Fair Deal or No Deal

The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP):

Corporate power versus peoples’ rights


The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is a free trade agreement involving Australia,
the US, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Japan and Vietnam. Negotiations are secretive, but we know from leaked documents and limited public information
that this agreement is not mainly about trade in goods. The agenda is being driven by the US
on behalf of its global corporations, who want changes to our laws which would suit corporations
but reduce peoples’ rights. Learn more:

Main Content Categories:

Take Action

Join the campaign for a Fair Deal or No Deal in the TPP


After three years of negotiations, the push is on to finish. We must ensure that our health, environmental and other laws are decided through democratic processes, not secretly signed away in a trade agreement.

Main Content Categories:

Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement

Australian Trade Minister Robb announced in December 2013 that the main elements of the Korea-Australia free trade agreement had been settled between the two governments.

The agreement includes investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), a controversial mechanism which gives foreign investors the right to sue governments. The previous Labor government had a policy against including ISDS in trade agreements and had been maintaining this position since 2008 when the negotiations with Korea began.

AFTINET opposes including ISDS in any trade agreement as it would reduce the ability of governments to regulate in the public interest.

For more details, see AFTINET convener Dr Patricia Ranald’s analysis Campaign against inclusion of ISDS in the Korea-Australia agreement, and AFTINET's analysis of the text of the agreement which confirms that these "safeguards" have been ineffective in the past.

AFTINET presented the petition Stop foreign investors suing our governments – reject Korea trade deal to the Trade Minister's office in Canberra in early February.

Main Content Categories:

Getting the balance right on medical patents in the TPP

Jon Edwards from from Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) writes in The Drum about why we should be concerned about any increase in patents on medicines in the TPP negotiations. Read the article here

Main Content Categories:

ISDS: The Devil in KAFTA’s detail

“ISDS: The Devil in KAFTA’s detail” by Matthew Cawood in the Fairfax rural press is a critical discussion of investor rights to sue governments in the Korea FTA and in the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP).

24/02/2014

Main Content Categories:

ISDS risks in South Korea trade deal - The Canberra Times

In an article published in The Canberra Times, Kyla Teinhaara and Jeffrey Mcgee argue that the recently completed Australia-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KAFTA) should be renegotiated to remove the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) clause.

Main Content Categories:

Upcoming Events

  • TPP community forum in Sydney, March 10

    Time: 6.30pm, Monday March 10
    Venue: Newtown Neighbourhood Centre, 1 Bedford St, Newtown NSW (Opposite Newtown Station)

    Speakers:
    Dr Patricia Ranald, Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network
    Michael Whaites, NSW Nurses and Midwives Association
    Isobel McIntosh, Lock the Gate Alliance
    Simon Frew, Pirate Party



    • Main Content Categories:

    Protecting the health of Australians in the TPP negotiations

    A group of academics and non-government organisations have released a policy brief highlighting the potential effects of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) on the health of Australians.

    Main Content Categories:

    Radio PM: South Korea free trade deal released

    ABC PM radio discusses the recently concluded Free Trade Agreement between Australia and Korea. A number of people are interviewed including the Trade Minister Andrew Robb and AFTINET's Dr Patricia Ranald.

    Listen to the segment or read the transcript here

    Main Content Categories:

    Trans-Pacific Partnership is a big deal, but hardly anyone knows

    The Sydney Morning Herald published an article titled "Trans-Pacific Partnership is a big deal, but hardly anyone knows", citing a study by the Australia Institute, which found that 55 per cent of respondents did not know about the TPP, and another 19 per cent were not sure.

    Read the article here

    17/02/2014

    Main Content Categories:

    Pages

    Subscribe to AFTINET RSS