Antigua and Others Gear up for Lawsuit Against USAntigua Says US Still in Violation of World Trade Organization Sanctionsby Michael Friedman | Published: Oct 19, 2006 | |
 
|
|---|
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.
3 Comments
Chief_Disciple_of_Poker
over 3 years ago
Good News. Someone need to get sued!
strongisland22
over 3 years ago
America has gotten to the point where you actually wonder... is this really what democracy is all about? Is this what is meant by "freedom?" The American government can profit off of the Lottery which is a game of complete chance (in which you pretty much have no chance.) Poker as we all know, is a game of controlled odds and requires skill to make sure the odds are usually in your favor. For the government to allow the Lottery because they control it, and not poker because they do not... tells me that we are somewhere between some bogus type of government we call Democratic, and a bit closer maybe to a type of controlled communism. In a country where over 1/3 of what you EARN with hard work at your job goes to the government... you think that the public would at least have 1/3 a say in how this country should be run. That is my opinion.
verico
over 3 years ago
Hello Fellow Card Player,
I am working to try to assist in getting the legislation changed with an exemption for Poker. I am in contact with Michael Bolcerek and the fine group he has assembled at the home office. He is working very hard for this.
The Web Site is excellent--one of the finest I have seen. However, the sample letter to help the members write their Congresspersons is not a good letter, and needs to be amended. It is caustic, and unnecessarily so. I am happy to discuss this with you.
Also,the letter,and the PR firm missed TWO POWERFUL ARGUMENTS--VITAL FOR OUR SUCCESS:
ONE--when you have a cross section of any 70 million people, most will be fine persons. It is easy to see, statistically, that at least 1 out of 70 figure to be "borderline". That translates to ONE MILLION PEOPLE. When you take away a hobby suddenly, a lot of idle time is SUDDENLY CREATED--and those 1.4 % are a risk to replace all that time in negative activity. That figure is probably low.Bush went to sleep on this point when he signed without thinking.
TWO--Out of the 70 million affected, MANY are handicapped people--and many use wheel chairs. For them, traveling to casinos or anywhere is difficult. With Online Poker, they had a wonderfully safe alternative--the comfort and safety of their own homes.
No Congressperson can ignore the Handicapped--nor should they. This is a powerful boost to our cause. The "Americans With Disabilities Act" is a WONDERFUL PROTECTION, and those involved with it are a powerful force of immense potential for us.
This was also COMPLETELY OVERLOOKED by the letter, and the PR firm that wrote it.
It is important to contact the PPA and get the letter amended--With the addition of these powerful boosts to our cause.
I welcome you to E Mail me, and I will discuss this further. Be sure to put "PPA" in the subject line.
Sincerely,
Jeff
JEFF SINGER
E MAIL js121840@yahoo.com