The name is absent

32

comes to the fore. It is a highly restrictive condition, and it is accordingly difficult to say that the rule
provides significant freedom to developing countries in the use of tariffs as a development measure. One
possible solution would be waiver of the commitment under specified circumstances, possibly providing
for a permissible number of waivers over a ten-year period. This is not far removed from the provisions in
the present Agreement on Safeguards in which the protection of injured industries may be instituted in
developing countries for a period of up to ten years.

The rules on subsidies and countervailing measures would similarly require revision. The present
Agreement recognizes, in general terms, that domestic subsidies may play an important role in the
economic development programs of developing countries. This, however, is not explicitly allowed for in
the operational provisions of the Agreement. Domestic subsidies that may be challenged by trading
partners include any that nullify or impair the benefits they are accorded through the binding of tariffs;
and this again gives developing countries an incentive not to bind their tariffs or not to lower them. A
provisional clause in the Agreement defined “actionable subsidies” to include subsidies such as those for
regional development within countries or to support the implementation of environmental regulations, but
it contained no reference to developmental subsidies. The clause was allowed to lapse in 2000, and its
replacement would be the opportunity for a more development-oriented definition.

8. Conclusion

Any attempt to define fairness in global trade relations should teach a certain humility. Even if we could
transcend the self-serving bias inherent in the judgment of all interested parties, there is still no conclusive
and incontrovertible way of assessing fairness. We have suggested a framework composed of two
criteria: equality of opportunity and distributive equity. Equality of opportunity is realized when there is
reciprocity among countries in the reduction of trade barriers, when they adhere to MFN treatment, when
the biases in initial conditions are removed, when the rules supporting market access are not only seen as
equivalent but are also consistent with national preferences within countries, and when procedural justice
is respected in such matters as dispute settlement and the use of trade-remedy measures. Equality of

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