Free trade talks open amid noisy protest
NZPA | Monday, 6 December, 2010
Free trade talks open amid noisy protest
Wellington, Dec 6 NZPA — Negotiations to create a nine-nation free trade agreement opened in Auckland today in the face of noisy protests and a Green Party warning that New Zealand’s overseas investment regime was on the United States’ hit list.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) involves New Zealand, the United States, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
The Auckland meeting of 400 negotiators is the fourth round of talks and Foreign Minister Murray McCully said it was fitting that New Zealand was hosting it.
"New Zealand has been a leader in negotiating top quality trade deals in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.
"This is an important initiative for New Zealand. We are looking for openings in all growth regions, but the Asia-Pacific is where the biggest opportunities lie."
Green’s co-leader Russel Norman said the US had specifically identified New Zealand’s foreign investment rules as a barrier to involvement in free trade agreements.
"It’s time for (Prime Minister) John Key and (Trade Minister) Tim Groser to come out and publicly state that New Zealand will not weaken our overseas investment rules for the sake of getting the US on board for the Trans-Pacific Partnership," he said.
"Australia no longer has the right to regulate almost all US investment into Australia because of the Australia-US free trade agreement."
Outside the Sky City Centre, university academic Jane Kelsey told protesters the TPP would give foreign investors the right to trump New Zealand’s democratic process.
"They will threaten our rights to control foreign investment... the US will be insisting there is no right for GE labelling, we won’t be able to make our own decisions to know what it is that we’re eating."
Trade union members held banners saying "stop gambling with our future" and rolled a huge dice along Federal Street.
Auckland City Councillor Cathy Casey said the TPP did not support local business and would open the door to multi-nationals who wanted to take them over.
The meeting runs until Friday.
