Korea-U.S. FTA

Does Korea Have a Double Sanitary Standard?

Brendon Carr at the Korea Law Blog reports that, although a third of fish tested in large supermarkets in Seoul in January had a drug-resistant staph infection, the Korean Food and Drug Administration was only "considering administrative measures including a possible recall..."  He notes that a stricter standard applies to beef from the U.S. (Super Staph Infection Free with One-Third of Fish at Large Korean Supermarkets!, February 17, 2008):

For those of you keeping score: Known deadly, drug-resistant bacterium found on one-third of fish for sale to the public? We’re considering measures. The slightest possibility of US beef’s contamination with thumbnail-size chips of bone matter (and the occasional big ol’ spine!), suspected of maybe, possibly causing—or not, nobody knows for sure!—a disease which nobody in America is known to have caught? Instant embargo.

Attention, Democrats in Congress: Korea’s “food-safety concerns” about US beef are, to put it mildly, bullshit disingenuous.

Phased relaxation of Korean restrictions on U.S. beef imports?

Jin Hyun-joo reports that Korea is considering a phase-out of restrictions on U.S. beef.  The report is based on a Korean Agricultural Ministry report to in-coming President Lee's transition team: U.S. beef imports ban likely to be phased out (The Korea Herald, January 21, 2008): 

Access to medicines

The Center for Policy Analysis on Trade and Health (CPATH) tends to take a very skeptical view of the health benefits of trade agreements.  They've reviewed the Korea-U.S. agreement, and found it wanting on seven grounds: Korean Trade Agreement: Threat To Public Health (May 30, 2007).

I've already reviewed their concerns about lowering barriers to tobacco products: Will the FTA Undercut Korean Anti-smoking Efforts? (December 18, 2007). 

This post summarizes the CPATH analysis of the impact of the agreement on access to medicines.  No effort is made here to elaborate on or evaluate those arguments.  This is essentially an extended excerpt from their short paper with some formatting of my own.

Will the FTA Undercut Korean Anti-smoking Efforts?

Korea has had a serious smoking problem for a long time. 

The advocacy Center for Policy Analysis on Trade and Health (CPATH) is concerned that the reduction in tariffs will reduce the domestic price and increase consumption, and that investor-protection measures in the agreement will hobble Korean efforts to reduce smoking: Korean Trade Agreement: Threat To Public Health (May 30, 2007). 

Christine Ahn's Five Myths

Christine Ahn prepared the leaflet Debunking Five Myths aboutthe Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (Korus FTA) for the progressive/left, Oakland Institute.

The five myths:

KORUS FTA and Drugs

Sungjoon Cho of the Chicago-Kent Law School has reservations about the pharmaceutical provisions of the Korea-U.S. FTA agreement: Is a Free Trade Agreement a Royal Road To Prosperity? Demystifying Trade Regional. This is one of the papers prepared for the Korea Economic Institute workshop on Static and Dynamic Consequences of a KORUS FTA last May.

Cho's larger theme is the shortcomings of a bilateral, as opposed to multilateral, approach to reducing trade barriers. 

Amongst other things, bilateral negotiations give lthe U.S. scope to push for things that would be more difficult to get in a mulitlateral forum.  One of these things is a watering down of its multilateral commitments on intellectual property:

The Korea-U.S. FTA, Food Safety, and Food Security

Here are two papers criticizing Korea-U.S. FTA for provisions the authors think will reduce the confidence people can have in the safety of their food supplies.  Both are advocacy pieces from groups and persons opposed to the agreement, and neither provides much analysis of it.

KORUS and Korean health care - a critical view

Sean Flynn of the Washington School of Law at American University, and Mike Palmedo of CPTech, provided preliminary thoughts on the draft agreement on May 25, when the text was released: PIJIP Comments on the Korus FTA Pharmaceuticals and IP Chapters. (the PIJIP is the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property at the Washington School).

Four or five pages argue that: