"With an
Appellate Body made up of these internationally-respected wise men, we can be confident
that the preservation of the rules-based system we negotiated in the Uruguay Round will be
in the best hands." The Appellate Body
members solemnly declared to perform their duties "honourably, independently,
impartially and conscientiously" and to "avoid direct or indirect conflicts of
interests" and to "respect the confidentiality of proceedings of the Appellate
Body."
After the
ceremony, the Appellate Body members began intensive discussions to prepare themselves for
their duties and to develop working procedures for the Body.
Later in the
day, at a lunch in their honour, Mr Ruggiero said: "As the highest judicial authority
in the WTO dispute settlement system, it is extremely important that the Appellate Body be
a completely independent and impartial judicial body, free from all political influence.
This is why you have been given an independent secretariat, separate from the Secretariat
of the WTO. Maintaining and preserving your independence is absolutely fundamental to the
credibility and integrity of the dispute settlement system and of the WTO itself."
Note to
editors:
WTO Press
Release No: 32, dated 29 November 1995, announced the appointments together with brief
biographical details of the Appellate Body members. They are:
Mr James
Bacchus of the United States
Mr
Christopher Beeby of New Zealand
Professor
Claus-Dieter Ehlermann
of Germany
Dr Said
El-Naggar of Egypt
Justice
Florentino Feliciano of the Philippines
Mr Julio
Lacarte Muro of Uruguay
Professor
Mitsuo Matsushita of Japan |
