To all citizens:
(I have the text of the FTAA as at Feb 1998 obtained from Inside US Trade - Volume 16, No. 5 - (c) Inside Washington Publishers)
The MAI is emerging in the FTAA (Free Trade Agreement of the Americas- an agreement to encompass all the Americas except Cuba) . THE FTAA process was launched in 1994 along with the WTO. (World Trade Organization) The MAI (Multilateral Agreement on Investments) was a hope to synchronize corporatization in one fell swoop,i.e., put an end to the regional efforts in the smaller agreements like the FTA (Free Trade Agreement- between Canada and the USA) and the NAFTA (North American Free Trade AGreement- originally among Canada USA and Mexico)and the FTAA (planned for entry by 2005). When we killed the MAI negotiations , we did not kill the Beast. It just continued to mutate. Elsewhere around the world, similar mutations are being cinched in comparable agreements.
I have finally obtained the text of the terms of the FTAA as at February 1998. The terms will have become even more odious by now after two years of negotiations. (Someone out there in our contacts must have access to more recent terms) I set out only some parts of the text below. The whole is very long. I will try to include the whole as an attachment. If you cannot or do not want to open the attachment, or if it does not come along, you will be able to see the whole document on the website of the Defence of Canadian Liberty Committee after the Easter weekend. www.canadianliberty.bc.ca I will also e mail the whole to anyone who requests it from me: cfogal@netcom.ca
If you had any doubts as to whether Canada's trade ministers and officials and cabinet were really selling us out, or whether or not any of the Canadian government were lying to us, or whether all of our elected Members of Parliament and Members of the Legislative Assemblies in all the provinces are doing their duty to us the citizens, read for yourself and judge.
Apologies to those who find the terms hard to follow. Take your time. Read carefully in light of all you have been reading and learning for the last two years on this issue of globalization. (Where there are brackets around some clauses, that means they had not yet exactly decided that point as at Feb 98)
The important thing is to see how the language is the same here as in the MAI as is the WTO as in the NAFTA etc.
CANADIANS HAVE TO REALIZE WE CANNOT HAVE THESE AGREEMENTS AND CANADA too. The same applies for citizens of the other countries in the Americas. The language here is identical to and expands on the offensive NAFTA language that is responsible for the terminal illness of Canada's medicare system. Water is next.
The dilemma is that our governments and elected representatives are not permitting us to choose.
Sincerely.... Connie Fogal
Text: Draft FTAA Ministerial Declaration of San Jose
_______________________________________________
Date: February 6, 1998 - Inside US Trade -
The Ministers Responsible for Trade of the 34 countries that participated
in the I Summit of the Americas, held in Miami on December 1994, held in
the IV Ministerial Meeting on Trade, according to the mandate received in
the Declaration of the Americas and its accompanying Plan of Action and
according to the work program agreed to in previous Ministerial Meetings,
hereby recommended to our Heads of State and Government the launching of the negotiations to build the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), in
conformity with the present Declaration.
Part I
Objectives and Principles of the Negotiations
We have agreed that the negotiations for the establishment of the FTAA will
be guided by the following General Objectives and Principles:
1. General Objectives
a) To promote prosperity through economic integration and free trade among
the countries of our hemisphere, as key factors for raising standards of
living, improving the working conditions of people in the Americas, and
better protecting the environment.
b) To establish a Free Trade Area, in which barriers to trade and
investment will be progressively eliminated , concluding negotiations no
later than 2005 and achieving concrete progress toward the attainment of
this objective by the end of this century.
c) Encourage investment, aware that it is the main engine growth in the
Hemisphere, by cooperating to build more open, transparent and integrated
markets, creating strengthened mechanisms that promote and protect the flow
of productive investment and promote progressive integration of capital
markets.
d) Maximize market openness through high levels of disciplines through
balanced and comprehensive agreements, including among others: Market
access; customs procedures and rules of origin; investment; norms and
technical barriers to trade: sanitary and phytosanitary measures,
subsidies, antidumping and countervailing duties; government procurement;
intellectual property rights; services; competition policy and dispute
settlement.
e) To provide opportunities to facilitate the integration of the smaller
economies in the FTAA process, to maximize their opportunities and to
improve their level of development.
2. General Principles
a) Negotiations will be held in a transparent manner, based on the
consensus of participating countries for decision-making in the FTAA
process, in order to preserve and promote the essential interests of all
parties.
b) The FTAA Agreement will be consistent with the rules and disciplines of
the World Trade Organization, WTO. With this purpose, the participating
countries reiterate their commitment with multilateral rules and
disciplines, in particular with Article XXIV of GATT-1994 and its
understanding of the Uruguay Round, and Article V of General Agreement of
Trade in Services, GATS. As well, we endorse rapid and full implementation
of the Uruguay Round, as well as active multilateral negotiations in the
World Trade Organization.
c) The agreements reached will be balanced and comprehensive in scope,
considering the interests of all countries and covering the areas specified
in Objective 1.d)
d) Negotiations will develop according to the dynamics of each issue area.
e) Negotiations in all issue areas will be held simultaneously, under the
agreement that all the agreements reached constitute a single undertaking
which embodies the rights and obligations mutually agreed upon.
f) The FTAA will coexist with bilateral and subregional agreements.
g) Countries may negotiate and subscribe the FTAA individually or as
members of a subregional integration group negotiating as a unit.
h) The agreements reached shall not result in the imposition to barriers to
trade and investment with countries outside the hemisphere.
i) Starting on the beginning of the negotiations, countries will avoid the
adoption of policies that adversely affect trade in the hemisphere.
j) Special attention will be given to the special needs, economic
conditions (including transition costs and possible internal imbalances)
and opportunities of smaller economies, actively looking for ways to
facilitate the integration of smaller economies, as a key factor for
increasing their level of development.
k) The rights and obligations of the FTAA will be shared by all countries.
In the negotiation of the various thematic areas measures such as technical
assistance in specific areas and longer periods for implementing the
obligations could be included on a case by case basis, in order to
facilitate the adjustment of smaller economies.
l) The measures that may be accorded or negotiated to facilitate the
integration of smaller economies in the FTAA process should be transparent,
simple and easily applicable, yet should recognize the degree of
heterogeneity among them.
3. Objectives and Principles by issue area
We have agreed that the negotiations of the FTAA, in each issue area, will
be guided by the following Objectives and Principles:
Market Access
The Objectives of the negotiations are:
- To progressively eliminate, [starting in the year 2005], tariffs, and non
tariff barriers, [for the substantial trade] [for all trade] as well as
other measures with equivalent effects, which restrict trade between
participating countries, Consistently with the provisions of the WTO,
including article XXIV of GATT 94 and its understanding.
- All tariffs will be subject to negotiation.
- [Different trade liberalization time tables can be drawn up which could
include special treatment for countries, sectors and products].
- To facilitate the integration of smaller economies and their full
participation in the FTAA negotiations.
The principles of the negotiations are:
- Consistency with WTO disciplines, in particular, with Article XXIV of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT 1994), and with the
Understanding pertinent to the Interpretation of Article XXIV of GATT 1994.
Rules of Origin
The Objectives of the negotiations are:
- To develop an efficient and transparent system of rules of origin,
including nomenclature and certificates of origin, in order to facilitate
the exchange of goods, without creating unnecessary obstacles to trade.
The principles that will govern the negotiation are:
- Rules of origin should be elaborated and administered in an objective,
transparent, coherent and predictable manner, [with the aim that its
implementation would give equal opportunities to all FTAA members].
- Technical assistance and cooperation may be requested and provided by the
countries on rules of origin in accordance with the modalities to be
defined.
- The regime of rules of origin should provide for mechanisms to update the
system on the basis of technological changes and other requirements.
-[Rules of origin shall take into account the specific commercial interests
of all countries of the Hemisphere, including those of the smaller
economies].
- For the elaboration of this system, the nomenclature of the Harmonized
Commodity Description and Coding System will be adopted (HS).
Customs Procedures
The Objectives of the negotiations are:
- To simplify customs procedures, in order to facilitate trade and reduce
administrative costs.
- To create and implement mechanisms to exchange information in customs
issues among FTAA countries.
- To design effective systems to detect and combat fraud and other illicit
customs activities, without creating unnecessary obstacles to foreign
trade.
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Customs Procedures should be elaborated and administered in an objective,
transparent, coherent and predictable manner, [with the aim that its
implementation would give equal opportunities to all FTAA members].
- Technical assistance and cooperation may be requested and provided by the
countries' customs procedures in accordance with the modalities to be
defined.
- With the purpose of attaining the proposed objectives in this matter, the
customs procedures should be clear and precise and only require the
necessary information for the efficient performance of customs functions.
- Develop mechanisms for the exchange of the information regarding progress toward the agreed upon simplification, and toward the adoption of
mechanisms to detect and combat fraud and other illicit customs activities.
- The modalities of the implementation of the simplified customs
procedures, by Customs Administrations, should be determined during the
negotiations.
Investment
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- To establish a fair and transparent legal framework that leads to a
stable and predictable environment that protects investors, their
investment and related flows; and stimulate the development of investment
opportunities, without creating improper obstacles to extra-hemispheric
investments, in accordance with paragraph 2 of the Cartagena Declaration
and paragraph 2 of the Belo Horizonte Declaration.
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- The negotiation shall provide for transparency and the protection of investors and their investments. This negotiation shall be based, at least, on the following principles:
Standards and Technical Barriers to Trade
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- To strive for the elimination and prevention of technical barriers to
trade in the Western Hemisphere;
- To ensure consistency with the provisions of the WTO.
An elaboration of objectives and principles is contained in the Common
Objectives Paper attached.
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures
should not create unnecessary barriers to trade.
Other principles are set out in greater detail in the Common Objectives
Paper attached.
Subsidies Antidumping and Countervailing Duties
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- Eliminate agricultural export subsidies affecting trade in the
Hemisphere.
- Identify other trade distorting practices for agriculture products
including those that have an effect equivalent to agricultural export
subsidies and bring them under greater discipline.
- Examine ways to deepen, if appropriate, existing disciplines provided for
in the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures and enhance
compliance with the terms of the WTO agreement on subsidies and
countervailing measures.
- Achieve a common understanding with a view to improving, where possible,
the rules and procedures regarding the operation and application of trade
remedy laws in order to ensure transparency and [due process] [fairness] in
the use of those instruments and in order not to create unjustified
barriers to trade in the Hemisphere.
- [members of the Working Group discharge on the appropriate scope of the above objective. One view is that, given the existence and nature of
multilateral rules, negotiations should focus exclusively on identifying
potential improvements in the ways in which greater transparency and due
process are assured in the process of applying such rules. Another view is
that negotiations should fully examine the use of trade remedies in the
hemisphere and engage in substantive negotiation aimed at improving the
operation and application of these laws consistent with the objectives of a
free trade area.
- Some countries consider that the following should also be objectives.
- Establish and improve existing trade rules that would be conducive to the
attainment of fair trade in agricultural products.
- Assess the feasibility of eliminating the use of antidumping measures
within the Hemisphere once free trade has been achieved.
- Provide for special and differential treatment for the smaller
economies].
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Negotiations shall improve upon WTO rules and disciplines wherever
possible and appropriate.
- To the extent applicable, negotiations shall build upon existing regional
and sub-regional trade and integration arrangements in the Hemisphere.
- Negotiations shall take into account the role of non-FTAA trading
partners.
- Negotiations shall require that countries avoid adopting, to the greatest extent possible, policies that adversely affect trade in the Hemisphere.
Government Procurement
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- The broad objective of negotiations in government procurement is to
expand access to the government procurement market of the FTAA countries.
- To achieve a normative framework that ensures openness and transparency
of government procurement processes, without necessarily implying the
establishment of identical government procurement systems in all countries;
- To ensure non-discrimination in government procurement within a scope to
be negotiated;
- To ensure impartial and fair review for the resolution of procurement
complaints and appeals by suppliers and the effective implementation of
such resolutions.
- [Negotiations shall not exclude trade in goods and services, investment
and government procurement at any levels of the political-administrative
structure of the countries negotiating the Agreement].
- [Negotiations shall include trade in goods and services, investment and
government procurement at all levels of the political-administrative
structure of the countries negotiating the Agreement].
- [The scope of government procurement shall be subject to negotiation].
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Non-discrimination within the negotiated scope of the agreement.
Intellectual Property Rights
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- In the framework of the general objective of the FTAA to construct a free
trade area, the objective of the negotiations in the area of intellectual
property shall be to achieve an agreement or common understanding that
reduces distortions in trade in the Hemisphere and promotes and ensures
adequate and effective protection to intellectual property rights.
- [The agreement shall take into account changes in technology.]
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Consistent with the framework of the general principles of the Belo
Horizonte Declaration and the "Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of
Intellectual Property Rights" of the WTO, the following specific principles
were identified:
a) National treatment
b) Most favored nation
c) [Principles of intellectual property applicable by thematic area]
d) [Not diminishing the level of protection to the countries during
negotiations in accordance with [their] [existing] international
obligations].
e) [To cover all areas of intellectual property rights, including
enforcement].
- [The provisions of paragraph b shall not prevent some countries being
granted specific privileges or facilities within the framework of bilateral
or sub-regional agreements beyond FTAA].
- Canada accepts the national treatment and MFN principles with exceptions.
The objectives and principles of the Working Group on Smaller Economies
were included in the General Objectives and Principles of the Declaration.
Services
The objectives of the negotiations are:
- Establishment of an agreement containing disciplines for trade in
services, to permit the achievement of a hemisphere free trade area under
conditions of certainty and transparency;
- Ensure the integration of smaller economies into the FTAA process.
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- Taking into consideration the provisions set forth by WTO and, in
particular full consistency with article V of GATS, to deepen in the FTAA
the level of commitments undertaken by the countries in the GATS.
- Disciplines established in the hemispheric agreement on services will
apply to all service sectors and to all modes of supply, under conditions
of non-discrimination.
Competition Policy
The objective of the negotiations are:
- To guarantee that the benefits of the FTAA liberalization process not be
undermined by anti-competitive business practices.
- To advance towards the establishment of juridical and institutional
coverage at the national, sub-regional or regional level, that proscribes
the carrying out of anti-competitive business practices:
- To develop mechanisms that facilitate and promote the development of
competition policy and guarantee the enforcement of regulations on free
competition among and within countries of the Hemisphere.
The principles that will govern the negotiations are:
- To consider the differences between existing legal systems and traditions
in countries of the Hemisphere
- To consider the distinct degrees of development and enforcement of
competition policies
2. Functions:
The functions of each of the previous instances of the negotiation process
are the following:
Ministers Responsible for Trade:
The Meeting of Ministers is the instance of higher level in the conduct of
the process of negotiations. Its functions will be:
a) To assess the advance of the negotiations in the Ministerial Meetings
b) Select the country that will hold the Presidency of the FTAA process.
c) Select the Presidents and Vice Presidents of the Negotiations groups.
They will meet every 18 months on the following dates: late 1999, mid 2001,
early 2003 and mid 2005.
Committee of Trade Negotiations:
The Committee of Trade Negotiations (CTN) is formed by the Vice-Ministers
Responsible for Trade of the countries of the Hemisphere. It will be in
charge of carrying the negotiations process. Its functions will be:
a) To coordinate the tasks of the Negotiation Groups. receive the reports submitted by the Presidents of the negotiation groups and define the substantive negotiation issues in the periods between ministerial meetings.
b) To create, dissolve or merge negotiation groups according to the
necessities of the process.
c) To report to the Meeting of Ministers Responsible for Trade.
d) To name the Presidents and Vice Presidents of the negotiation groups
provisionally, in the periods between ministerial meetings.
e) To meet at least twice a year.
Negotiation Groups:
The negotiation groups are responsible for holding negotiations in each one of the technical issues. They will meet the times they consider necessary, or by mandate of the Committee of Trade Negotiations.
Presidents of the Negotiation Groups:
Each negotiation group has a President, whose responsibility is to steer the work of the Group, according to the instructions received from the Committee of Trade Negotiations. The presidents of the negotiation groups are named by the Ministers Responsible for Trade, considering the need for
a geographical balance, as well as the personal and professional qualities
of the candidates. They can be confirmed for their positions for subsequent
periods.
Vice Presidents of the Negotiation Groups:
They assume the presidency of the Group in case the President cannot
continue exercising its charge. They will not be selected from the same country of origin than the President of the Negotiation Groups.
Consultative Group on Smaller Economies:
It is integrated to give special attention to the needs, economic condition and opportunities of the smaller economies, actively seeking the means to
facilitate their integration to the FTAA process.
3. Venues of Negotiation:
Options:
a) To establish a unique site for the Negotiation Groups and the
Administrative Secretariat.
b) To establish two sites for the negotiations groups, in one of which the
Administrative Secretariat will be established.
c) To establish two sites for the negotiations groups, with the
Administrative Secretariat established in a third place.
d) To establish three or more venues for the negotiation groups.
Elements to be considered:
Easy access (Cost, time, frequency of flights)
General conditions of local infrastructure, security and managerial
capacity.
Political and geographical balance.
Offers of countries that are proposing candidacy (physical space,
logistical support, personal support)
4. Administrative Secretariat:
We have agreed on creating a Administrative Secretariat of the process of
negotiations of the FTAA, to give logistical and administrative support to
the negotiations process, to facilitate the translation services during the
meetings and of official documents, to keep the official documents of the
FTAA process and to be in charge of the distribution and publication of the
documents (Belo Horizonte Declaration).
5. Tri-partite Committee:
We request to the Tri-partite Committee to continue providing analytical
support, technical assistance and related studies, as required by the
negotiation groups. Also to provide technical support to member countries
individually, at their request, according to the procedures of the
institutions (Ministerial Declaration of Belo Horizonte).
Other Issues
Trade and Environment
Free trade and increased economic integration are key factors for
sustainable development. This will be furthered as we strive to make our
trade liberalization and environmental policies mutually supportive, taking
into account efforts undertaken by the GATT/WTO and other international
organizations (Plan of Action of the Summit of the Americas). We will keep
this issue under consideration, in light of further developments in the
work of the WTO Committee on Trade and Environment (Belo Horizonte
Ministerial Declaration).
Trade and Labor Rights
We renew our commitment to endorse the fundamental labor norms
internationally accepted. The International Trade Organization (ITO) is the
instance competent to establish these norms and their observance, and we<
reaffirm our support to its role in promoting them. We consider that
economic growth and development, fostered by trade growth and further trade
liberalization, will contribute to the promotion of these norms. We reject
the use of these norms for protectionist purposes, and agree that
comparative advantage of the countries should not be questioned, in
particular that of low wages developing countries. As we advance in
Civil Society
In order to guarantee the participation and commitment of individuals, we
invite the private sector, labor, political parties, academics, and other
non-governmental actors and organizations to cooperate and participate in
our national and regional efforts, thus strengthening liaisons among
governments and Societies. (Plan of Action of the Summit of the Americas)
PART IV
Business Facilitation
We have agreed to instruct the Trade Negotiations Committee to define a
group of business facilitation measures, based on the documents raised by
the FTAA process, for the countries to adopt before the year 2000.
Ministerial Resolutions:
We have agreed the following:
To name _____ as the country that will hold the Presidency of the FTAA
negotiations process from now and until the next Ministerial Meeting, that
will be celebrated in 1999 in _____.
To name the following persons as Presidents and Vice-Presidents of the
Negotiation Groups: _____
To name _____ as Secretary of the Administrative Secretariat of the FTAA.
To instruct the Trade Negotiations Committee to approve a detailed program
of trade negotiations before June 19, 1998, in which the terms of reference
for the negotiation groups and the date for ending their mandates will be
defined.
To instruct the Trade Negotiations Committee to advance in their first
meeting in the mechanisms of business facilitation to be adopted in the
short term.
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