Can FCFS Be Stopped?
When FCFS was first proposed, many believed that it was put forth as a negotiating tactic, to force key parties together to work out a resolution of the WTO banana dispute. That may still be true, but FCFS has gathered momentum and unless a last-minute, break-through agreement is reached among the principal parties, it will go into effect on July 1, 2001. However, on March 9 it was reported that the EU had agreed to delay implementation pending consultation with new U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick. How long the EU is prepared to delay was not reported. The EU argues that they have few alternatives in finding a system that is WTO-compliant. The U.S., most Latin American countries and Chiquita, however, argue that FCFS is not WTO-compliant. Should it go forward, the U.S. and others will no doubt file a compliant with the WTO. But until the WTO rules, FCFS will be operational, wrecking havoc on banana workers in the region. And some analysts believe that the WTO might rule FCFS
