More info on “China’s Influence on Non Trade Concerns in International Economic Law”

I. Public Policy, International Trade & Foreign Direct Investment: The Role of States & Non State Actors in Economic Globalization

This Book Part I “Public Policy, International Trade, and Foreign Direct Investment: The Role of States and Non-State Actors in Economic Globalization” is participated by researchers funded by the Marie Curie IRSES of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013) under REA grant agreement nº 318908 Acronym of the Project: POREEN (2013–2016) entitled “Partnering Opportuni­ties between Europe and China in the Renewable Energies and Environmental Industries”, within the results coordinated by gLAWcal – Global Law Initiatives for Sustainable Development (United Kingdom).

3. Economic Globalization and Social Rights: the Role of the International Labor Organization and the WTO Claudio Di Turi
4. Multinational Corporations and Corporate Social Responsibility in a Chinese Context: An International Law Perspective Angelica Bonfanti
5. Rights Interest Litigation, Socio-Economic Rights and Chinese Labor Law Reform Leïla Choukroune
6. Law, Culture, and the Politics of Chinese Outward Foreign Investment Valentina Sara Vadi
7. Chinese Investment in Africa: Strengthening the Balance Sheet Mark Klaver and Michael Trebilcock

II. Sustainable Development, Environmental Protection and Climate Change

This Book Part II “Sustainable Development, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change” is partici­pated by researchers funded by the Marie Curie IRSES of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under REA grant agreement n° 269327 – Acronym of the Project: EPSEI (2011–2015) entitled “Evaluating Policies for Sustainable Energy Investments” within the results coordi­nated by gLAWcal – Global Law Initiatives for Sustainable Development (United Kingdom).

8. Soft, Complex and Fragmented International Climate Change Practice: What Implications for International Trade Law? Francesco Sindico, Julie Gibson
9. The Principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities in the International Regime of Climate Change Imad Ibrahim, Thomas Deleuil, Paolo Davide Farah
10. The Kyoto Protocol: Carbon Pricing and Trade Prospects. The Clean Development Mechanism from the Perspective of the Developing Countries Marion Lemoine
11. The Role of Domestic Policies in Fostering Technology Transfer: Evidence from China Elena Cima
12. China’s Environmental Legislation and Its Trend Towards Scientific Development He Weidong
13. Research on the Reform of the Judicial Relief System for Environmental Disputes in China Luo Li
14. The Impact of the Kyoto Protocol and UNFCCC on Chinese Law and the Consequential Reforms to Fight Climate Change Carla Peng
15. The Development of NGOs in China: A Case Study on Their Involvement with Climate Change Zhixiong Huang
16. A Comparison Between Shale Gas in China and Unconventional Fuel Development in the United States: Health, Water and Environmental Risks Paolo Farah, Riccardo Tremolada

III. Fundamental Rights and Cultural Diversity

This Book Part III “Fundamental Rights and Cultural Diversity” is participated by researchers funded by the Marie Curie IRSES of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007–2013) under REA grant agreement n° 317767 – Acronym of the Project: LIBEAC (2013–2016) entitled “Lib­eralism in Between Europe And China” within the results coordinated by gLAWcal – Global Law Initiatives for Sustainable Development (United Kingdom).

17. Understanding Non-Trade Concerns through Comparative Chinese and European Philosophy of Law Jean Yves Heurtebise
18. The Right to Food in International Law and WTO Law: An Appraisal Flavia Zorzi Giustiniani
19. The Right to Food in China: Cultural Foundation, Present and Future Ning Libiao
20. Projections of China’s Food Security to 2030: Obligations as an Agricultural Superpower James R. Simpson
21. China and the Recognition and Protection of the Human Right to Water Roberto Soprano
22. China Meets Hollywood at WTO: Janus’ Faces of Freedom. Standards of Right and Wrong between National and International Moralities Christophe Germann
23. Cultural Products and the WTO: China’s Domestic Censorship and Media Control Policies Rogier Creemers
24. Trade in Audiovisuals – The Case of China Anselm Kamperman Sanders
25. Rise and Demise of US Social Media in China. A Touchstone of WTO and BIT Regulations Danny Friedmann
26. Can Trade Restrictions Be Justified by Moral Values? Revisiting The Seals Disputes Through a Law and Economics Analysis Julien Chaisse & Xinjie Luan

Part IV. Public Health, Product and Food Safety, Consumer Protection

Part IV of the volume addresses the complex and highly debated intersection between trade regulation and the protection of public health, product safety, and consumers’ rights, adopting once again a very unique perspective based on China’s experience.

Denise Prévost examines the most relevant provisions of the WTO Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) to establish the extent to which it permits China to pursue its Non-Trade Concerns in the area of food safety, as well as plant and animal health. The analysis of the WTO rules that discipline the trade-restrictive effect of such health regulations and conformity assessment procedures will also determine the possibilities for the EU to pursue its trade interests by using the rules of the SPS Agreement to challenge China’s SPS measures.

Lorenzo Di Masi looks at the presence of Non-Trade Concerns in regional trade agreements (RTAs) signed by the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and by China, in order to evaluate their possible contribution to the evolution of international economic law in a “sustainable development oriented” direction. The author first discusses the reasons that have led China and ASEAN to pursue an intensive regional policy during the last ten years and argues that the Chinese government has always entered into RTAs for geopolitical and economic reasons, which explains why it has given only partial attention to sustainable development issues. However, China’s continued display of flexibility in negotiations, combined with the fact that sustainable development has become an essential part of the country’s economic planning, leaves open the possibility of new unexpected scenarios.

Lukasz Gruszczynski discusses the basic obligations for national product safety regulations imposed by the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and looks at the rules on technical standards that are applicable in the relations between China and its trading partners. In recent decades, the problem of product safety has become one of the main issues on the agenda of national regulators. Although the TBT Agreement constitutes an important part of the WTO legal regime, it seems to be somewhat unappreciated by WTO Members, as TBT disputes have been rare. The author argues that, as a consequence, the scope of the Members’ obligations and rights flowing from TBT provisions is uncertain, affecting the predictability of the whole system and further discouraging Members from initiating disputes under the agreement.

Piercarlo Rossi examines China’s provisions aimed at consumer protection within a broader analysis of how consumer protection laws may create an exception, if not even an obstacle, to the principles of international trade. Studying the provisions aimed at protecting consumers in different jurisdictions from a strictly legal point of view, the author finds that there are no consistent doctrines concerning the balance between provisions directed at protecting competition and markets and those solely designed to protect consumers. Turning to the study of Chinese consumer laws, the author remarks on the importance of conducting such analysis, taking into account the specific features of the Asian region China belongs to.

The issue of consumers’ legal protection is subsequently taken up by Rajendra Prasad, who focuses on developing countries. Consumers exist throughout the globe but encounter distinct problems depending on their country of residence. Taking into account the specific problems of developing countries as far as consumer protection is concerned, the author examines the legislative attempts of various Asian countries to protect consumers’ interests. The author uses the Indian experience as a case study to show how consumer protection has been able to trigger a new legal revolution with informal dispute resolution.

Hu Junhong examines the innovative legislative principles introduced with the adoption of the Chinese Tort Liability Law, as well as their effects on the system of product liability and legal regulations of product safety, especially in the light of the product safety accidents that recently occurred in China. The author investigates the reasons why, even though China has enacted strict laws on product safety, including administrative laws on product supervision and punishment and tough civil and criminal laws on product liability, consumer safety cases in which serious damage occurs constantly arise.

Nadia Coggiola addresses the issue of compensation of damages caused by environmental pollution, aiming to identify the reasons and meanings of the discrepancies between the rich and comprehensive Chinese legislation and the poor litigation records on compensation for damages caused by exposure to dangerous substances. The very essence of this controversial issue can only be grasped by inquiring how formal rules are actually implemented in Chinese courts and, as a result, the author investigates beyond the narrow borders of Chinese black letter law to unveil the judicial and extrajudicial hurdles that undermine an effective implementation of the existing laws and regulations.

Shujie Feng, Xin Shu and Ningning Zhang explore the contribution of the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) in solving one of the most controversial problems raised by biotechnology, namely the patentability of biotechnological inventions. Since all WTO Members experience different levels of technological and economic development, and since they do not share the same morals and ethics, divergences are unavoidable. Against this background, and taking into account the role of the TRIPs Agreement in harmonizing national laws, the authors conduct a comparative evaluation of TRIPs implementation in the field of biotechnology, focusing on China, the US, and the EU. Jayashree Watal addresses the need to find a balance in the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) between the short-term interest in maximizing access to medicines and the long-term interest in promoting creativity and innovation. This task has been made more difficult at the international level on account of IPR treaties that may not take account of differing levels of economic, technological, and social development. The author further explores whether the flexibilities provided for in the TRIPs Agreement, as well as in subsequent instruments adopted by WTO Members, such as the Doha Declaration on TRIPs and Public Health and the Paragraph 6 Decision, are sufficient to solve the problem of access to medicines and medical technologies.

Jianqiang Nie explores the intersection between intellectual property, genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and traditional cultural expression from a Chinese perspective. The author investigates two fundamental issues related to the relationship between the TRIPs Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity: how to clarify legal requirements or conditions under IP legislation to prevent the unlawful or unjustifiable approval of IP rights over genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and traditional cultural expression (defensive protection), and how to make use of the IP legal system to protect genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and traditional cultural expression (positive protection).

Andrea Filippetti and Francesca Spigarelli address the emerging issues related to the infringement of IPRs of indigenous people by foreign multinational enterprises. By settling their branches in the developing world, MNEs are able to capture traditional knowledge, register patents based on such principles, and incorporate them into their products. The industrialized countries win in this game. The authors analyze the pharmaceutical sector in China, focusing on traditional Chinese medicine and the growing presence of foreign pharmaceutical companies in the country.