Bipartisan opposition grew to the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) treaty on Thursday as members of U.S. Congress who oppose the talks sent numerous letters to President Barack Obama and a secret 95-page draft chapter on intellectual property rights was published by WikiLeaks. TPP negotiations have included representatives from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Mexico, Malaysia, Chile, Singapore, Peru, Vietnam, and Brunei, but have been closed to the public. According to The Guardian, the document dated on August 30 includes provisions on patentability, online privacy and copyright protections that would be included in a final TPP treaty.
Opponents of the treaty have been critical of the potential damages it may cause to online privacy and intellectual property standards. The Electronic Frontier Foundation—a lead proponent of digital freedoms and government transparency—said that the provisions leaked this week would have “extensive negative ramifications for users’ freedom of speech, right to privacy and due process, and hinder peoples’ abilities to innovate.” Critics also warn of the effects the treaty would hold on medicine, noting that its wide-reaching protections for pharmaceutical companies and surgical patents could lead to a rise in drug prices and related medical expenses.
TPP supporters remain optimistic and note that, upon approval, the treaty would create the world’s largest free-trade area. In a 2011 speech, Obama said, “The TPP will boost our economies, lowering barriers to trade and investment, increasing exports and creating more jobs for our people, which is my number-one priority.” Enactment of the treaty would dramatically reduce transaction costs between key trade partners in Asia and the Americas, while also serving to create a formidable trading bloc to compete with the growing economic influence of China.
Read more about the TPP in “The Next Big Thing” by Barbara Kotschwar and Jeffrey Schott from the Spring 2013 issue of Americas Quarterly.
