Islamabad: The suspension of the GSP Plus status of Pakistan cannot be ruled out if the South Asian nation fails to comply with 27 conventions of the United Nations, particularly those related to human rights, said the European Union ambassador to Pakistan.
He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a seminar on “GSP Plus in Pakistan: Opportunities and Challenges,” organized by Democracy Reporting International here on Thursday.
The ambassador, Jean-Francois Cautain, pointed out that there were precedents when the EU suspended the GSP Plus status of different countries after they could not comply with the UN conventions.
In this regard, he cited the example of Sri Lanka as its preferential trade facility was suspended due to human rights violations years ago.
He clarified that the moratorium on the death penalty was not directly part of the 27 conventions but was linked with the conventions on human rights and democracy.
“The EU has completed its assessment of the progress about the GSP Plus status and the commitment made by Pakistan; an assessment report will be presented to the EU parliament before a review of the facility in January next year,” he said.
Speaking to the audience, German Ambassador Ina Lepel stressed that compliance with and implementing the UN conventions favored Pakistan and that any deviation would hurt the country’s image.
EU Mission Deputy Head Stefano Gatoo acknowledged that in the first phase, Pakistan had made progress at the institutional and policy levels regarding commitments to the UN conventions. However, “there is a need to progress at the implementation level,” he said.
Federal Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir, who was also present at the event, said Pakistan’s exports to the EU had risen more than 33% compared to the pre-GSP Plus period. In the first year after winning the GSP Plus status, exports rose 21.24% and increased 12.5% in the first seven months of 2015 compared to the pre-GSP period.
“The statistics of exports for 19 months under the GSP Plus program suggest that this scheme has proved to be a resounding success for Pakistan.”
Dastgir told the audience that GSP Plus came under Special Incentive for Sustainable Development. Good governance was an incentive to show progress on international human rights obligations and was not a reward.
He insisted that Pakistan was the only country that had made institutional arrangements and established a treaty implementation cell to meet international commitments.
According to Dastgir, Pakistan has made three significant achievements since the current government took over in June 2013. “Incidents of terrorism have dropped by 70%, and financial stabilization and consolidation of democracy are the other noteworthy accomplishments, which the world acknowledges.”
The chairman of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association said the GSP Plus scheme had opened the doors to the export of Pakistani products to the EU market in a smooth manner.
Almost 80% to 85% of the country’s exports to the EU comprised textile products, he said, adding the textile industry had set a target of increasing annual exports from $13 billion to $26 billion over the next five years.
“It could be possible if the sector is provided with special incentives and a level playing field.”
