Antigua and Others Gear up for Lawsuit Against USAntigua Says US Still in Violation of World Trade Organization Sanctions |
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Earlier this week, the small Caribbean island of Antigua and Barbuda met with representatives from the European Commission, Japan, and China to discuss its Internet gaming case against the United States. The larger nations are acting as third-party representatives in the country's World Trade Organization dispute with the US government. They also held briefing sessions with representatives from Brazil, Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Antigua and the US have both recently filed submissions on the US's compliance with the WTO's decision that the US was violating international trade agreements with its gaming policy. Antigua maintains that the US is still not in compliance with the WTO's decision. According to Antigua's legal advisor, Mark Mendelson, there is more to this case than just gaming and he hopes that the international support will spur the US into compliance with the WTO's previous decision .
"All meetings went well. A great thing about our case is that you don't have to care about gambling at all to be on our side on the WTO legal issues. I would say that our support with these other countries is probably quite strong, and having them on our side on the important issues is of very great help to our case. It can only enhance the credibility of a small country to have some of the major players in the WTO agreeing with our position," Mendelson told Card Player.
In Mendelson's opinion, the US's response to the ruling has left a lot to be desired and the recent US Congressional actions are further proof that the US is continuing to flout the WTO's decision.
In 2003, Antigua filed a complaint with the WTO that the US's attempts to stop its residents from accessing online gambling sites violated WTO policy. Gambling services are considered commerce, and Antigua claimed that the US's attempts to stop the free trade of this commerce violated WTO agreements because the US allows forms of gambling in most of its states.
In 2004, the WTO agreed with Antigua, and in 2005, it upheld its ruling after the US appealed. The WTO ordered the US to comply with the rulings or face sanctions by Antigua, but Antigua is the smallest member of the WTO and its sanctions are toothless. The US has remained virtually silent about this case.
Next week, the third parties will submit their recommendations on the case and a WTO panel is scheduled to receive a rebuttal from Antigua and Barbuda on the US's submission in three weeks. The US will then have a chance to respond two weeks later. The WTO panel will convene in November and issue a final ruling in January or February of 2007.
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