US cuts Bolivian duty free export law
US Cuts Bolivian Duty Free Export Law
La Paz, Dec 15 2008 (Prensa Latina) — The US officially shutout Bolivia from the benefits of the Law of Andean Trade Preference and Drug Enforcement Act (ATPDEA).
The suspension, which Evo Morales’ government calls political vendetta, means that Bolivian textiles will no longer enter the US duty free.
President George W. Bush announced Bolivia’s shutting out arguing that La Paz failed its commitments to fight drug trafficking.
President Evo Morales calls the above political vendetta due to the eviction of US Ambassador Philip Goldberg and the DEA office closing which Bolivia charges with collusion against the current process of changes.
Morales reminds that world bodies like the UN have lauded Bolivia’s anti-drug successes like the confiscation of 28 tons of drugs this year and clean up of over 13,590 acres of coca crops.
Suspending the ATPDEA means the loss of jobs and investments since it Okayed duty free entrance to an estimate of $63 million worth products to the US.
Bolivian Foreign Trade and Economy Deputy Minister Pablo Guzman says the cabinet hopes to recover those benefits with the Administration of President elect Barack Obama.
To counter the suspension, Bolivia approved low-tariff credits for the exporters and announced the quest for alternate markets, among other, in Venezuela, China and Iran.
In line with the above, executives from state-run Suministros Venezolanos Industriales (SUVINCA) arrived in La Paz to boost the purchase, among other, of timber, textiles and jewelry.
Exports and Trade Deputy Minister Huascar Ajata calls it first step of the November 14 bilateral trade negotiations that involved the signing of $47 million worth contracts.
