Lack of Transparency in the EU Anti-Dumping System: There is Only One True Solution

Abstract

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? It is a question that has been asked since the time of Plato and is still resonant today: Who will guard the guards themselves? Unfortunately, Plato's answer, They will guard themselves against themselves, is, at least with respect to the guardians of the European anti-dumping system (the EU Commission), rather a wishful thinking. This article calls for the Commission to stop making exaggerated claims about improved transparency (through such initiatives as an improved website) and instead implement a system that provides true transparency. It looks, briefly, at the examination process itself, shows how the over-zealous use of confidentiality restricts access to relevant data and to independent verification of conclusions reached by the Commission, and offers a solution to this problem.