The African Union and parliamentarians from the East African Legislative Assembly have called on the World Trade Organisation to implement principles of fair trade that will benefit the people of Africa.

In a statement issued in Cancun, Mexico on Thursday during the on-going 5th WTO Ministerial meeting, the EALA called on the WTO negotiations to be halted so that “we go back to the original Cancun agenda, which was to carry out a stocktaking on the WTO negotiations.”

EALA spokesperson Irene Ovonji-Odida said, “We demand as parliamentarians that our involvement in the WTO process be fully recognized and that our respective assemblies be given an opportunity to endorse the WTO decisions before they become operational in our countries.”

EALA also criticized what they referred to as “coercive and arm-twisting” methods of the European Union and the US. “We are reliably informed that some negotiators from developing countries have received instructions from their home governments not to go against the US and EU interests. This is undermining the negotiating space for our countries.

The Parliamentarians warned that the manner in which the process of negotiations was being managed would have the effect of “de-legitimising” decisions of the WTO.

Taking a cue from the parliamentarians, the African Union reiterated the view that “this Ministerial Conference is a mid-term review of the negotiations launched at Doha. We are concerned at the lack of progress on most issues of core interest to Africa.”

Jaya Krishna Cuttaree, the chairperson of the Ministers of Trade of the African Union also called for transparency in negotiations. “It is our view that the conduct of these negotiations should be open and transparent and the final outcome should be pegged on the need to meet the Doha mandate which placed the needs of the developing countries at the heart of the WTO work programme.”

The AU Group called for the continuation of the clarification process on the Singapore Issues. On agriculture, Cuttaree said the current draft text “falls short of the objectives envisaged in the Doha declaration for further reform of the agricultural markets.