Redesigning the World Trade Organization for the Twenty-first Century

10. Enhancing Business Participation in Trade Policy-Making: Lessons from China

257 10 Enhancing Business Participation in Trade Policy-Making: Lessons from China HENG WANG I. Introduction Transparency not only helps to dispel unfounded fears and counter misinformation , it constitutes a principal and vital element of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Transparency obligations on WTO Members can be found in Article X of the GeneralAgreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (GATT 1994),1 Article III of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS);2 and the accession protocols and working party reports of the recently acceded Members, including those of China, Ukraine, and Viet Nam. Transparency obligations require inter alia notification, comment, and publication. In the Doha Ministerial Declaration, WTO Members confirmed collective responsibility for ensuring internal transparency and the effective engagement with all Members.The Doha Declaration also undertook to make WTO operations more transparent by disseminating information more effectively and promptly,as well as improving dialogue with the public.3 Although there is no commonly accepted definition of transparency,and there is dispute as to whether transparency constitutes a norm of international law, transparency is an important element of world trade law.4 Significant progress with respect to institutional transparency has been made by the WTO, particularly with non-state actors, which include but are not limited to the following: • The Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO Agreement) states that the General Council may take appropriate arrangements for consultation and cooperation with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) concerned with matters related to those of the WTO.5 • In the Annex on Telecommunications included in the GATS, Members recognize the role played by NGOs in ensuring the operations of telecommunications services and commit to making appropriate arrangements for consultations with NGOs on matters arising from the implementation of the annex.6 • In 1996, the General Council adopted Guidelines for Arrangements on Relations with Non-governmental Organizations,7 allowing for the publication of more documents and elaborating on the Secretariat’s active role with the NGOs. However, NGOs are prohibited from being directly involved in the work of the WTO or its meetings.8 • Every year since 2001, the WTO has hosted a two-day public forum at its headquarters in Geneva,9 where members of civil society may express their views. • In 2002, the General Council decided to expedite the de-restriction of WTO documents, and passed the‘Decision of the General Council on the Procedures for the Circulation and Derestriction of WTO Documents’.10 Many documents are now simultaneously available to the public and to WTO Members. • The Director-General and staff of the WTO Secretariat now meet with NGO representatives regularly. There are briefings for Geneva-based civil society groups on the meetings of WTO councils and committees, and a good cross-section of NGOs attend plenary sessions of ministerial conferences as well as symposia on WTO issues in Geneva.11 It is widely believed that the transparency of the WTO should be further improved. Civil society has been critical of the lack of transparency at the WTO, particularly with respect to negotiations and dispute settlement. Members , other international organizations, and NGOs have criticized the legitimacy and transparency of opaque and informal consensus-building negotiations in working groups, the ‘Green Room’, and mini-ministerial meetings.12 A number of developed country Members have submitted views to the General Council on how to improve transparency.13 Greater transparency would help to ensure consistency and predictability within the WTO system and would increase public confidence in the WTO. The WTO is not merely the sum of its parts; it has its own image and personality that should be seen to be transparent.14 Further steps to enhance WTO transparency are still needed. However, greater transparency may have negative consequences , including diminished efficiency and higher costs. Therefore, any push for greater transparency should include efforts to avoid such negative externalities. 258 Part IV Transparency and Domestic Consultation The focus on WTO transparency deals with institutional issues, whereas transparency obligations imposed on Members are of critical importance. Without the Members’ transparency obligations, the WTO can hardly be sufficiently transparent. This chapter analyzes transparency issues from China’s perspective, both as a developing country and a recently acceded WTO Member . The notice-and-comment obligations imposed on China and how these affect or can encourage the involvement of business interests in trade policy will be canvassed. Furthermore, this chapter argues that the extension of WTO-plus comment obligations could...