WT/GC/M/14
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(ii)aproposal byAustralia onfurther industrial tariff negotiations; (iii)thereview foreseen under
Article 6oftheAgreement onPre-shipment Inspection, inparticular inwhich WTO bodysuchareview
should takeplace aswellasitstiming; and(iv)theCouncil 'sreport onthediscussion heldonthe
implementation oftheAgreement onTextiles andClothing andrelated matters. Hewasconfident
thatthereport would befinalized intimeforthe1November meeting oftheCouncil foradoption.
Astothesubsidiary bodies, work wasgenerally ontrack. Allbodies werewelladvanced in
thepreparation oftheirdraftreports andmost hadhadaninitial discussion onthecontents ofthese
reports. Afewhadfinalized theirreports which werenowmerely awaiting formal adoption, andone
hadadopted itsreport. However, there hadalsobeensome slippages, andsome reports hadnotbeen
adopted onthedates originally envisaged. Some ofthereports wereexpected tobeonlyfactual, while
others were expected tocontain conclusions andrecommendations aswellassuggestions, along the
linessuggested bytheGeneral Council Chairman on16April.3Asregards thespecific bodies, the
Committee onMarket Access would finalize itsdraft report ataninformal meeting tobeheldon
11October, anditwasanticipated thatthereport would beadopted, asscheduled, atameeting on
18October. TheChairman oftheCommittee onRules ofOrigin hadindicated thatagreement had
beenreached onmost paragraphs ofthelatter'sreport, andwasconfident thatthefewoutstanding
areas would becleared intimeforthereport tobeadopted atameeting on11October. Thereports
oftheCommittees onCustoms Valuation andImport Licensing Procedures were factual innature,
andnomajor problems wereanticipated regarding theiradoption onthescheduled dates, namely 25
October fortheCommittee onCustoms Valuation, and23October fortheCommittee onImport
Licensing Procedures. IntheAgriculture area, thetworeports were expected tobeadopted atthe
24-25 September meeting oftheCommittee. However, further work needed tobedoneinorder to
obtain agreement onthese reports. Aspecial meeting oftheCommittee would bescheduled when
thereports wereready foradoption. Asregards theCommittee onSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures,
itwould discuss itsreport further ininformal consultations tobeheldon4October, andthereport
wasexpected tobeadopted atameeting scheduled for8-9October. ThethreeRules-area Committees,
i.e.Anti-DumpingPractices,SubsidiesandCountervailingMeasures,andSafeguards,hadtakencommon
decisions regarding theirannual reports. TheSecretariat hadbeendirected toprepare draftreports
inthesame format astheprevious year'sreports, andthereport oftheCommittee onAnti-Dumping
Practices would alsoinclude ashort section onanti-circumvention, reporting toMinisters onwhatthe
Committee haddoneandontheinformal consultations through theyear. TheSecretariat hadbeen
requested toincorporate fromtheprevious year'sreports those aspects ofimplementation thatwould
helpexplain theprogress theCommittees hadmade. TheCommittees hadrequested thatthese draft
reports becirculated inlateSeptember orearly October. Thereafter, theCommittees would meet
informally, ifMembers wished, todiscuss anyadditional matters forinclusion inthereports. The
reports would befinalized attheregular meetings oftheCommittees scheduled fortheweek of
21October. Asregards theCommittee onTechnical Barriers toTrade, arevised draftreport, which
wasfactual innature, wasexpected tobeadopted attheCommittee 'smeeting on16October, andno
problems wereanticipated. Asregards theTextiles Monitoring Body, itsreport hadbeenadopted on
1October, while theCommittee onTrade Related Investment Measures hadhadafirstdiscussion of
itsreport atitsmeeting on30September, andwould consider thereport again on11October. As
regards theWorking Group onNotification Obligations andProcedures, ithaddecided tofinalize its
report andrecommendations atameeting scheduled for3October. Thereport contained
recommendations foraction tobetaken bytheCouncil inaccordance withtheWorking Group 'sterms
ofreference. TheGroup would alsoattach toitsreport anupdated version ofdocument G/NOP/W/14
sothatthelatestsituationwithregardtofulfilmentofnotificationobligationswouldbeavailable.Finally,
withregard totheWorking Party onState Trading Enterprises, itsdraftreport hadbeendiscussed
3SeeWT/L/145.WT/GC/M/14
Page10
atameeting on26September. Further consultations would berequired tofinalize thereport, which
wasexpected tobeadopted on24October.
Mrs. Bautista (Philippines), Chairperson oftheCouncil forTrade inServices, saidthatthe
CouncilhaddiscussedthequestionofitsreporttotheGeneralCouncilandtoMinisterson23September.
Thereport would bediscussed again ataninformal meeting tobeconvened on24October andwould
befinalized on30October. TheCouncil 'sreport would contain factual information ontheworkcarried
outduring 1996, together withanyrecommendations orproposals thatmight beagreed regarding future
work. Itwould alsocontain reports ofthevarious subsidiary bodies thatreported totheCouncil.
With regard tothework ofthesubsidiary bodies, shesaidthattheWorking Party onGATS Rules
would consider itsdraftreport ataninformal meeting on8October, withtheintention offinalizing
itataformal meeting tobeheldonthesame day.TheWorking Party onProfessional Services would
consider itsreport atameeting tobeheldthatafternoon, andwould finalize itatafurther meeting
scheduled for17October. TheCommittee onSpecific Commitments would consider, andhopefully
finalize, itsreport on10October. TheGroup onBasic Telecommunications hadconsidered itsreport
forthefirsttimeon20September, andwould finalize iton18October. TheCommittee onFinancial
Services would consider, andhopefully finalize, itsreport on22October. TheGroup onMaritime
Transport Services hadalready completed itsreport. Allofthese reports bythesubsidiary bodies,
likethatoftheCouncil itself, would comprise $factual information onwork donethisyear, together
withanyproposals orrecommendations regarding theorganization offuture work.
Mr.Armstrong (New Zealand), Chairman oftheCouncil forTRIPS, saidthattheCouncil
hadtaken upthequestion ofitsreport totheGeneral Council atitsmeeting on18September. Informal
consultations hadbeenheldonthatdayandalsoon17September onthebasis ofadraftprepared by
theSecretariat. Asaresult ofthese consultations, there appeared tobeagreement onthetextofthe
descriptive partofthereport, withtheexception ofoneparagraph onwhich further workwasnecessary.
There hadalsobeenafirstdiscussion onSection IVofthereport which would contain theissues,
problems andrecommendations, ifany,thattheCouncil considered should bebrought totheattention
ofMinisters. Anumber ofproposals hadbeenputforward, which theSecretariat wascompiling into
achecklist fordistribution informally toallMembers. Heplanned toresume informal consultations
ontheCouncil 'sreport on15October andtoholdashort formal meeting oftheCouncil toadopt the
report oncethework hadreached astage which would warrant it.
TheChairman recalled thatunder thereporting procedures fortheSingapore Ministerial
Conference (WT/L/145), ithadbeensuggested thatreports ofsubsidiary bodies include, interalia,
anindication asappropriate ofissues andproblems which hadbeenidentified andrecommendations
ifany. However, inlistening tothebriefreports from theChairpersons above, ithadbecome clear
thatthere would beconclusions orrecommendations insome reports, butnotinall.With regard to
thestateofprogress ofwork insubsidiary bodies, hehadnoted from thereports thatalthough work
wasgenerally advancing satisfactorily, insome cases ithadnotbeenpossible toadopt reports onthe
dates thathadbeenscheduled. Heurged alldelegations tomake aneffort toensure theadoption of
thesubsidiary bodies 'reports ontimesothattheGeneral Council could itself adopt itsreport on
7November. Itwasimportant thatreports thathadbeenunable tobeadopted inthetime-frames
foreseen, should beadopted assoonaspossible. Asregards theDirector-General 'sreport, hehad
concluded therefrom thatonehadreached theendofthefirstphase ofidentification andanalysis of
problems, positions andproposals, andwasmoving intotheoperational phase asindicated bythe
Director-General himself. Aclearer picture oftheprocess asawhole would beavailable bythenext
meeting oftheGeneral Council on14October.
Therepresentative ofAustralia saidhewelcomed theChairman 'sreminder about timing and
about therecommendations thatanumber ofWTO bodies would beexpected tomake intheirreports.
Australia hadconsistently heldtheview thattheMinisterial Conference should focus onassessingWT/GC/M/14
Page11
progress inimplementing theoutcome oftheUruguay Round, andalsoongiving theWTO awork
programme beyond Singapore including ensuring thatappropriate post-Singapore work ofanalysis and
information gathering wascarried outtoadequately prepare theground forfurther negotiations
foreshadowed inthebuilt-in agenda oftheUruguay Round. Inthisregard, Australia hadputforward
onitsown, andtogether withother Members, proposals onpost-Singapore work which wereofthe
highest importance forit.
Inservices, Australia hadproposed apost-Singapore work programme thatwould encompass
bothon-going andother aspects ofthebuilt-in agenda yettobetaken upwithaviewtotheircontinuation
orcommencement in1997, including establishing negotiating guidelines andprocedures inaccordance
withArticle IXoftheGATS, focusing ontheon-going rules negotiations withaviewtocompleting
them before themarket-access negotiations began again in2000, intensifying work onprofessional
services, andinitiating, along thelinesalsoproposed byChile, aprocess ofanalysis andinformation
exchange onglobal developments inservices tradethatwould provide abetter, factual basisforfurther
negotiations from 2000.
Inagriculture, together withother members oftheCAIRNS Group, Australia hadproposed
apost-Singapore work programme which would enable theCommittee onAgriculture tocontinue with
itswork ofmonitoring theeffective implementation oftheAgreement onAgriculture and,importantly,
embark onawork programme consistent withallelements ofArticle 20oftheAgreement inorder
toensure thatthegroundwork forthenegotiations foreshadowed by1999 forthefurther reduction
ofsupport andprotection foragriculture wasproperly prepared.
Onindustrial tariffs, Australia wascalling fortheMinisterial Conference inSingapore to
recognize thatthere would needtobefurther broad-based tariff negotiations tocoincide withthe
negotiations onservices andagriculture totakeplace fromtheendofthedecade. Australia believed
thatthelatteraspect wasimportant tobuildthenecessary confidence thatthemarket-access negotiations
foreshadowed under thebuilt-in agenda oftheUruguay Round would takeplace onthebasisofabroad
andbalanced agenda which would encompass theinterests ofallMembers. Inthisregard, Australia
wasalsoproposing thattheMarket Access Committee begiven authority tocarry outpost-Singapore
work ofanalysis andinformation exchange toprepare theground forthese future negotiations. He
wished toemphasize, inreminding Members oftheproposals Australia hadmade, thatinnoneofthese
initiatives hadAustralia proposed theaccelerated implementation ofUruguay Round results. Norhad
Australia proposed thatanyofthedeadlines forfurther negotiations inthebuilt-in agenda bebrought
forward. What Australia didwant, however, wastoensure thatthenecessary work ofprior analysis
andinformation gathering wasundertaken toensure thatfurther market-access negotiations could be
engaged effectively fromthedatesforeshadowed intheUruguay Round package. Thatsaid,hewished
toemphasize, intheparticular caseofindustrial tariffs, thatAustralia would support further sectoral
packages oftariff liberalization with broad participation which hopefully could beagreed for
implementation atSingapore orshortly thereafter.
Further sectoral liberalization atSingapore would provide theWTO withshort-term "runs on
theboard" ontrade liberalization andwould itself constitute animportant confidence-building step
towards further, broad-based tariff negotiations tocoincide withthose onagriculture andservices.
Hetookthisopportunity toremind other Members oftheimportance thatAustralia attached tothe
preparatory workforSingapore nowongoing intheWTO councils andcommittees. Hetherefore wished
tostress theimportance fortheWTO bodies toconclude theirwork bythetime-frame thathadbeen
set.Hewelcomed, inthatcontext, theadditional General Council meeting thattheChairman intended
toconvene on14October toreview progress.
Therepresentative ofMexico saidhewould joinintheChairman 'sappeal thatthereports from
thevarious WTO bodies totheMinisterial Conference beadopted ontimeandinaccordance withtheWT/GC/M/14
Page12
established timetables. Injoining inthisappeal, healsowished tostatethatitwould bedifficult to
achieve thisobjective ifsubstantive proposals continued tobesubmitted aslateastheprevious week,
which implied either newnegotiations orare-opening ofissues thatwerenegotiated intheUruguay
Round. Inorder forthework tobecompleted intime, there hadtobeacollective responsibility in
notsubmitting new, substantive proposals atthisstage. Mexico agreed withtheChairman thatone
wasentering thesecond phase ofthepreparatory process. Inthisphase, Mexico would beinterested
ifatsome timeonecould lookintothewhole concept ofthebuilt-in agenda asanintegral concept,
andthatdelegations thathadnotbeenabletoattend themany meetings heldrecently would beable
toseethewhole built-in agenda andthefuture work programme asawhole. Hesuggested thatitwould
beuseful foralldelegations ifthereports made bytheChairpersons ofthethree sectoral Councils
atthepresent meeting could bemade available.
TheChairman saidthathefullyendorsed Mexico 'sstatement regarding thelatesubmission
ofproposals bydelegations. Thiswasindeed arisky procedure. Heagreed thatdelegations needed
alsotohaveabetter overall viewofthepreparatory process given thatnotalldelegations hadthesame
resources.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthestatements.
(c) Election ofofficers oftheMinisterial Conference
TheChairman recalled thattheRules ofProcedure forSessions oftheMinisterial Conference
(WT/L/161) provided fortheelection ofaChairperson andthree Vice-Chairpersons whowould hold
office from theendofonesession untiltheendofthenextregular session. Since theSingapore
Ministerial Conference wasthefirstMinisterial Conference, andthere wasnoelected Chairperson,
heproposed thattheGeneral Council actonbehalf oftheMinisterial Conference andelectaChairperson
andthreeVice-Chairpersons atitsmeeting on7November. Ifthisproposal wereacceptable, hewould
consult withMembers sothattheelection oftheabove officers could takeplace attheGeneral Council
meeting on7November.
Therepresentative ofKorea saidhelooked forward tothe7November General Council meeting
where heexpected thatthetwodifferent setsofofficers, onefortheSingapore Ministerial Conference
andtheother toholdoffice following thatMinisterial Conference, would beagreed on.Heasked
ifMembers were alsogoing todiscuss thevenue ofthenextMinisterial Conference.
TheChairman saidhehadproposed thaton7November theGeneral Council electonlythe
officers fortheSingapore Ministerial Conference, andnotthose thatwould holdoffice from theend
ofthatMinisterial Conference untiltheendofthenext. Thatwould bedecided inSingapore itself,
attheendoftheMinisterial Conference. Itwasclear, however, thatconsultations regarding thenext
setofofficers would havetobeheldbeforehand. There wasalsosome degree oflinkage between
thevenue ofthenextMinisterial Conference andtheofficers tobeelected attheendoftheSingapore
MinisterialConference.Thequestionofvenuewouldthereforealsohavetobelookedatinconsultations.
TheGeneral Council agreed totheproposal bytheChairman.
(d) Organizational matters
TheChairman addressed thefollowing organizational matters relating totheMinisterial
Conference.WT/GC/M/14
Page13
(i) Opening session oftheMinisterial Conference
(a) Inaccordance withtheusual practice atMinisterial meetings, abrief
inaugural ceremony would beheldattheopening session towelcome
thePrime Minister ofSingapore.
(b) Theelected Chairperson oftheMinisterial Conference would invite
thePrime Minister ofSingapore toaddress theConference.
(c) Attheendofhisaddress totheConference, thePrime Minister of
Singapore would declare thefirstMinisterial Conference oftheWTO
formally opened.
(d) AfterthedepartureofthePrimeMinisterofSingapore,theChairperson
would takeupthefollowing business onthemorning ofMonday, 9
December:
(i) Adoption oftheAgenda.
(ii) Agreement ontheOrder ofBusiness.
(iii) Introduction oftheReport oftheGeneral Council bythe
Chairman oftheGeneral Council.
(iv) Introduction oftheReport onanoverview ofdevelopments
ininternational trade andthetrading system bytheDirector-
General.
(v) Statements byMinisters.
(ii) Listofspeakers
Members wishing tospeak attheMinisterial Conference should contact theSecretariat
andmake reservations foraspecific timenotlaterthan1November 1996. Statements
should belimited toamaximum offiveminutes. Ifadelegation sowished, alonger
textwould becirculated indocument form totheMinisterial Conference.
Requestsforreservationsfortimeslotsmadeafter1Novemberwouldbeaccommodated
inaccordance withtheavailability oftime. Thepurpose ofthisprocedure wastoenable
theSecretariat toorganize inadvance thesequence ofplenary sessions oftheMinisterial
Conference.
Therepresentative ofSingapore informed theGeneral Council thatonly75delegations had
thusfarindicated theiraccommodation requirements tohisauthorities, andurged other delegations
toalsodoassoonaspossible inorder tohelphisauthorities provide alldelegations withfacilities as
close aspossible totheConference Centre.
TheChairman saidthathehoped alldelegations hadtaken duenoteofSingapore 'splea,and
thatitwasimportant totryandfacilitate thehostcountry 'sownpreparatory work fortheMinisterial
Conference.
TherepresentativeofZimbabweaskedwhethertheChairmanintendedtoprovideanyinformation
regarding theso-called business meetings tobeheldduring theMinisterial Conference, aswellason
other meetings thatwould beheldtodealwithanyMinisterial Declaration orother substantive matters.
Mr.Barthel-Rosa, Secretary oftheGeneral Council, saidthattheformal order ofbusiness
fortheMinisterial Conference would actually bedecided attheopening meeting oftheMinisterial
Conference itself. What wasbeing envisaged wasplenary meetings inthemorning andafternoon of
Monday, 9December, andthereafter plenary meetings onlyinthemornings, inorder toallow theWT/GC/M/14
Page14
afternoons tobefreeforMinisters towork andconsult. Thiswastheideabehind the"business"
meetings tobeheldintheafternoons. There wasasyetnodecision ontheshape orform orcontent
ofthese meetings. Thiswould onlybedecided inthelightoftheprogress ofthepreparatory work.
TheChairman saidthatifdelegations required anyadditional information regarding the
organizational aspects oftheMinisterial Conference, theyshould contact theSecretariat.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthestatements.
(e) Attendance ofobservers attheMinisterial Conference
(i) Governments
TheChairman recalled thatunder theguidelines forobserver status forgovernments inthe
WTO (WT/L/161, Annex 2),governments accorded observer status intheGeneral Council andits
subsidiary bodies "shall beinvited toattend sessions oftheMinisterial Conference asobservers." The
procedure, therefore, forgovernments presently accorded observer status intheGeneral Council and
itssubsidiary bodies wasclear: theywould beinvited asamatter ofcourse tothe1996 Ministerial
Conference. However, other governments thatwished tohave observer status attheMinisterial
Conference, anddidnotatpresent havesuchstatus intheGeneral Council anditssubsidiary bodies,
would havetomake aformal request inaccordance withtheprovisions ofparagraph 1oftheguidelines.
Anysuchrequests would beexamined inaccordance withtheprocedures setoutintheguidelines.
Furthermore, observer governments thatwished tospeak attheMinisterial Conference would beinvited
todosoafterMembers hadspoken, asprovided forintheprocedures.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthestatement.
(ii) International intergovernmental organizations
TheChairman informed theGeneral Council thatthefollowing organizations which werenot
alreadyobserverstotheWTOhadrequestedattendanceatthe1996MinisterialConference:theCommon
Market forEastern andSouthern Africa (COMESA); theCentral American Bank forEconomic
Integration; theCommon Fund forCommodities; andtheIslamic Development Bank. Heproposed
thattheGeneral Council accept these requests andinvite these organizations asobservers tothe
Ministerial Conference.
TheGeneral Council soagreed.
(iii) Non-governmental organizations
TheChairman recalled thatattheGeneral Council meeting on18July,amethod ofproceeding
withregard tonon-governmental organizations hadbeenagreed, andalsothatalistofNGOs thathad
applied forattendance would becirculated fortheinformation oftheGeneral Council. TheSecretariat
hadsubsequently examined carefully therequests fromNGOs andchecked thatonlyapplications from
NGOs "concerned withmatters related tothose oftheWTO" wereaccepted. Onthatbasis, 118NGOs
hadcomplied withtherequirements andhadreceived aregistration form. These organizations were
listed inaninformal document thathadjustbeencirculated bytheSecretariat. Heinvited delegations
toexamine thislistandproposed that,intheabsence ofanyreservations fromdelegations by4October,
theSecretariat sendaconfirmation tothese NGOs inviting them totheMinisterial Conference.
Therepresentative ofMexico saidthatthiswasadelicate andsensitive matter, anditwas
inappropriate toexpect thatgovernments would beabletoexamine thelistcirculated bytheSecretariatWT/GC/M/14
Page15
before 4October. Before governments could address thisquestion, theywould alsoneedaveryclear
ideaastothemodalities fortheattendance ofNGOs atSingapore. Thepresent agenda item, for
example, wasentitled "Attendance oforganizations asobservers attheMinisterial Conference" and,
asallwereaware, observers could beinvited tospeak atmeetings afterMembers hadspoken. This
implied thatNGOs could beinvited tospeak attheMinisterial Conference. However, hisdelegation
didnotrecall thatthemodalities ofattendance ofNGOs hadbeendiscussed. Furthermore, aquick
perusal ofthenames oftheNGOs onthelistshowed thatabout tenofthem hadaninterest inlabour
issues. However, theunderstanding hadbeenthatNGOs tobesentregistration forms would bethose
"concerned withmatters related tothose oftheWTO". Hisdelegation wished tobeinformed ingreater
detail ofthemajor activities ofeachofthese NGOs andtheirparticular interest inattending, andwas
notinaposition toagree tothedeadline of4October. Itbelieved thatconsultations needed tobeheld
toclarify several important issues.
TheChairman saidthatNGOs clearly didnothave anyright tospeak attheMinisterial
Conference. TheRules ofProcedure fortheMinisterial Conference (WT/L/161) provided onlyfor
observer governments andobserver international intergovernmental organizations tobeinvited tospeak
atmeetings atwhich theywereobservers. Non-governmental organizations clearly didnothavesuch
status, andtherefore norighttospeak.
Mr.Frank, Director oftheExternal Relations Division, recalled thatatthe18JulyGeneral
Council meeting ithadbeenagreed thatcertain facilities should beprovided forNGOs attheSingapore
Ministerial Conference. Ithadalsobeenagreed thattheNGOs invited would not"participate" inthe
Ministerial Conference inanyway, butwould onlybeinvited toattend theplenary meetings. An
information centre fortheNGOs would alsobesetupneartheConference centre, andtheywould
beinvited toparticipate incultural activities tobeorganized bythehostgovernment inparallel with
theMinisterial Conference. Inorder fortheNGOs toparticipate inthese activities, theywould be
supplied withbadges upon receipt oftheirregistration forms. These modalities hadbeenpublished
fortheinformation ofallin"Focus", theWTO newsletter. AstheChairman hadjustnoted, NGOs
hadnotbeengranted "observer" status inanywayintheWTO. Indeed, on18July,theGeneral Council
hadadopted guidelines forarrangements onrelations withNGOs (WT/L/162) pursuant toArticle V:2
oftheWTO Agreement, which hadestablished themodalities forWTO 'srelations with these
organizations. Theselection oftheNGOs tobeinvited toSingapore hadbeenundertaken byaselection
committee, inwhich different divisions oftheSecretariat hadbeenrepresented, andeachrequest had
beencarefully scrutinized. Asaresult ofthisprocess, afinallistof118organizations hadbeendrawn
up,which consisted ofNGOs inthestrictest sense oftheterm. Henoted thatadeadline of1October,
i.e.theprevious day,hadbeensetforreceiving applications, asaresult ofwhich thelistcould not
becirculated todelegations sooner.
TheChairman asked iftheSecretariat could clarify thereasons forselecting 4October asthe
dateforsending aconfirmation tothese NGOs.
TheDirector oftheExternal Relations Division saidthattheGeneral Council on18Julyhad
agreed essentially toatwo-stage procedure withregard toNGOs. NGOs hadfirsttomake aformal
request forattendance andexplain howtheiractivities related tothose oftheWTO, onthebasis of
which alistofNGOs tobeinvited wastobedrawn up.Thereafter, ifdelegations didnotindicate
anyproblems withthelist,those NGOs were toreceive confirmation ofregistration. Forlogistical
reasons, andtohelpNGOs findaccommodation inSingapore, which theycould onlydooncethey
hadreceived confirmation oftheiracceptance, theconfirmation notices needed tobesentoutatthe
earliest opportunity.
Therepresentative ofKorea saidhisGovernment attached great importance tothisissue, and
didnotbelieve thattherehadbeenatransparent andcomprehensive information dissemination process.WT/GC/M/14
Page16
Korea could notaccept thedeadline of4October. Ithadnotreceived anycomprehensive, organized
information ontheapplications tobemade fortheparticipation ofNGOs. IfKorea hadknown, for
example, thatnational Chambers ofCommerce were alsoqualified forparticipation asNGOs in
Singapore, itwould havebeenprepared tosubmit applications. Thisinformation hadtherefore tobe
provided toallMembers andanewdeadline forapplications set.Members hadnotbeenmade aware
ofthewhole range oforganizations thatcould qualify forparticipation inSingapore, northatthere
would beaselection committee toscrutinise theapplications. Hereiterated thatallthisinformation
should bemade available, andthedeadline extended.
TheChairman saidthatanextension ofthedeadline would havetobeconsidered ifthatwere
thewishofdelegations. However, hebelieved itwould bedifficult atthebeginning ofOctober to
consider resuming theselection process. Herecalled thecriteria thathadbeenagreed inJuly, and
noted thatthisinformation hadbeenmade public. However, hewould bewilling toholdconsultations
onthismatter ifdelegations wished.
Therepresentative ofIndia saidthathisdelegation shared Mexico 'sconcerns. Hepresumed
thattheNGOs thathadapplied forparticipation hadbeentoldclearly thattheywould notbeallowed
tospeak. Asregards thelistthathadjustbeen circulated, hebelieved itwasreasonable togive
delegations some further timetoexamine it.
Therepresentative ofMorocco saidheendorsed anumber ofthecomments byMexico and
Korea. Given theimportance ofthismatter, andthatthiswasthefirsttimetheWTO would beinviting
theparticipation ofNGOs, delegations would needalittlemore timetoreflect onthis. While itwas
truethattheGeneral Council hadmandated theSecretariat toreceive requests fromNGOs andtomake
aselection, delegations wished tohavesome more information ontheprocess. Morocco would wish
toknow, forexample, thenumber ofNGOs thathadactually requested attendance, andwhich NGOs,
ifany,hadbeenrejected andthecriteria therefor. There wasnouniversally accepted definition of
anNGO, andthepractice applied byother organizations, namely touseasareference point those
NGOs thathadUNECOSOC observer status, could havebeenusedbytheWTO. Hesupported the
suggestion thatthedeadline forrequests forattendance beextended. Hisdelegation, forexample,
hadonlybecome aware uponexamining theSecretariat 'slistthatnational chambers ofcommerce could
participate. Thisbeing so,hewould wishtohaveMorocco 'sChamber ofCommerce considered for
participation.
Therepresentative ofPakistan saidthatdelegations hadtoexamine withgreat caution thelist
thathadbeencirculated thatmorning. Pakistan wondered howseveral oftheNGOs included inthe
listcould bereconciled withthecriterion thattheyshould be"concerned withmatters related tothose
oftheWTO", particularly when theyappeared todealwithlabour standards, onwhich therewassuch
araging debate intheWTO. Pakistan noted alsotheinclusion inthelistofanumber ofNGOs dealing
particularly withenvironmental issues. Hebelieved thatdelegations needed tolookatthislistmore
carefully, devote therequisite timetoit,consult withtheircapitals andwithothers, including the
Secretariat, andrevert toitatafuture date. Hesuggested thatdelegations thatwished toprovide an
input intotheprocess should havetheopportunity todoso.
Therepresentative ofSingapore saidthat,asthehostcountry, hisGovernment hadtaken the
viewthatNGOs which hadindicated agenuine interest intheWTO 'swork should notbediscouraged
fromattending theMinisterial Conference. Singapore believed thattheWTO should betheconcern
notonlyofMember governments butalsoofsociety atlarge. While heappreciated thereasons for
therequests toextend thedeadline, hisauthorities hadaparticular problem relating toaccommodation,
andwould needtoknow asearly aspossible thenumber ofNGOs thatwould attend. Heurged
delegations toapproach thisissuepositively andnotnegatively. Thiswould betheWTO 'sfirstcontact
withNGOs, andMembers should show thattheywished tohaveadialogue withtheNGOs andtoWT/GC/M/14
Page17
dealwiththeissues thatallwere faced withinadignified manner thatwould advance thecause of
freertrade andgrowth anddevelopment.
Therepresentative ofVenezuela saidthattheconcerns expressed byMexico wereshared by
several other delegations, including hisown. Atthesame time, onehadtoacknowledge thatthe
responses provided bytheSecretariat hadsatisfactorily metthese concerns, particularly regarding the
limited rights ofparticipation oftheNGOs, thattheywould beallowed onlytoattend plenary meetings
andwould nothavetherighttospeak. Hebelieved, however, hatitwould bereasonable toconsider
additional timefordelegations tobeabletotakeacloser lookatthelistofNGOs.
Therepresentative ofMexico saidthathisdelegation wasnottaking anegative approach towards
NGOs. Itbelieved, however, thatitwasunfortunate thatanimportant decision suchasthiswastaken
on18Julyunder "Other Business". Thismatter should havebeenincluded ontheregular agenda so
thatdelegations could havecome prepared forit.Toavoid anymisunderstandings, Mexico believed
itwasimportant tohaveaclear picture ofthemodalities fortheattendance ofNGOs atSingapore.
With regard tothelistoftheNGOs tobeinvited, hebelieved thatMembers should takethefinal
decision, andnotaSecretariat selection committee. Hisdelegation didnotintend todelay thisprocess
inanywayandwould beready toparticipate inconsultations immediately toresolve thematter, in
viewofSingapore 'sconcerns.
TheChairman saidthatalthough thismatter hadbeenbrought totheGeneral Council on18July
under "Other Business", thishadbeendoneasafollow-up toopen-ended consultations thathadbeen
heldwithdelegations. Furthermore, therecords showed thathehadstated thefollowing atthatmeeting:
"...Itwasnotnecessary tohaveaformal decision bytheGeneral Council onthelistofNGOs tobe
invited. ItwasclearthatifanyMember hadaproblem withthelistcirculated bytheSecretariat, this
would beresolved through consultations. Thelistwould beconsidered approved intheabsence of
anyreservations toit"(WT/GC/M/13, item11(b)). Herecognized thatthereweresome reservations,
andheintended toaddress them. However, hewished tounderline thathewasfullyrespecting the
procedure thathadbeenagreed inJuly. Neither henortheSecretariat wereattempting toimpose any
listonanydelegation. Thedeadline of4October hadresulted from internal consultations andhad
intended torespond totimeconstraints andtoenable accommodation requirements tobemetbythe
hostcountry. Thisdatecould beextended ifdelegations wished, andhewould revert tothisquestion
later.
Therepresentative ofBolivia saidsheendorsed Mexico 'sandVenezuela 'sstatements regarding
theneedtoclarify some basic concepts regarding NGO participation. Herdelegation agreed thatthe
firstMinisterial Conference would bedefinitive insetting aprecedent forfuture participation. A
reasonable criterion would betoselect those NGOs whose interests related toissues presently dealt
withintheWTO, andnottoissues onwhich notevenaconsensus astoafuture agenda intheWTO
hadbeenreached. Shesuggested thattheSecretariat sendcopies oftherequests received fromNGOs
todelegations tothattheycould transmit thisinformation totheirauthorities.
Therepresentative ofKorea saidthattheissue athand wasnotoneoftheGeneral Council
discussing, onthebasisoftheSecretariat 'slist,whether oneortwoMembers hadreservations toany
oftheentities listed therein. There was,infact,amore fundamental issue involved. IfKorea had
known, forexample, thatorganizations suchasanational Chamber ofCommerce, ortheCatholic
Institute forInternational Relations were qualified forparticipating attheSingapore Ministerial
Conference, itwould havecome forward withmore names ofentities. Korea hadnotparticipated
inanyconsultations heldbytheChairman, andhadnotknown whattypes ofentities were qualified
tosubmit requests. Hereiterated hissuggestion thatthedeadline forthereceipt ofapplications be
extended.WT/GC/M/14
Page18
TheChairman saidthat,ashadbeenagreed, delegations hadbeenprovided withalistofNGOs
tobeinvited, andtheyhadnowtoexamine it.Ifthedeadline fordoing thiswasfelttobetooshort,
itwould havetobeextended, aswasthewishofdelegations. Atthesame time, hebelieved that
consultations would havetobeheldtoclarify anypoints andtoavoid anymisunderstandings. In
extending thedeadline, however, theneeds andrequirements oftheNGOs aswellasofthehostcountry
would needtobetaken intoaccount. With thisinmind, hesuggested thatthedeadline beextended
to11October, andthatconsultations beheldinthemeantime onallaspects ofthematter athand.
Therepresentative ofMorocco recalled thatthere hadbeenonedeadline of1October forthe
submission ofrequests byNGOs, andanother of4October fordelegations toexamine thelistdrawn
upbytheSecretariat andindicate anyreservations theymight have. Hisdelegation hadwished to
havethedeadline forrequests toattend tobeextended. Heunderstood fromtheChairman 'sstatement
thatbothdeadlines would nowbeextended.
TheChairman saidthattheproblem ofextending the1October deadline wasthatithadbeen
announced publicly invarious journals andpublications, aswellasontheinternet. Hewould hold
consultations toseewhatcould bedone. Hebelieved onewould havetolookintoanyorganizational
difficulties thatmight arise, andconsult alsowithSingapore 'sauthorities. Itwasessential inthis
operation toavoid sending anymessages thatwere notpositive asregards NGO participation at
Singapore. Themodalities forthisparticipation wereclear, andMembers should trytomeettherequests
from NGOs asmuch aspossible. Hereiterated thathewould holdconsultations toprovide allthe
necessary information andtomeetalltheconcerns ofdelegations.
Therepresentative oftheUnited States saidthat,likeMorocco, hisdelegation toohadaquery
astowhatwasbeing prolonged until11October. Heunderstood nowfromtheChairman 'sstatement
thatthedeadline forcomments fromdelegations wasbeing prolonged to11October, butnotthedeadline
forreceiving requests from NGOs.
TheChairman saidhewould havepreferred thattheextension ofthedeadline forNGO requests
bedecided ononcetheorganizational elements hadbeenexamined withSingapore. Hedidnotbelieve
thattheGeneral Council could decide thisatthepresent meeting, outofconcern thatthismight place
Singapore inaverydifficult situation. Ofcourse, ifdelegations wished toextend thisdeadline now,
itwould beuptothem, andSingapore might wellhaveaviewonthis. Hewould suggest thatatthe
present meeting theGeneral Council extend onlythedeadline forcomments onthelistthatdelegations
hadreceived andthatdelegations seeinthecourse ofthesubsequent consultations whatother decisions
might betaken. Inviewofthepractical elements involved, hebelieved thatthe1October deadline
could notbedebated atthepresent meeting without more information. Ifthere wasaconsensus
subsequently ontheextension ofthedeadline, thentheSecretariat could extend itwithhisagreement
andinconsultation withdelegations, without having totakeaformal decision.
Therepresentative ofKorea saidthathedidnotagree withtheprocedure proposed. Hebelieved
thattheGeneral Council could takeanydecision, including adecision torevise whatever hadbeen
agreed onearlier. TheGeneral Council wasfullyauthorized tomake newdecisions. There hadbeen
asuggestion atthepresent meeting, supported byseveral delegations, toextend thedeadline forreceiving
applications fromNGOs. TheGeneral Council wasverymuch inaposition totakeadecision onthis
suggestion. Hisdelegation could notaccept anyrulings from theChair thatwent counter tothe
fundamental authority oftheGeneral Council totakeanydecisions.
TheChairman saidthatifthere wasaformal proposal atthepresent meeting toextend the
1October deadline, hewould certainly notoppose it.Hehadmerely wished tobeabletoconsult
withSingapore astowhatareasonable dateshould be.However, ifdelegations feltthatconsiderationWT/GC/M/14
Page19
tobesuperfluous, thenonecould certainly extend thedeadline. Heasked ifdelegations hadanyspecific
datetopropose.
Therepresentative ofKorea proposed thedateof15October.
Therepresentative ofIndia saidhehadnoted thatbothSingapore andtheChairman had
mentioned sending apositive signal toNGOs. However, Korea, India andafewother delegations
wereasking onlyforafewmore days'timesothatthose NGOs thathadpreviously thought theywere
ineligible, could nowapply. Asregards theneedtotakeintoconsideration thepractical arrangements
tobemade bythehostcountry, hewascertain thatgiven thewell-known efficiency oftheSingapore
authorities, theycould becounted ontomake excellent arrangements evenatshort notice. Therefore,
ifsome Members wanted afewmore days'timetoallow some oftheirNGOs tosubmit applications
forattendance, theChairman should trytofindaway, informal orformal, thatwould permit this.
Therepresentative ofEcuador saidthat,likeothers, hisdelegation wished tohavesomeconcrete
elements before taking adecision onthelistofNGOs. Hesuggested thattheSecretariat prepare a
short document containing alltheinformation thatithadregarding themodalities fortheattendance
andparticipation oftheNGOs atSingapore. Although some ofthisinformation might havebeen
provided ininformal consultations, itwould beuseful toupdate andconsolidate alltheinformation
andtheexchanges ofviews regarding themodalities fortheparticipation ofNGOs inasingle document,
which could perhaps beannexed toanupdated version ofthelistthathadbeencirculated thatmorning.
TheChairman saidthattheSecretariat would prepare thedocument requested byEcuador.
Hehoped thatconsultations could beheldevenifthedocument were notready, although itwould
clearly bemade available assoonaspossible. Hebelieved delegations wereinfavour ofextending
thedeadline forNGOs tosubmit applications until15October, andproposed thatconsultations beheld
inthemeantime toclarify allelements ofinterest todelegations. Since thenextmeeting oftheGeneral
Council wasscheduled for14October, amethod forapproving thelistoftheNGOs assoonaspossible
afterthedeadline of15October forsubmission ofapplications would havetobefound.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthestatements, andagreed thattheSecretariat would prepare
apaper outlining theagreed modalities fortheattendance ofNGOs attheMinisterial Conference and
thatthedeadline forregistration ofNGOs beextended to15October.
6. Observer status forinternational intergovernmental organizations
TheChairman, speaking under "Other Business", recalled that,inaccordance withtheadhoc
arrangementsforobserverstatusforinternationalintergovernmentalorganizationsapprovedataninformal
meeting ofHeads ofDelegations on16March 19954,andasagreed attheGeneral Council meeting
on18July1996, thefollowing organizations hadbeeninvited asobservers tothepresent meeting:
United Nations, UNCTAD, IMF, World Bank, FAO, WIPO andOECD. Itwashisunderstanding
that,pending agreement ontheorganizations tobeaccorded observer status intheGeneral Council
inaccordance withtheguidelines forsuchstatus agreed on18July5,theabove organizations would
alsobeinvited alsotothenextmeeting.
TheGeneral Council tooknoteofthisinformation.
4SeeWT/GC/M/3, item3.
5SeeWT/L/161, Annex 3.