WTO Public Symposium 2003: Parliaments and the WTO

Organized by the IPU

Inter-Parliamentary Union Report on the session

The IPU and the WTO organized a specific panel session on the role of parliamentarians within the WTO. Dr. Supachai opened the meeting by explaining the many efforts the WTO has made to involve parliamentarians, mentioning the meeting that is planned to be held in Cancun with the IPU only days before the ministerial. Well attended by members of parliament from all over the world, the debate was both constructive and lively.

Debate Themes

Growing threats to multilateralism:  Should parliaments be concerned?

One of the themes of this discussion were the current threats to multilateralism. Proliferating free trade agreements was one problem returned to again and again. The Director-General used the term "messy" to describe the amount of FTAs, both bilateral and regional. With 270 currently notified to the WTO, multilateralism is undermined because of the many preferential treatment clauses involved in these FTAs. The second type of threat that came up was decidedly less diplomatic. Many of the panelists, as well as members of Parliament in the audience brought up the image problem, mostly a feeling of mistrust and discomfort with the trade system, that the WTO has suffered from since the Seattle Ministerial.

The resounding feeling concerning this troubling trend was that, yes, parliaments should be concerned. With the increased interconnectedness of the modern global economy countries have to, more and more, rely on each other. There is no other alternative for many small economies, except for a dependence on a multilateral rule based system. Collective action through multilateral trade is the most promising method of reviving the slow state of growth worldwide.

Missed deadlines in the Doha Round:  How can parliaments help advance the negotiations?

Parliaments, as elected representatives of their country's people, have a unique position in supporting the WTOs negotiations. The most important aspect of this role is that of communicator. Given their elected status, the opinion of parliamentarians carries extra weight. If the Parliaments of member countries can explain to the masses how important successful negotiation through the WTO is, then the public pressure necessary to have trade ministers willing to negotiate ("give and take") may be achieved. There was an overwhelming feeling throughout the discussion, that if parliamentarians put in effort to help their public have a clear and balanced picture of the WTO, many gains can be made and missed deadlines can be recovered.

Panelists

Welcome by WTO Director-General Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi

Moderator: Mr. Geert Versnick, MP (Belgium)

Mr. John Dupraz, MP (Switzerland)

Mr. Michel Hansenne, member of the European Parliament

Mr. Ricardo Melendez-Ortiz, Executive Director of the ICTSD