TNAG-0631-FCO40-779-Effect-of-GATT-Multi-Fibre-Arrangement-on-Hong-Kong-negotiat-1977 — Page 99

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FOLLOWING FROM JORDAN:

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I HAVE BEEN WONDER ING WHETHER OUR REPORTS FROM HERE HAVE TRY CONVEYED THE ENCPMITY (AND I USE THAT OFT-ABUSED WORD AL SEDLY) OF THE COMMUNITY'S BEHAVIOUR.

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FIRST PERHAPS COMES THE GENERAL POINT THAT EVEN THOUGH THE NEGOTIATIONS WERE DELAYED FOR A WEEK, THEY WERE STILL NOT READY AND TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY THOUGHT THEY WERE READY THEY WERE BADLY PREPARED. ALL TOO OFTEN IT IS APPARENT WHEN QUERIES ARE RAISED THAT MOST OF THEM ARE COMPLETELY OUT OF THEIR DEPTH.

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THE FACT THAT THEY ARE THEMSELVES RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DELAY AND DIFFICULTY DOES NOT AT ALL DETER TRAN FROM THROWING IN THREATS AND ACCUSATIONS - AND SOMETIMES LATER APOLOGISING. HE WILL SAY ONE THING ONE DAY AND THE OPPOSITE THE NEXT. HE WILL TRY TO BRUSH ASIDE ANYTHING HE DOES NOT UNDERSTAND. HE WILL DEMAND A RESPONSE TO PROPOSALS THAT HE HAS NOT CLEARLY OR FULLY FORMULATED. THE NET RESULT IS THAT WHAT HE SAYS IS INADEQUATE AND YOU CAN'T BELIEVE ANYTHING HE SAYS.

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AND ON TOP OF ALL THIS TRAN SPEAKS IN FRENCH AND THE SIMULTANEOUS INTERPRETERS DON'T KNO.. TEXTILES LANGUAGE SO THERE ARE FREQUENT GAPS, IE. IN WHICH THERE IS NO INTERPRETATION.

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THERE ARE THREE MAIN AREAS OF DISPUTE.

TO TAKE THE EASIEST ONE FIRST. THE EEC'S DRAFT AGREEMENT WAS BADLY DRAFTED BY A LAWYER AHO CLEARLY KNO S NOTHING ABOUT TEXTILE AGREEMENTS OR TRADE. IT WAS CORRECTLY CHARACTERISED BY MILLS AS AN AGREEMENT FOR IMPORT CONTROL ..1TH A LITTLE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FROM THE EXPORTING END. WE HAVE MADE SOME PROGRESS HERE IN THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS AGREED TO WORK ON THE BASIS OF EXPOST CONTROL AND OF A DRAFT WE HAVE PRODUCED (OUR LEGAL ADVISER

E ROCKELBANK IS A VERY HELPFUL ADDITION TO THE TEAM).

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THE NEXT PROBLEM IS CATEGORISATION. THIS IS COMPLICATED AND CRUCIAL. THE EEC'S IDEA - FLOWING FROM ITS IMPORT CONTROL IDEAS - WAS TO BASE IT ON THE NIMEXE, ALTHOUGH THEY ADMITTED UNDER QUESTIONING THAT THE NIMEXE WAS TO BE CHANGED AGAIN BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR AND THEY DIDN'T YET KNOW WHAT OULD BE THE FORM OF THE NEW ONE - SO CLASSIFICATION AND CATEGORISATION COULD BE SUBJECT TO UNILATERAL CHANGES AFTER THE AGREEMENT WAS MADE.

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8. THE TROUBLE ARISES WITH CATEGORISATION ITSELF, IE. WHAT PRODUCTS SHOULD GO IN WHAT CATEGORIES, AND THE DESCRIPTION, !E. DEFINITION OF THE PRODUCTS. ALL THIS IS TOO COMPLICATED FOR TRAN WHO DOESN'T WANT TO BE BOTHEREDITH IT. SO IT WAS PASSED OVER TO A TECHNICAL GROUP (JUSTIN YUE LEADING ON OUR SIDE) BUT IT IS PROVING SUCH AN INTRACTABLE IROBLEM THAT IT WILL HAVE TO BE ESCALATED TO THE LEADERS AGAIN, HOWEVER MUCH TRAN MAY DISLIKE THAT.

THE PROBLEMS OF IMPLEMENTATION THAT A COMPLETELY NEW CATEGORISATION COULD LEAD TO ARE APPALLING AND, OF COURSE, THOUGH TRAN DOESN'T WANT TO RECOGNISE THIS, THE NUMBEPS FOR PARTICULAR CATEGORIES ARE MEANINGLESS UNTIL ONE KNO..S WHAT PRODUCTS ARE TO BE INCLUDED IN EACH CATEGORY.

10. UNFORTUNATELY THE COMMUNITY HAS BEEN WORKING ON ITS GRAND SCHEME OF CATEGORISATION/CLASSIFICATION SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR AND IT IS, THEY BELIEVE, CRUCIAL TO THEIR GRAND SCHEME OF SURVEILLANCE FOR ALL (REPEAT) ALL TEXTILE PRODUCTS IMPORTED INTO THE COMMUNITY.

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