Quo vadis, WTO?

2003 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Hübner

Abstract In the wake of massive structural changes within the world trade the WTO faces important challenges. Like an invisible world govemment the WTO uses its agreement as a sort of basic law. This basic law demands equal chances for every human being in the world. Therefore it is important to strengthen the WTO in order to pave the way for fair conditions within the world trade. This essay asks which circumstances are necessary to achieve this goal.

2003 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-135
Author(s):  
Ulrich H.J. Körtner

Abstract In the wake of massive structural changes within the world trade the WTO faces important challenges. Like an invisible world govemment the WTO uses its agreement as a sort of basic law. This basic law demands equal chances for every human being in the world. Therefore it is important to strengthen the WTO in order to pave the way for fair conditions within the world trade. This essay asks which circumstances are necessary to achieve this goal.


2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laÿna Droz ◽  

The concept of humans as relational individuals living in a milieu can provide some solutions to various obstacles of theorization that are standing in the way of an ethics of sustainability. The idea of a milieu was developed by Tetsuro Watsuji as a web of signification and symbols. It refers to the environment as lived by a subjective relational human being and not as artificially objectified. The milieu can neither be separated from its temporal—or historical—dimension as it is directly related to the “now” of perceptions and actions in the world. In other words, elements of the natural milieu can be said to have a constitutive value as they contribute to our well-being by helping us make sense of our life and our world. In their temporal and relational dimensions, Watsuji’s notions of the milieu and human being are thus directly related to the notion of sustainability. This concept offers some convincing solutions to overcoming the problem of temporal distance, by shifting the center of argumentation from unknown, passive, and biologically dependent not-yet- born people to the transmission of a meaningful historical milieu. The turning point here is that if what matters is the survival of ideal and material projects that people live (and sometimes die) for, then future generations have tremendous power over them, as the actions of those future people will determine the success or failure of the projects started by present generations.


2004 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-212
Author(s):  
Wojciech Bołoz

In contemporary bioethics dominate two trends dealing with two basic ethical solutions. First of them is utilitarianism concerning utility as a criterion of judging between what is right and what is wrong. The second trend applies to human rights and human dignity, which are to be obeyed without any exceptions. Utilitarianism protects the strong and prosperous people in society and excludes those who are weak and not capable of independent life. The concept of human dignity protects each and every human being including the weakest ones. It is therefore characterized by real humanitarianism. In addition, it has one more outstanding virtue; in the contemporary world, it is the most widespread and understandable ethical code. It enables people of different civilizations to communicate with understandable ethical language. In the world constantly undergoing global processes, it is a great value. Although there are a number of discussions concerning the way of understanding human dignity and human rights, their universal and ethical meaning; there are certain international acts of law concerning biomedicine that support the concept of human dignity as the most adequate concept for the contemporary bioethics. As an example, the European Convention on Bioethics can be taken. The article includes the most significant topics concerning understanding, history, and application of law and human dignity in bioethics.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Fitria Anindhita H. Wibowo

<p>This paper deals with the subject of Special and Differential Treatment (SDT) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), a special right that allows developing countries preferential treatment by other member countries, particularly developed countries. The paper more specifically discusses the ineffectiveness of the SDT owing to its structure and formulation, and explores the factors that have caused such ineffectiveness. It touches upon the provisions and the ways in which they are formulated and implemented, which deemed to have lead to the ineffectiveness. An observation of the way that negotiations are conducted and the underlying interests that direct those negotiations also contribute to the slow progress of introducing changes to the provisions. Furthermore, this paper analyses and identifies steps that may be taken to improve the concept, formulation, and implementation of SDT, inter alia through amendments of the provisions and conduct of negotiations. The paper also looks at several dispute cases which highlight the ineffectiveness of the existing provisions in advancing the interests of developing countries in particular and in fulfilling its purpose in general.</p>


2006 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 967-975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriele Kett-Straub

Shocking news for police and intelligence agencies in Germany: the search for inland sleepers following the terrorist attacks in 2001 on the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon was unconstitutional. Preventive data screening is incompatible with the fundamental right of informational self-determination according to Article 2 (I) in connection with Article 1 (I) of the Grundgesetz (GG - Basic Law). Since the ruling of the Bundesverfassungsgericht (BverfG - Federal Constitutional Court) of 4 April, 2006 (1 BvR 518/02), such numerous acquisition of data is not permitted unless a concrete threat to important objects of legal protection is existent.


2008 ◽  
Vol 53 (No. 3) ◽  
pp. 101-110
Author(s):  
V. Jeníček

The real trade development is estimated by the recalculation of nominal value through unit values (prices). The unit value indices reflect, besides the change of prices, also the changes in the structure and qualitative changes of the traded products. In the 70s, the average yearly increase of unit values reached 14% and reflected namely the inflation caused by the oil shocks. Since then, it reaches in average up to 1%. We can suppose that, under the normal conditions, unit values growth is rather the consequence of the qualitative and structural changes (increased share of the more sophisticated products of processing industry), in fact, prices in international trade have been decreasing for years already. The question whether the world trade growth rates decrease or accelerate is then still open. It is certain that the world trade volume growth rate (6.3%) has shown a considerable surpass to the production growth rate (4.1%).


2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (266) ◽  
pp. 260
Author(s):  
Antônio Moser

Desde a década de 1960, o mundo cristão acostumou-se a repetir uma expressão que, de acordo com o Concílio Vaticano II, definia o mundo de então: “mudanças rápidas e profundas”. A definição continua teoricamente verdadeira, mas a expressão já não expressa nem a rapidez, nem a profundidade das mudanças que vão se operando nos dias de hoje, ou seja, à distância de apenas cinqüenta anos. Sob o signo de comunicações que se caracterizam por processos revolucionários ao mesmo tempo mais simples e mais complexos, é o próprio ser humano que vai se transformando em velocidade estonteante, na maneira de se comunicar, de sentir, de pensar e de ser. Verdadeiramente a nova condição comunicativa se transformou em nova condição humana, com tudo o que isto significa em termos de soluções e interrogaçõesAbstract: From the 60s onward the Christian world got used to repeating an expression that, according to the II Vatican Council, defined what the world at the time was going through: “rapid and deep changes”. In theory, the definition continues to be true, but the expression no longer reflects either the speed or the depth of the changes operating today, only fifty years later. Under the sign of communications that are marked by both simpler and more complex revolutionary processes, is the human being him/herself who changes at a dazzling speed in the way s/he communicates, feels, thinks and is. Indeed the new communicative condition became the new human condition with all that means in terms of solutions and questionings.


2019 ◽  
Vol ENGLISH EDITION (1) ◽  
pp. 87-98
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Hudymač

This paper deals with the Kundera’s most popular novel as a passionate dialogue with kitsch. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is based on the antinomy of lightness and heaviness, as well as kitsch and individuality. The narrator treats his characters as the experimental self and confronts them with the reality created on the cross-scheme of the aforementioned keywords. Kundera interprets the phenomenon of kitsch as a tool to create a totalitarian reality and enslave human beings, but also as something, that can be recognized and domesticated, and then comprises an inalienable part of a human being and its relation to the world. The essay also deals with the Kundera’s famous aversion to adapting his novels for film. He forbade any further film adaptations of his work, having disliked the way The Unbearable Lightness of Being was adapted by Philip Kaufman in 1988


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 261
Author(s):  
I Gusti Ngurah Parikesit Widiatedja

<p>Under the WTO, Indonesia is obliged to liberalize its markets through establishing the schedule that comprise a list of services that can be either opened or closed to foreign suppliers.  However, Indonesia’s schedule is vague as to whether gambling services are closed to foreign suppliers. Through this loophole, the practice of cross-border gambling services has been rampant, resulting in some consequences, especially those related to money laundering and underage gambling. Tackling this problem, Indonesia could apply public morals exception that allows member states to impose trade prohibition. By using public morals exception that was applied in some WTO cases, this article explores the way in which Indonesia could justify prohibiting cross-border gambling services. This article claims that Indonesia has a justification to impose public morals exception under the WTO to prohibit cross-border gambling services within its territory because the prohibition would be designed to protect public morals; it would be necessary to protect public morals; and the prohibition would equally apply  to both foreign and local suppliers in cross-border gambling services in Indonesia.<strong></strong></p>


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