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Sections 501(1) and (4) of the Trade Act of 1974,
as amended ("Trade Act") (19 U.S.C. 2461(1) and (4)), provide
that, in affording duty-free treatment under the Generalized
System of Preferences (GSP), the President shall have due regard
for, among other factors, the effect such action will have on
furthering the economic development of a beneficiary developing
country and the extent of the beneficiary developing country's
competitiveness with respect to eligible articles.
Section 502(c)(2) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2462(c)(2))
provides that, in determining whether to designate any country
as a beneficiary developing country for purposes of the GSP,
the President shall take into account various factors, including
the country's level of economic development, the country's
per capita gross national product, the living standards of
its inhabitants, and any other economic factors he deems
appropriate. Section 502(d) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C.
2462(d)) authorizes the President to withdraw, suspend, or
limit the application of duty-free treatment under the GSP
with respect to any country after considering the factors
set forth in sections 501 and 502(c) of the Trade Act.
Section 502(f)(2) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2462(f)(2))
requires the President to notify the Congress and the affected
country, at least 60 days before termination, of the President's
intention to terminate the affected country's designation as
a beneficiary developing country for purposes of the GSP.
Section 502(e) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2462(e))
provides that the President shall terminate the designation of
a country as a beneficiary developing country if the President
determines that such country has become a "high income" country
as defined by the official statistics of the International Bank
for Reconstruction and Development. Termination is effective
on January 1 of the second year following the year in which such
determination is made.
Section 502(c)(7) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C.
2462(c)(7)) provides that, in determining whether to designate
any country a beneficiary developing country under this section,
the President shall take into account whether the country has
taken or is taking steps to afford internationally recognized
worker rights to workers in the country.
Section 502(a)(1) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C.
2462(a)(1)) authorizes the President to designate countries
as beneficiary developing countries for purposes of the GSP.
Section 503(c)(2)(F) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2463(c)(2)(F))
authorizes the President to disregard the limitations provided
in section 503(c)(2)(A)(i)(II) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C.
2463(c)(2)(A)(i)(II)) with respect to any eligible article if
the aggregate appraised value of the imports of such article
into the United States during the preceding calendar year is
de minimis.
Section 502(a)(2) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C.
2462(a)(2)) authorizes the President to designate any
bene-ficiary developing country as a least-developed beneficiary
developing country for purposes of the GSP based on the
considerations in sections 501 and 502(c) of the Trade Act.
Pursuant to section 502(d) of the Trade Act, and
having considered the factors set forth in sections 501 and
502(c)(2), I have determined that Malaysia is sufficiently
advanced in economic development and improved in trade
competitiveness that continued preferential treatment under
the GSP is not warranted, and that it is appropriate to
termi-nate the designation of Malaysia as a beneficiary
developing country for purposes of the GSP effective January 1,
In order to take into account the termination of benefits
under the GSP for articles imported from Malaysia, I have
determined that it is appropriate to: (i) terminate the
designation of Malaysia for GSP purposes as a member of the
Association of South East Asian Nations ("ASEAN") and to modify
general note 4(a) of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the
United States ("HTS") to reflect such termination, (ii) delete
from general note 4(d) of the HTS and from pertinent HTS
subheadings all references to particular products of Malaysia
which are currently excluded from preferential tariff treatment
under the GSP, and (iii) to terminate any waivers of the
competitive need limits granted to Malaysia pursuant to
section 503(d) of the Trade Act (19 U.S.C. 2463(d)).
Pursuant to section 502(e) of the Trade Act, I have
determined that Cyprus, Aruba, Macau, the Netherlands Antilles,
Greenland, and the Cayman Islands meet the definition of a
"high income" country as defined by the official statistics
of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
As a result and pursuant to section 502(e) of the Trade Act,
I am terminating the preferential treatment under the GSP for
articles that are currently eligible for such treatment and
that are imported from Cyprus, Aruba, Macau, the Netherlands
Antilles, Greenland, and the Cayman Islands effective
January 1, 1998.
Pursuant to section 502(d) of the Trade Act, and
having considered the factors set forth in sections 501
and 502(c)(7), I have determined that it is appropriate to
suspend some of Pakistan's GSP benefits because of insufficient
progress on affording workers in that country internationally
recognized worker rights. In order to reflect the suspension
of benefits under the GSP for certain articles imported from
Pakistan, I have determined that it is appropriate to modify
general note 4(d) of the HTS and pertinent HTS subheadings so
that Pakistan will no longer receive preferential tariff
treatment under the GSP with respect to certain eligible
articles effective July 1, 1996.
Pursuant to section 502(a)(1) of the Trade Act, I am
acting to correct the name of Guinea-Bissau and the Republic of
Yemen in the HTS, beneficiary developing countries previously
proclaimed. In addition, I have determined that it is
appropriate to disregard section 503(c)(2)(A)(i)(II) of the
Trade Act with respect to certain eligible articles from certain
beneficiary developing countries based on imports for calendar
year 1994 and to restore preferential treatment under the GSP
to imports of such articles from such countries.
Pursuant to sections 502(a)(2) and 502(d) of the Trade
Act, and having considered the factors set forth in sections 501
and 502(c), I have determined that Botswana and Western Samoa
should be deleted from the list of least-developed beneficiary
developing countries and Angola, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Zaire,
and Zambia should be added.
Section 604 of the Trade Act, as amended (19 U.S.C.
2483), authorizes the President to embody in the HTS the
substance of the relevant provisions of that Act, and of other
Acts affecting import treatment, and actions thereunder.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, acting under the authority vested
in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States,
including but not limited to section 301 of Title 3,
United States Code, and Title V and section 604 of the Trade
Act, do proclaim that:
(1) In order to terminate the designation of Malaysia as
a beneficiary developing country under the GSP and to modify
the list of beneficiary developing countries designated as
least-developed beneficiary developing countries for purposes
of the GSP, the HTS is modified as provided in Annex I to this
proclamation.
(2) In order to terminate the designation of Cyprus,
Aruba, Macau, the Netherlands Antilles, Greenland, and the
Cayman Islands as beneficiary developing countries under the
GSP, the HTS is modified as provided in Annex II to this
proclamation.
(3) In order to reflect the suspension of benefits under
the GSP for certain articles imported from Pakistan, the HTS
is modified as provided in Annex III to this proclamation.
(4) In order to correct the name of Guinea-Bissau and
Republic of Yemen and to restore preferential treatment to
certain eligible articles from certain beneficiary developing
countries as a result of granting of de minimis waivers to such
articles, the HTS is modified as provided in Annex IV to this
proclamation.
(5) I delegate to the United States Trade Representative
the powers granted to me in section 502(f)(2) of the Trade Act
to notify a country of my intention to terminate that country's
status as a beneficiary developing country for the purposes of
the GSP.
(6) Any provisions of previous proclamations and Executive
orders inconsistent with the provisions of this proclamation
are hereby superseded to the extent of such inconsistency.
(7) The modifications to the HTS made in paragraphs
(1) through (4) of this proclamation shall be effective with
respect to articles both: (i) imported on or after January 1,
1976, and (ii) entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for
consumption, on or after the date specified in the respective
Annex.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand
this seventeenth day of October, in the year of our Lord
nineteen hundred and ninety-six, and of the Independence of
the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-first.