[Intl-tobacco] Tobacco Out of Free Trade Deals, Say 40 US Members of Congress
robert weissman
rob@essential.org
Fri, 14 Apr 2006 13:14:54 -0400
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, April 11, 2006
Contact: Sandra Salstrom (Meehan),
202-225-3411
Bipartisan Group Calls for Tobacco-Free Trade Agreements
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Reps. Marty Meehan (D-MA) and Todd Platts (R-PA),
co-chairman of the Congressional Task Force on Tobacco and Health, along
with Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), and 36 of their
House colleagues today sent a letter to President Bush calling for
exclusion of tobacco products from trade agreements due to their
negative impact on public health. The U.S. is currently negotiating the
Peru Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the Andean Free Trade Agreement
(AFTA), as well as separate FTAs with other Andean nations.
"Regardless of our individual views on these agreements, we are
accustomed to hearing the argument that lower consumer prices is one of
free trade's most important benefits," the Representatives said in the
letter. "But tobacco is a unique commodity, killing millions of people
around the globe each year. In the case of tobacco, lower prices are not
desirable - indeed, they translate into increased smoking rates, more
cigarette consumption, and more tobacco-related death and disease."
Many other international agreements have included provisions to address
concerns about trade in uniquely hazardous products, including small
arms, landmines, other weapons, narcotic drugs, hazardous waste,
genetically modified organisms, and persistent organic pollutants such
as DDT. Tobacco products have in the past been excluded from the tariff
schedules in the U.S.-Jordan and U.S.-Vietnam FTAs; however, such
exemptions were not included in the U.S.-Chile agreement or Central
American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).
In the past, tobacco companies have challenged tobacco control
regulations as violations of trade agreements. Philip Morris has
threatened to challenge Canada's proposed ban on misleading terms such
as "light" and "mild" as a violation of the North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA) and an international agreement on patents and
trademarks. In Brazil and Thailand, the tobacco companies have argued
that large health warnings encumber their trademarks. The companies also
protested a European ban on misleading descriptors (such as "light" and
"mild") as an infringement of its trademark rights through a challenge
in the European Court of Justice.
"Tobacco is one of the greatest threats to our public health, and we
should do everything in our power to discourage, not encourage, its
use," said Congressman Marty Meehan. "Excluding tobacco from free trade
agreements is an important step toward discouraging its use in America
and around the world."
"The rationale for free trade does not apply when we are talking about
tobacco products," said Congressman Todd Platts. "Lowering prices on
tobacco and undermining tobacco control regulations will only result in
more premature deaths. That is not something that should be on the
agenda for trade talks."
"Tobacco kills millions of people each year," said Rep. Brown. "Our
government should not be enacting policies that lower prices and
encourage people to pick up the habit."
"Tobacco is responsible for more deaths in this country than any other
single cause. The Bush Administration should declare tobacco public
enemy number one and make every effort to dissuade Americans from
picking up this terrible habit, not negotiate trade agreements that will
lead to more tobacco use and premature American deaths," said
Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, Ranking Democrat on the Commerce, Trade
and Consumer Protection Subcommittee.
Five million people will die worldwide this year from tobacco-related
diseases. Unless urgent action is taken, tobacco will kill 10 million
people a year by 2020, 70 percent of them in developing countries.
###
April 10, 2006
Hon. George W. Bush
President of the United States of America
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
We are writing to request that you exclude tobacco from the Peru Free
Trade Agreement (FTA), the Andean Free Trade Agreement (AFTA), and all
bilateral and regional trade and investment agreements that the United
States may be negotiating.
Regardless of our individual views on these agreements, we are
accustomed to hearing the argument that lower consumer prices is one of
free trade's most important benefits. But tobacco is a unique
commodity, killing millions of people around the globe each year. In
the case of tobacco, lower prices are not desirable - indeed, they
translate into increased smoking rates, more cigarette consumption, and
more tobacco-related death and disease. The World Bank and others have
documented the correlation between reducing trade barriers to tobacco
and increased cigarette consumption.
Additionally, the non-tariff trade rules contained in bilateral and
regional trade and investment agreements (such as rules on technical
barriers to trade and intellectual property) present special concerns
with regard to tobacco. These rules are intended to establish a level
playing field between U.S. firms and our trading partners. But in the
case of tobacco, these non-tariff rules may be deployed to undermine
local public health measures designed to reduce smoking rates, even when
the measures apply equally to domestic and foreign companies.
Trade agreements must recognize that tobacco products are uniquely
harmful and require special rules similar to those that already apply to
trade in other hazardous products, such as hazardous wastes and narcotic
drugs. Tobacco products have in the past been excluded from the tariff
schedules in the U.S.-Jordan and U.S.-Vietnam free trade agreements.
Unfortunately such exemptions were not included in the U.S.-Chile
agreement or CAFTA.
At this time, as the Peru FTA and AFTA negotiations are progressing and
additional nations seek bilateral agreements with the U.S., it is
important that we not repeat the mistakes. We urge that tobacco
products be specifically excluded from the final Peru and AFTA agreement
- from both the tariff schedule and the non-tariff provisions. We look
forward to hearing from you on this pressing public health matter.
Sincerely,
SHERROD BROWN JAN SCHAKOWSKY
Member of Congress Member of Congress
TODD PLATTS MARTY MEEHAN
Member of Congress Member of Congress
DENNIS KUCINICH RA=DAL M. GRIJALVA
Member of Congress Member of Congress
TAMMY BALDWIN BARBARA LEE
Member of Congress Member of Congress
LUIS V. GUTIERREZ PETE STARK
Member of Congress Member of Congress
TIM BISHOP DALE E. KILDEE
Member of Congress Member of Congress
LOIS CAPPS TOM ALLEN
Member of Congress Member of Congress
HENRY WAXMAN FRANK PALLONE
Member of Congress Member of Congress
ELLEN TAUSCHER MICHAEL R. MCNULTY
Member of Congress Member of Congress
STEVE ROTHMAN ROBERT WEXLER
Member of Congress Member of Congress
MIKE CAPUANO GEORGE MILLER
Member of Congress Member of Congress
GENE GREEN ROSA DeLAURO
Member of Congress Member of Congress
ED MARKEY DIANE WATSON
Member of Congress Member of Congress
STEPHEN F. LYNCH JIM OBERSTAR
Member of Congress Member of Congress
EARL BLUMENAUER LLOYD DOGGETT
Member of Congress Member of Congress
HILDA SOLIS PETER KING
Member of Congress Member of Congress
PETER DeFAZIO MAURICE HINCHEY
Member of Congress Member of Congress
SAM FARR DONALD M. PAYNE
Member of Congress Member of Congress
BILL PASCRELL RUSH HOLT
Member of Congress Member of Congress
JOHN CONYERS, Jr. JAMES P. MCGOVERN
Member of Congress Member of Congress
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