Preparing for Cancun

The Indian policy making system has to find a way out of the dilemmas it faces in negotiating multilateral agreements. When Pranab Mukherjee...

The Indian policy making system has to find a way out of the dilemmas it faces in negotiating multilateral agreements. When Pranab Mukherjee went to Marrakesh to sign on behalf of India on the Uruguay Round Agreement, the Opposition political parties in Parliament, including the present ruling party, protested and demanded a parliamentary veto on such agreements. There are arguments in favour and against such a policy, given the division of powers between the executive and the legislature in a parliamentary democracy. Interestingly, in using Parliament8217;s resolution on Iraq as an instrument in defining the Indian response to the US request for troops to Iraq, the NDA government has, for the first time, given Parliament a role in foreign policy making by the government of the day.

It remains to be seen how the government will deal with a demand that India8217;s negotiating stance at the Cancun Ministerial of the World Trade Organisation should secure prior parliamentary approval. It may be recalled the a prime ministerial assurance to Parliament before the Seattle Ministerial had queered the pitch at the time for the negotiating stance of the Indian delegation. If that ministerial had not failed, the Indian negotiators may have been constrained by the PM8217;s stated assurances in Parliament. Hence, it is extremely important that the government extend the required element of autonomy to the Union commerce minister, who for all practical purposes is the country8217;s chief negotiator at the WTO. Inter-ministerial differences on policy matters are bound to exist and it is not surprising that the agriculture and commerce ministries take different views on certain aspects of the Cancun agenda. However, at the end of the day the commerce minister must have some autonomy in negotiating a deal or else he may be able to negotiate nothing.

The advocates of greater parliamentary authority will point to the US system and say that the autonomy of the US Congress has often been used by protectionists in the US to block trade liberalisation by the Administration. However, when the Congress gives to the US Trade Representative the 8220;trade negotiating authority8221; he then is able to sit across tables and strike deals. Indian trade negotiators also require such authority. Equally importantly, the Indian ambassador to the WTO also requires some negotiating authority so that he does not have to wait for a clearance from New Delhi on every issue. Deftness in negotiation acquires increased salience in the run up to ministerial meeting because events move at a rapid pace. Rather than attack Commerce Minister Arun Jaitley for doing a deal, his party must give him the confidence to do one and assume he will be smart enough to safeguard national interests while promoting the cause of trade liberalisation.