WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/23
9December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5199)
Original: Spanish MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
COLOMBIA
Statement byH.E. Dr.Felipe Jaramillo
Vice-Minister ofForeign Trade
Speaking onbehalf ofColombia atthisfirstMinisterial Conference oftheWorld Trade
Organization, Iwould liketoexpress mysincere gratitude tothepeople andGovernment ofSingapore.
Iwould alsoliketocongratulate Mr.YeoCheow Tong, theMinister forTrade andIndustry, forhis
appointment asChairman oftheConference.
Theseriousness andefficiency withwhich theauthorities ofSingapore haveprepared thisevent
clearly reflect thedynamism andentrepreneurial capacity ofacountry which stands outasoneofthe
leading actors ininternational trade andoneofthemost enthusiastic proponents ofmultilateralism.
Italsogives megreat personal satisfaction toleadmycountry 'sdelegation atthisfirstWTO
Ministerial Conference.
Indeed, ithasbeenmyresponsibility toparticipate intheentire negotiation process, beginning
withthe1982Ministerial Conference which mapped outtheGATT 'swork programme forthe1980s.
Thatprocess, which culminated inthePunta delEsteMinisterial Declaration, originated with
adocument submitted bySwitzerland andColombia withtheactive participation ofagroup ofcountries
inwhich itmust berecognized thatSingapore played aprominent role.
Thetreethatweplanted atthattimeisjustnowbeginning tobearfruit.
Twoandahalfyears ago,ourGovernments signed theMarrakesh Agreements andfounded
theWorld Trade Organization, astepwhich hashadaprofound impact oninternational economic
relations.
Intheshort period since thesigning oftheAgreements administered bytheWTO, thebenefits
ofthenewmultilateral system, which provides Members withaguarantee ofpredictability and
transparency foritstrading activities, arealready tangible. Thecornerstone oftheWTO system is
thedispute settlement procedure, which places allofthecountries onanequal footing inrespect of
thelegalsystem adopted, andconstitutes anappropriate means ofcurtailing unilateral discriminatory
practices.
Colombia istherefore convinced oftheimportance ofensuring thatMembers haverecourse
toinstitutional mechanisms when conflicts arise intrade relations between them, andthatthe
recommendationsissuedbythepanelsandtheAppellateBodyshouldbefullyandpromptlyimplemented.
Thisisessential tothecredibility ofthemultilateral trade system.
TheUruguay Round wasalongandcomplicated negotiation process which, while itproduced
results thatwerebeneficial totheinternational community asawhole, failed toliveuptocertain hopes,WT/MIN(96)/ST/23
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above allinthedeveloping countries, andimposed commitments which callforconsiderable efforts
onourpart.
Itisclearthatwhile thedeveloped countries haveexpanded market access fortheirgoods and
services, adapted multilateral agricultural subsidy policies totheirownneeds andsubstantially increased
theprotection oftheirintellectual property rights, thedeveloping countries stillfaceserious restrictions
intheiraccess toexternal markets forproducts inrespect ofwhich theyarenaturally competitive.
Thisisparticularly truefortheagriculture, textile andfisheries sectors.
Moreover, ourcountries continue toencounter export barriers deriving fromtheapplication
ofsafeguard mechanisms, anti-dumping measures andsanitary restrictions aswellasother unilateral
measures, allegedly introduced onsuchirrefutable grounds asenvironmental protection.
Finally, wecannot butbeconcerned attheprospect oftheelimination orsubstantial reduction,
within afewyears, ofthedifferential treatment currently enjoyed bythedeveloping countries with
respect totheapplication ofcertain WTO disciplines before thecircumstances which gaverisetothem
havebeenovercome.
Thesearetheconsiderationsthatmustbeborneinmindwhenanalysingandassessingcompliance
withtheAgreements, themain taskofthisConference.
Ascanbeseenfromtherecent Trade Policy Review forColombia, ourGovernment, inaddition
toitsownpolicy ofopenness, hasdoneitsutmost toimplement themultilateral agreements properly.
Anumber ofnewideasandproposals emerged during thepreparatory work fortheMinisterial
Conference, aimed atbroadening thescope ofexisting regulations and,insome cases, theterms of
reference oftheWTO itself.
Thishasgiven risetoanumber ofconflicts, above allwhere theAgreements already contain
anagenda calling forfreshcommitments andadditional efforts, particularly onthepartofthedeveloping
countries.
There isclearly acertain momentum andthere areclearly anumber ofrealities inthe
development ofinternational trade which cannot leave usindifferent. Butwemust becareful in
generating newburdens andobligations forwhich many ofusarenotyetprepared.
Twonewaspects haveappeared onthescene which areclosely linked totradeandhaveastrong
influence inthatarea: investment andcompetition. Given theirimpact ondevelopment andmarket
access, thesetwoaspects cannot bedissociated fromourpolicies andourAgreements. Thus, Colombia
considers thatthetimehascome toundertake ananalysis inthatrespect which would enable usto
identify possible elements formultilateral negotiation.
Thesubject oflabour standards andtheirpossible inclusion bytheWTO initsworkprogramme
hasbeenparticularly controversial. Many ofushavebeenunable tofindlegalorinstitutional grounds
fortheirinclusion intheWTO 'sdisciplines andtrade regulations.
Quite apartfromthefactthattheycould giverisetoattitudes thatcould hinder tradeandgenerate
newforms ofprotectionism, witharesulting decrease inourcapacity togenerate employment, Colombia
doesnotthink thatitisrealistic tolinklabour rights withtrade liberalization programmes.
Theonerelationship which isdeserving ofattention isthelinkbetween tradeanddevelopment.
Totheextent thatthemostdeveloped countries openuptheirmarkets inacommercially significantWT/MIN(96)/ST/23
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waytothedeveloping countries, thelatterwillbeabletobuilduptheirresources, improve theirstandard
ofliving, andhence endeavour toreform thelabour environment andpromote greater social justice
athome.
While Colombia isaware oftheneedtopreserve andimprove therights andliving conditions
ofworkers, itconsiders thattheexamination anddiscussion ofthesubject fallsoutside thescope of
theWTO. Itshould bedealtwithexclusively bytheInternational Labour Organization astheSpecialized
Agency responsible forlabour rights.
Before concluding, Iwould liketopayatribute totheDirector-General oftheWTO,
Mr.Renato Ruggiero, andtothewhole Secretariat, andtocongratulate them fortheiroutstanding
achievements throughout thetwoyears oftheOrganization 'sexistence. They form aninternational
teamofthehighest quality, andonewhich without anydoubt deserves ourgratitude andinstitutional
support.
Theglobalization andliberalization oftrade havegenerated newopportunities andincreased
hopeforthedevelopment ofpeoples, increased wealth andimproved living conditions.
Disparity continues tobegreat, andourdutyastheengineers ofchange istonarrow thegap
between therichandthepoorsothatprosperity canbemore fairly distributed.
Speaking fromSingapore, which hasitselfbeenthescene ofoneofthemostfantastic economic
success stories ofthiscentury, Colombia confirms itsdetermination toparticipate actively anddecisively
inthismultilateral commitment tobuild abetter andfairer world.