Trans-Pacific Partnership to be signed in a New Zealand casino tomorrow, OpenMedia available to comment

Trade Ministers will gather in Auckland, New Zealand to sign the controversial deal.

WHAT:

The 12 Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Trade Ministers will be meeting in Auckland, New Zealand tomorrow to sign the deal. The TPP is a huge international agreement, covering over 40% of the world's GDP, and has been negotiated between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Peru, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States.

Signing the deal will place TPP partners on a path toward full ratification. The TPP will enter into force 60 days after all 12 signing countries ratify the agreement (or alternatively, 60 days after at least 6 of the original signatories have ratified the deal, so long as the combined GDP of those 6 signatories equals at least 85% of the combined GDP of all 12 TPP nations).

In Canada’s case, full ratification will require a debate and majority vote in Parliament.
 

WHEN:

The signing ceremony takes place at 5.30pm Eastern Time, Wednesday Feb 3rd (11.30am NZDT Thurs Feb 4.)

WHERE:

The signing ceremony will take place at the SkyCity Casino, Auckland, New Zealand.

A live stream of the ceremony, and the press conference to follow, will be available on the website of the NZ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade at https://www.mfat.govt.nz/

WHY:

Business leaders, copyright experts, and economists warn that the TPP’s intellectual property provisions will threaten basic Internet freedoms and cost Canada’s economy billions. A Tufts University study concluded the deal would mean 58,000 job losses in Canada over the next 10 years.

Critics of the TPP include former Blackberry CEO Jim Balsillie, who warns that ratifying the deal would amount to the worst public policy decision in Canadian history. Law professor and Canada Research Chair Michael Geist has also written an in-depth series of articles on his blog about the TPP’s impact on our digital economy and digital rights.

QUOTE:

“Given that the risks to our digital economy are so high, it’s entirely fitting that this costly deal is being signed in a well-known Auckland casino,” said Meghan Sali, Digital Rights Specialist for OpenMedia. “Trade Minister Freeland has already admitted the TPP is impossible to renegotiate — so why gamble away our digital rights by pushing ahead with this irresponsible plan?”