Europe remains concerned by human rights in PH

The European Union’s envoy to the Philippines said the bloc’s top trade priority was the implementation of an arrangement called Generalized System of Preference Plus (GSP+), which allows Philippine exports to enter EU at zero duty provided the country upholds its international conventions, including one on human rights. EU Ambassador Luc Véron said at an EU-Philippine business forum on Thursday that the block looked “forward to continue a fruitful collaboration with the philippines for the correct implementation of the GSP+ for the years to come, especially in the respect of human rights conventions subscribed to by the Philippines.” Since 2014, the Generalized System of Preference Plus allows the Philippines to export more than 6,000 product lines to the EU at zero tariff. “Let me be clear on this, for the EU, the successful implementation of GSP+, with its implication with human and labor rights, good governance and environmental protection, is currently the first priority in the EU-Philippines trade policy relations,” Véron said during the European Philippine Business Summit, which was held online. —ROY STEPHEN C. CANIVEL