[Intl-tobacco] Philippines: Deletion of tobacco from WTO tariff cut list pressed

[Robert Weissman]

Source: Philippine Star (ph), 2003-09-12
 Author: Des Ferriols

VIGAN CITY - A big tobacco farmers' organization alarmed by what befell
them last season yesterday urged the deletion of tobacco from the list
of agricultural products covered by global agreement under the World
Trade Organization.

The Philippine Association of tobacco-based Cooperatives (PATCO) through
its president Carlos Cachola said that because of the Philippines'
membership in WTO, tobacco farmers suffered miserably in the last
tobacco season.

"The unabated importation of tobacco with a continuously decreasing
tariff, a direct result of our membership in WTO, has negatively
impacted on the livelihood of the lowly tobacco farmers," Cachola said.