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WTO, FTAs: Instruments of imperialist domination

IBON Foundation. WTO, FTAs: Instruments of imperialist domination. Launching Forum of NO DEAL! MOVEMENT AGAINST UNEQUAL AGREEMENTS Quezon City November 9, 2007. Philippine poverty and backwardness. Widespread poverty Worsening inequality Agricultural and industrial backwardness

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WTO, FTAs: Instruments of imperialist domination

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  1. IBON Foundation WTO, FTAs: Instruments of imperialist domination Launching Forum of NO DEAL! MOVEMENT AGAINST UNEQUAL AGREEMENTS Quezon City November 9, 2007

  2. Philippine poverty and backwardness • Widespread poverty • Worsening inequality • Agricultural and industrial backwardness • Overly reliant on cheap labor export, foreign capital- and debt

  3. Filipinos aspire and struggle for development • For: • true agrarian reform • genuine national industrialization • Against: • imperialist domination of the economy • exploiting cheap labor, plundering natural resources and dominating our markets • exploitative international economic deals • multilateral WTO agreements • bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs), regional trade agreements (RTAs), economic partnership agreements (EPAs) • Go far beyond just “trade” also investment, services, competition policy, intellectual property rights, labor, govt procurement, dispute settlement…

  4. (1) FTAs deny us essential policies for development To build domestic economy we need: • Trade protection against imports to give local producers the opportunity to develop • Tariff/non-tariff barriers… • Foreign investment controls  to ensure benefits from FDI • Equity requirements, domestic content, local hiring, technology transfer…

  5. (1) FTAs deny us essential policies for development Policies affirmed by historical experience: • Used by allFirst World countries when they were developing • Britain, France, Germany, US, Japan… (19th century-1950s) • Used by handful of Third World countries which made any sort of economic progress • South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia… (1960s-1980/90s) • Used by Socialist countries • Russia (1917+), China (1949+)

  6. (2) FTAs impose policies that have already severely damaged the economy • Philippines has been actively liberalizing trade and investment since the 1980s/90s • IMF-WB impositions, WTO agreements… • Arguably the most liberalized country in Southeast Asia… and also one of its poorest performing

  7. (2) FTAs impose policies that have already severely damaged the economy • Trade doubled as percentage of GDP : • 52% (1980)  105% (2005) • Foreign investment quadrupled as percentage of GDP: • 4% (1980)  14% (2005) YET: • Record sustained joblessness: • Unemplt 8% (1980)  ~11% (2001-05) • 12 million Filipinos looking for work/additional work (2006)  OFW export • De-industrializationand shrinking manufacturing • Share in GDP: 26% (1980)23%(2005) • Share in employment (11% 9%) • Falling food productionper capita, rising agricultural trade deficits

  8. JPEPA is unequal, defeatist and destructive • Grossly unequal • Backward Philippines gives up much more than advanced Japan • Philippines’ deal worse than negotiated by Malaysia and Indonesia

  9. JPEPA is unequal, defeatist and destructive • Defeatist • Surrenders Philippine policy sovereignty and use of necessaryeconomic policy tools • National Treatment, Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) Treatment, prohibition of “performance requirements” on investments • Unprecedented protection for Japanese investors. “Investment” = FDI, portfolio investment + intellectual property, contractual rights, tax breaks (“taxation as expropriation”) • Note: JPEPA includes “Singapore Issues” already rejected at WTO for being anti-developmental

  10. JPEPA is unequal, defeatist and destructive • Destructive • JPEPA drastically restricts the Philippines’ policy options: precedent-setting vis-à-vis Japan and sets a dangerous benchmark for other FTAs • Note: Handful of FTAs makes WTO virtually redundant, where Japan + EU + US + Greater China + ASEAN = ~90% of country’s intl trade and investment • Job losses in auto/auto parts assembly and iron/steel sectors, fisheries… toxic waste imports… commodification of nurses/careworkers… • + Millions of jobs that will never be created because of stifled domestic development

  11. NO Deal!stands for democratic governance, economic sovereignty and building the national economy • NO Deal!supports economic relations based on equality and mutual benefit • NO Deal!rejects all unequal trade agreements which further undermine our already devastated economy • JPEPA, EU-ASEAN, RP-US, RP-China…

  12. Maraming salamat!

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