The WTO is an organization that is meant to facilitate world commerce between countries1. One way it does this is through reduction of tariffs and prevention of discrimination of products imported from countries2. In order to effectively reduce tariffs, and prevent trade discrimination, it must enforce the laws that support these principles. One such law is the GATT 1994. Inside this law also, there is a provision called article XX that outlines exceptions under, which members of the WTO can contravene the GATT 19943. These exceptions run from A to J, and they specifically guard against the contravention of values of the member states, of which some may not be economic in nature4. An outlook of these exceptions, contained in article XX of the GATT 1994, and the jurisprudence developed over the years from the adjudication bodies of the WTO, it is clear that these exceptions are not only conditional but they are also limited5. This is because in these cases, the appellate body and the panels have always favored a narrow interpretation of these exceptions6. The GATT 1994 explicitly states that article XX is only involved when a member has violated the specifications of article 111:4. One can also argue that the exceptions are limited given the fact that these exceptions that are stated in article XX of the GATT 1994 are exhaustive and are the only ones.
