New Events

International

no events posted in last week

Blog Feeds

Public Inquiry
Interested in maladministration. Estd. 2005

offsite link RTEs Sarah McInerney ? Fianna Fail supporter? Anthony

offsite link Joe Duffy is dishonest and untrustworthy Anthony

offsite link Robert Watt complaint: Time for decision by SIPO Anthony

offsite link RTE in breach of its own editorial principles Anthony

offsite link Waiting for SIPO Anthony

Public Inquiry >>

Human Rights in Ireland
A Blog About Human Rights

offsite link UN human rights chief calls for priority action ahead of climate summit Sat Oct 30, 2021 17:18 | Human Rights

offsite link 5 Year Anniversary Of Kem Ley?s Death Sun Jul 11, 2021 12:34 | Human Rights

offsite link Poor Living Conditions for Migrants in Southern Italy Mon Jan 18, 2021 10:14 | Human Rights

offsite link Right to Water Mon Aug 03, 2020 19:13 | Human Rights

offsite link Human Rights Fri Mar 20, 2020 16:33 | Human Rights

Human Rights in Ireland >>

Lockdown Skeptics

The Daily Sceptic

offsite link Are We Being Gaslit Over the Cause of the Princess of Wales?s Cancer? Fri Mar 29, 2024 07:00 | Melissa Kite
First Charles and then Kate ? it's hard to ignore the soaring cancer rate when two members of the Royal Family are diagnosed within weeks. But are we being gaslit about what's behind the surge, asks Melissa Kite.
The post Are We Being Gaslit Over the Cause of the Princess of Wales’s Cancer? appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link News Round-Up Fri Mar 29, 2024 00:04 | Richard Eldred
A summary of the most interesting stories in the past 24 hours that challenge the prevailing orthodoxy about the virus and the vaccines, the ?climate emergency? and the supposed moral defects of Western civilisation.
The post News Round-Up appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Women?s Team with Five Male Players Wins Football Competition After One Male Player ?Broke Opponent?... Thu Mar 28, 2024 19:30 | Will Jones
A women?s football competition has been branded misogynist after it was won by a team featuring five transgender players, amid accusations one had broken an opponent?s leg in two places.
The post Women’s Team with Five Male Players Wins Football Competition After One Male Player “Broke Opponent’s Leg” ? But Teams Who Refuse to Play Against Them Are Branded “Discriminatory” appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Further Evidence Gaza Casualty Numbers Are Fake Thu Mar 28, 2024 17:36 | Will Jones
The evidence that the Gaza casualty numbers from the Hamas-run Health Ministry (now over 32,000) are wildly inflated continues to mount. Mark Zlochin looks at what the proportions of male and female UNRWA workers tell us.
The post Further Evidence Gaza Casualty Numbers Are Fake appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Don?t Be Fooled by the ?Britain is Growing? Fairytales Thu Mar 28, 2024 15:22 | David Craig
Don't be fooled by the 'Britain is growing' fairytales, says David Craig. Any 'growth' is accounted for by the hike in the benefits bill and in civil servants' pay and a heap of other unproductive deficit spending.
The post Don’t Be Fooled by the ‘Britain is Growing’ Fairytales appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Lockdown Skeptics >>

Voltaire Network
Voltaire, international edition

offsite link Moscow attack reminds us of the links between Islamists and Kiev's fundamentalis... Tue Mar 26, 2024 06:57 | en

offsite link Failure to assist a people in danger of genocide, by Hassan Hamadé Tue Mar 26, 2024 06:32 | en

offsite link Yugoslavia March 24, 1999 The Founding War of the New Nato, by Manlio Dinucci Sun Mar 24, 2024 05:15 | en

offsite link France opposes Russian Korean-style peace project in Ukraine Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:11 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N°79 Fri Mar 22, 2024 11:40 | en

Voltaire Network >>

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Signed in New Zealand amid Mass Protests

category international | economics and finance | other press author Wednesday February 10, 2016 23:36author by T Report this post to the editors

With TPP push through pressure is now on the EU-USA TTIP corporate power grab agreement

The undemocratic anti people TTIP agreement between EU-USA has it's counter part in the Pacific region and it is called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) which is equally as bad. The purpose of the two agreements is to permanently push back democracy and sovereign rights of peoples of huge areas of the world. It is the ultimate global corporate power grab.

Regrettably the TPP was signed by representatives from 12 countries on Feb 4th and on the same day tens of thousands of people protested throughout New Zealand against the formal signing. The signing follows years of secret negotiations between the US, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

Approximately 20,000 people marched through Queen Street and thousands rallied outside the SkyCity Casino in Auckland where the deal was signed. Protesters held placards and chanted slogans denouncing the TPP as a power-grab by US-based multinational corporations.
A section of the NZ, Wellington protest. Src wsws.org
A section of the NZ, Wellington protest. Src wsws.org

In a report from WSWS on the protest it explains the context of the TPP which is actually almost identical to the pending TTIP agreement which must be stopped but in this country is being vigorously pursued by the main political parties and in particular FG who are cheerleaders for one of the worst aspects of it, which is these nvestor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) tribunals.

Here's some key passages from the WSWS report.

The rallies reflected widespread opposition to the TPP in the working class. The agreement will strengthen multinational corporations throughout the Asia-Pacific region, giving them greater power to outsource jobs and attack workers’ conditions. A study published last month by Tufts University researchers estimates that intensified competition under the TPP could cost 450,000 US jobs, 75,000 Japanese jobs, 58,000 Canadian jobs and 5,000 New Zealand jobs by 2025.

Under the TPP, companies will be able to sue governments in special investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) tribunals, if legislation cuts into their profits. Protesters in New Zealand denounced the ISDS clauses as an attack on democracy and a means for corporations to dictate the elimination of environmental and health regulations.

Many told reporters that they were concerned the cost of medicines will increase due to stronger patent protections for pharmaceutical companies under the TPP. The agreement will also strengthen intellectual property and copyright laws, potentially restricting access to information and entertainment.

Anti-TPP protests in Chile, Peru and Malaysia in recent weeks have also attracted thousands of people. In Lima and Santiago, protesters have highlighted that the TPP will increase the power of US-based agricultural giant Monsanto to impose patents on seeds and drive up food prices and costs for local farmers.

The TPP is not a “free trade” agreement. It will create a trade and investment bloc dominated by the US and its main regional ally Japan—the world’s first and third largest economies—covering 40 percent of the global economy.

The deal is the economic front of Washington’s strategic “pivot to Asia,” aimed at rolling back China’s economic influence in the Asia-Pacific region. As Barack Obama put it, the TPP will allow “America—and not countries like China—to write the rules of the road in the 21st century.” The agreement goes hand-in-hand with the US military encirclement and preparations for war against China, which has involved strengthening military alliances with countries including Japan, Australia, South Korea and New Zealand.

The TPP will only come into force when enabling legislation is passed by each member country. It is unclear when the deal will be passed by the US Congress. If it is not voted on by July, then its ratification will likely be delayed until after the new president takes office next year. The decision to push ahead with the signing reflects Washington’s determination to ram through the deal regardless of opposition within the US.


Full text at the link below

Related Link: http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/02/10/nztp-f10.html
author by Tpublication date Wed Feb 10, 2016 23:45author address author phone Report this post to the editors

More info on Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement can be found here:

http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-trans-pacific-partners...icles

The opening paragraph on secrecy around it really tells you what is the vibe of this agreement and it's not good.

One of the least discussed and least reported issues is the Obama administration’s effort to bring the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement to the forefront, an oppressive plurilateral US-led free trade agreement currently being negotiated with several Pacific Rim countries.

Six hundred US corporate advisors have negotiated and had input into the TPP, and the proposed draft text has not been made available to the public, the press or policymakers. The level of secrecy surrounding the agreements is unparalleled – paramilitary teams scatter outside the premise of each round of discussions while helicopters loom overhead – media outlets impose a near-total blackout of reportage on the subject and US Senator Ron Wyden, the Chair of the Congressional Committee with jurisdiction over TPP, was denied access to the negotiation texts. “The majority of Congress is being kept in the dark as to the substance of the TPP negotiations, while representatives of U.S. corporations — like Halliburton, Chevron, PhaRMA, Comcast and the Motion Picture Association of America — are being consulted and made privy to details of the agreement,” said Wyden, in a floor statement to Congress.


Remember folks the TTIP for EU-USA is pretty much the same as TPP

 
© 2001-2024 Independent Media Centre Ireland. Unless otherwise stated by the author, all content is free for non-commercial reuse, reprint, and rebroadcast, on the net and elsewhere. Opinions are those of the contributors and are not necessarily endorsed by Independent Media Centre Ireland. Disclaimer | Privacy