Samoa's Keil to take over as chief negotiator?

Samisoni Pareti
Hans Joachim Keil believes the economic partnership agreement (EPA) negotiations between the Pacific islands countries and the European Union will continue unhindered by the impending retirement of the region's chief negotiator, Fiji's Kaliopate Tavola.

Keil should know being Samoa's Trade and Tourism Minister, and Fiji's foreign minister's deputy in the EPA negotiations, the trade and aid agreement the EU is offering to African, Caribbean and Pacific member countries under the Cotonou Agreement.

“I'm the alternative spokesperson and we have a very good team of technical people supporting us,” Keil told ISLANDS BUSINESS in a telephone interview from Apia.

“We are ably assisted by Forum secretary-general Greg Urwin and his team of Dr Roman Grynberg and Jai Kumar.

“We also have an expert from each island countries.

“Ministers do come and go, but our technical and negotiating team will always be there.”
Keil, however, was unaware of Tavola's forthcoming retirement from politics.

He said he had worked with the Fiji minister for many years and he was sorry to hear of his departure.

“I have a lot of respect for Tavola as he's a very knowledgeable person. He has used his experience in Brussels and ably led the Pacific negotiations. He's a good person.”

Minister Keil said the next meeting of the Pacific EPA negotiating team was scheduled to be held in Fiji this month.

Now that he has learnt of Tavola's impending retirement, Keil said he would make the effort to attend as it would offer him the opportunity to meet the Fijian minister again.

Tavola-contacted via electronic mail-echoed Keil's sentiments saying the Pacific's negotiating team comprises eight ministers.

As the alternate principal negotiator, Tavola believes Keil will most likely to replace him. Interestingly, Fiji's foreign minister did not rule out a future role as a consultant or advisor on EPA negotiations.

In one of its dispatches last month, PACNEWS quoted an un-named senior regional expert as saying that Tavola's forthcoming retirement from active politics was a blessing in disguise for the Pacific.

The expert said that Tavola should be taken on as a regional consultant on EU matters. He even proposed Tavola to succeed Urwin as Forum secretary-general when his first term ends in January 2007. This is perhaps the more advisable option which will allow him to share his expertise more widely with the region,” PACNEWS quoted the expert as saying.

“He is an ideal secretary-general and the region would enjoy a far higher profile internationally with him at the helm of the premier regional organisation.

“This will bring new fortunes for the region as well as heighten the attention by international organisations to the interests of the region.”

In announcing last January through our Fiji-focus magazine FIJI ISLANDS BUSINESS of his impending retirement, Tavola also spoke his mind about a wide range of issues for Fiji and the Pacific. Here's an abbreviated version:

On future of Melanesian Spearhead Group:
“MSG has an important role to play in the Pacific. It can be an economic engine for growth that will spread its benefits to all PICs. At the same time, it can act as a political counter-weight to Australia and New Zealand in the region.”

Trade war between Fiji and Vanuatu:
“The (MSG) agreement provides for relief should a party desire it on the basis of balance of payment consideration, etc. However, to be considered for such relief, the party requesting should invoke the provision in the agreement for consultations.”

On feeling of resentment against Fiji by other island countries:
“There is a feeling of resentment definitely. However, such is the result of Fiji's success, rather than any ill feeling on the part of Fiji towards its Pacific neighbours. Part of that success is the result of our geography, being central in the South Pacific. As such, the situation is not beyond repair. What Fiji needs to do is to provide the leadership role that is characterised by fairness, compassion, transparency and total openness in discussing issues and their full implications.”

Regional solidarity:
“Regionalism is the way forward for integration into the global economy and for global endorsement. Despite all our efforts at multilateralism, there has been a mushrooming of Regional Trade Agreements (RTAS) globally to the extent that one can draw a message that RTAs have something special to contribute to regionalism, even if such regionalism does not lead to regional integration.”

The future:
“Integration has started with PICTA. More integrative measures will present themselves via EPA and PACER. There are other initiatives in the pipeline. These initiatives will bring their own dynamics and Pacific Leaders will use their best endeavour to determine the collective way forward for the Pacific when the time comes.

“There have been discussions for more advanced integration in the form of economic community, single currency and regional parliament, etc. These are essentially pies in the sky at present, but cannot be ruled out in future. The comforting thing is that the Pacific Plan has devised its own regionalism/integration tests. Any regional initiative that will lead to integration will have to be subjected to analytical scrutiny and will only be adopted if it passes the test.

“The challenge is to retain an objective approach to the examinations that will be undertaken. No subjective justification should be allowed. Adherence to this principle will, in itself, be a test for regional solidarity.”

The region's biggest challenges:
“There are a number of global issues that challenge the global community today. These are international terrorism, transnational crime, HIV/AIDS, nuclear disarmament, regional security, bird flu, etc. The problems of addressing these issues can be magnified manifold in the context of small economies and inadequate resources like we have in the Pacific. This, to me, is the real challenge. It makes sense therefore that we regionalise our efforts. In this way, we can share our costs, our success and even our failures.”