Fairer Trade & the Human Right to Development - A Perfect Match or Misconceived Twins

1. Fairer Trade & the Human Right to Development- A Perfect Match or Misconceived Twins Presented by Jianfu CHEN Experiencing Law & Justice in a Global Context

2. Fairer Trade & RtD Global Trade, Social Issues, & Human Rights: • Globalisation with a human face • trade liberalisation vis-à-vis the protection of individual rights • trade liberalisation vis-à-vis the human right to development • The re-birth of the old twins in global trade context • ‘Special and Differential’ Treatment (S&D) • The Human Right to Development (RtD) • The mother of the twins: ‘New International Economic Order’ (NIEO)

3. Fairer Trade & RtD 1. The initial post-War twin Considerations: Human Rights and Global Economic Cooperation • UN & the modern human rights movement • UN & economic reconstruction and cooperation the mistakes concerning economic policy during the interwar period (1920-1940) were a major cause of the disasters that led to the WWII. … During this interwar period, nations, particularly after the damaging 1930 US Tariff Act, took many protectionist measures, including quota-type restrictions, which choked off international trade. Political leaders of the US and elsewhere made statements about the importance of establishing post-war economic institutions that would prevent these mistakes from happening again. – Jackson, 1989, at 31.

4. Fairer Trade & RtD 2. The NIEO and the Right to Development • A universal consensus?: the Declaration • The East-West Divide: two Covenants • The Emergence of North-South Divide in Trade • The North-South Divide & the Call for NIEO: • UN Resolution 1803 in 1962 • UN Resolutions on NIEO in 1974 • UN Charter on NIEO in 1974 • The realisation of NIEO as HR, & the RtD: • UN Resolution 32/130 (1977) • UN Resolution 34/46 (1979) • UN Declaration on RtD (1986)

5. Fairer Trade & RtD 3. The NIEO and the S&D • UNCTAD & NIEO: • ‘a child of the era of decolonisation’ • ‘to lay the foundations of a better world economic order’ • Relegating East-West divide to second place • The birth of a trading ‘right’ in a political context: • Part IV of the GATT • Committee on Trade and Development etc • S&D as the first expression in global trading rules of a political RtD

6. Fairer Trade & RtD 4. A Troubled Life Shared by the RtD and S&D • RtD: • political and academic controversy • a much abused and misused political slogan • an expression of the South’s frustration in the face of the imposition of the North’s power • S&D: • the initial ‘Generalised System of Preference’ (GSP) • further measures since 1979 • a U-turn at Uruguay Round • a Doha Development Round?

7. Fairer Trade & RtD A Lost Cause (1)NIEO – a 1950s ideology (2) Admirable political notions misused and abused (3) Huge efforts but little progress (4) No tangible benefits but vague & non-binding concessions (5) Developing countries divided: G20, G90, G33, G77 etc (6) Real needs not addressed: HR & LDCs

8. Fairer Trade & RtD 5. Reconciliation in the ‘Next Wave’ of the Globalisation? • A New Era in Globalisation: Challenges • equitable distribution of benefits • ‘international commons’ & ‘global public goods’ • A New Era in Globalisation: Responses • A Targeted and Assisted Development Strategy • Bringing Back the Original Twin Considerations