WORLD TRADE WT/MIN(96)/ST/40
10December 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-5168)
Original: Spanish MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Singapore, 9-13December 1996
ELSALVADOR
Statement byMr.René Antonio Leon
Vice-Minister oftheEconomy
Iwould particularly liketothank theGovernment ofSingapore foritsexcellent work in
organizing thisfirstMinisterial Conference oftheWorld Trade Organization andallthepeople of
Singapore forthewarm welcome extended tous.
Thanks tothefar-reaching economic reforms which began inJune1989 andapolicy aimed
atachieving andconsolidating peace, ElSalvador hasended thearmed conflict, restored stability to
theeconomy, revived economic growth andlaunched asystematic assault onextreme poverty.
Inorder tomake theeconomic growth sustainable, weareimplementing adevelopment strategy
based onconstantly increasing productivity andcompetitiveness, withpriority given toinvestment in
training andphysical infrastructure, promoting competition andimproving thetechnological base.
Central American economic integration andtheexistence ofasound, transparent andreliable
multilateral system arecrucial toimproving ourcountry 'sability toreapthebenefits ofliberalization
andglobalization. Thatiswhyweregard theWTO asastrategic allyintheprocess ofeconomic and
social reform onwhich weareembarked.
Despite budgetary constraints andtheamount ofmoney, over$2billion, which theGovernment
hashadtospend onfinancing thePeace Agreements, ElSalvador hasmade every effort toallocate
thenecessaryresourcestoimproveandbuildupalltheinstitutionalinfrastructurenecessarytoadminister
andfullycomply withtheUruguay Round Agreements.
Weareconcerned bytheexcessive useofthesafeguard mechanism contained intheAgreement
onTextiles andClothing, inparticular theconstant callsforconsultations torestrict exports. Weare
alsoconcerned bythelackofcommercially significant integration oftextile products intoGATT 1994
byimporting countries andtheweakness shown bytheMonitoring Body inissuing recommendations
incases ofdispute. ThisConference should confirm thecommitment ofallMembers tofaithfully
fulfilling theircommitments.
Weareopposed totheapplication ofunilateral andextraterritorial trade restrictions which
hamper andimpede theaccess ofexports tothecountries which impose suchrestrictions.
Nevertheless, ourinitial overall assessment oftheimpact oftheWTO 'sfirsttwoyears, with
arevitalized world trade system nowinoperation, isapositive one.Today wehavemore transparent
rulesandnewandbetter dispute settlement mechanisms which arefundamental toopenmarkets and,
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mostimportant ofall,wehavebuiltanorganization which isbetter equipped toensure thattheterms
wehavenegotiated arefulfilled.
What must wedotogoonmaking progress? First, wemust ensure fullandtimely
implementation oftheMarrakesh Agreements andfulfilment ofallthemandates arising from those
agreements, including thefinalization oftheunfinished negotiations. Inparticular, wemustconclude
thenegotiations ontelecommunications andresume those onfinancial services. ElSalvador isready
toplayamore active roleinbothsetsofnegotiations.
Secondly, weshould notclutter upouragenda withissues which areoutside theWTO 's
competence.
Wetherefore think itinappropriate fortheWTO todealwithissues suchasworkers 'rights,
sincetheyarebetter dealtwithinother specialized multilateral forums suchastheInternational Labour
Organization. Inmany oftheproposals relating tothisissue thelegitimate objectives ofpromoting
workers 'rights appear tobebeing usedtoachieve other ends. Inpractice wehavefound thatworkers '
rights, which theGovernment ofElSalvador protects, respects andpromotes, arebeing usedtoconceal
other interests which arenotrelated tothewelfare ofourcountries 'workers butseekonlytoblock
opportunities foraccess tomarkets.
Lastly, inorder further toadvance thecause oftrade liberalization, theWTO should, assoon
aspossible, startwork oncompetition, trade andinvestment policies, andinnovative proposals such
astheAgreement onInformation Technology. Itshould alsoseekmechanisms toaccelerate the
liberalization ofagricultural andindustrial products.
Yesterday welistened withgreat attention tothecalltojointogether increating avision of
thefuture oftheWTO andtosetthiswithin apolitical vision, tomeetthechallenges instore onthe
eveofthethirdmillennium. Wewould liketomake itclearthatinElSalvador youhaveawilling
allyinthisimportant task.