EU SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH MEXICO

Human rights and labor groups, small and medium business associations, and a wide spectrum of political groups are among those protesting the free trade agreement between the European Union and Mexico. The agreement, scheduled to go into effect on July 1, 2000, is sure to be an issue in the upcoming Mexican presidential elections. Many Mexicans complain that the government has “signed a blank check.” They argue that the agreement is unconstitutional, since it can be changed without the consent of the Mexican Senate. In addition, civil society groups object to the absence of a clear social clause to hold Mexico to international labor and human rights standards.

The agreement phases out Mexican import tariffs on all EU industrial goods by 2007 and extends duty-free access to the EU for Mexican industrial products by 2003. Industrial goods account for about 93% of annual EU-Mexico trade. The agreement offers more modest liberalization of agricultural goods, which account for most of the remaining 7% of trade between the two regions. Sixty-two percent of bilateral trade in agriculture will be fully liberalized by 2010, but key products such as sugar, dairy, beef and grains are excluded. The deal also allows EU banks and insurance companies to operate directly in Mexico and includes a commitment to liberalize investment rules.

The Mexican Senate and EU Parliament approved the agreement, despite dissension within both bodies. Some EU members expressed concern over Mexico’s human rights record, and others worried that the agreement would adversely affect EU interests in textiles, clothing and footwear. Mexican opposition focused on concerns that the accord would threaten certain sectors of the Mexican economy that are already struggling under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Mexican Commerce Minister Herminio Blanco argued in favor of the agreement, predicting that it will produce an increase in Mexican exports of automobiles and auto parts, textiles, footwear and electronics—sectors that also benefited from Mexico’s membership in NAFTA.

The Mexican Action Network on Free Trade (RMALC, in Spanish) joined the action network Ciudadanos de México—made up of small business, peasant, NGO and other organizations—to lobby against the EU/Mexico agreement. The groups issued a joint statement on March 25 stating their concerns:

“Unlike NAFTA, the Agreement includes chapters II and VI on PoliticalDialogue and on Cooperation. But these chapters constitute meredeclarations than juridical mechanisms that are subject to law, unlike thejuridical mechanisms that are present in the sections on trade andinvestment. In particular, the Democracy Clause contained in the Accord isfar from representing a possibility for general protection of social,labor, ethnic, environmental, gender and human rights among the signatorycountries. This is because the Accord lacks explicit references to these rights and the concrete mechanisms that would guarantee their protection. It also lacks the institutions that would permit participation in their oversight by civil society, because everything is left in the hands of governments. Not even the social rights and participation by organizations of civil society that are considered normal within the European Union are taken into account.”

As one RMALC activist stated, “If you are looking for a model in a trade agreement for promoting democracy, political dialogue and respect for human rights, this is not it. There are no mechanisms that make this meaningful–no funding, no institutes, no commissions, no courts, no laws.”

More information on these issues is available through the following sources:

The final agreement, signed last week in Lisbon, began with a number of enabling documents signed in 1997. These are referred to as the interim agreement, the general agreement and the joint declaration. The so-called democracy clause is found in the general agreement, formally known as the “Economic Partnership, Political Coordination and Cooperation Agreement signed on 8 December 1997.” For more details, consult the documents at the following site (they are not long; by looking through the links you can find the full text, which is very long!):

http://europa.eu.int/comm/trade/bilateral/mexico/mexico.html

The democracy itself clause is found within Title VI (articles 13-44, dealing with cooperation on a number of matters):

http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/com/dat/1997/en_597PC0527.html