Yeah, Like the so-called Free Trade Agreement the PREVIOUS government eagerly signed and was so avid to get, Andrew 'Bend-Over-And-take-It-Up-The-Behind'' Robb and the CURRENT government now want enter another agreement, largely written to protect and enhance American corporate interests at the expense of national sovereignty in other jurisdictions, to spread the misery around the Pacific.
Me? I start dealing with the cheapest most convenient quality assured producers on the planet - the Chinese. Hey, we do export a heap of rock and greenhouse emitting substances there, they do produce state-of-the-art technology (largely thanks to those same American companies that TPP is supposed to represent who show no loyalty to their own country when push-comes-to-shove), and unlike the US at the moment it is on the ascendant whilst the US slides into the mire of stifling ideas and creativity through its Dark Ages intellectual property regime that extends the rights of licensees, to the detriment of both owners and consumers. (The Americans will eventually wake up to the fact that they're cutting their own throats .... but it will probably take some time and a goodly turnover of politicians.) And what will the average Australian get out of the deal?" # Medicines and pharmaceuticals will cost more # Generic drugs will take longer to appear on our market # The current region locked inequitable pricing schemes for software, content and other multimedia will be locked in and probably extended # Far more draconian copyright regimes will be put in place that boa-fide users and taxpayers will no doubt fund # Major international corporations will be able to contest policy decisions of the Australian government in local and overseas jurisdictions (e.g. on tobacco/cigarette controls, public safety legislation, workers conditions etc etc) which affect their trading and profitability. # Numerous other instances of increased consumer cost, inconvenience, and reduction in value of goods and content purchased Oh yeah, if the current government continues to support this turkey, to advocate for it against all the objections by prospective non-US governments who are debating the prospective treaty, and to institute its provisions so that its own taxpayers and electorate are adversely affected ... well, I say good luck to them. They were largely elected to decrease the 'cost of living' ... if they get us into something that actually increases it and imposes further burdens on Australian families and consumers ... then good luck dealing with that at the next election. If it was me, I'd be REALLY careful about getting into this puppy - because the potential for it to backfire and blow up in their faces is extremely likely given the provisions I've seen them supporting so far. Just my 2 cents worth ... --- On 15 Nov 2013, at 1:35 pm, [email protected] wrote: > According to Wikileaks, it looks like Australia, and the Creative Commons, > are about to be screwed (eg, new international courts with secret evidence) > and also we > will screw our neighboring countries even worse: Quote: "Julian > Assange emphasises that a “cringingly obsequious” Australia is the nation > most likely to support the hardline position of US negotiators against > other countries .." > > Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) > > http://wikileaks.org/tpp/ > > > Today, 13 November 2013, WikiLeaks released the secret negotiated draft > text for the entire TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) Intellectual Property > Rights Chapter. > > The TPP is the largest-ever economic treaty, encompassing nations > representing more than 40 per cent of the world’s GDP. > > The WikiLeaks release of the text comes ahead of the decisive TPP Chief > Negotiators summit in Salt Lake City, Utah, on 19-24 November 2013. > > The chapter published by WikiLeaks is perhaps the most controversial > chapter of the TPP due to its wide-ranging effects on medicines, > publishers, internet services, civil liberties and biological patents. > > Significantly, the released text includes the negotiation positions and > disagreements between all 12 prospective member states. > > The TPP is the forerunner to the equally secret US-EU pact TTIP > (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership), for which President Obama > initiated US-EU negotiations in January 2013. Together, the TPP and TTIP > will cover more than 60 per cent of global GDP. Both pacts exclude China. > > Since the beginning of the TPP negotiations, the process of drafting and > negotiating the treaty’s chapters has been shrouded in an unprecedented > level of secrecy. Access to drafts of the TPP chapters is shielded from the > general public. Members of the US Congress are only able to view selected > portions of treaty-related documents in highly restrictive conditions and > under strict supervision. > > It has been previously revealed that only three individuals in each TPP > nation have access to the full text of the agreement, while 600 ’trade > advisers’ – lobbyists guarding the interests of large US corporations such > as Chevron, Halliburton, Monsanto and Walmart – are granted privileged > access to crucial sections of the treaty text. > > The TPP negotiations are currently at a critical stage. > > The Obama administration is preparing to fast-track the TPP treaty in a > manner that will prevent the US Congress from discussing or amending any > parts of the treaty. > > Numerous TPP heads of state and senior government figures, including > President Obama, have declared their intention to sign and ratify the TPP > before the end of 2013. > > WikiLeaks’ Editor-in-Chief Julian Assange stated: “The US administration is > aggressively pushing the TPP through the US legislative process on the > sly.” The advanced draft of the Intellectual Property Rights Chapter, > published by WikiLeaks on 13 November 2013, provides the public with the > fullest opportunity so far to familiarise themselves with the details and > implications of the TPP. > > The 95-page, 30,000-word IP Chapter lays out provisions for instituting a > far-reaching, transnational legal and enforcement regime, modifying or > replacing existing laws in TPP member states. > > The Chapter’s subsections include agreements relating to patents (who may > produce goods or drugs), copyright (who may transmit information), > trademarks (who may describe information or goods as authentic) and > industrial design. > > The longest section of the Chapter – ’Enforcement’ – is devoted to > detailing new policing measures, with far-reaching implications for > individual rights, civil liberties, publishers, internet service providers > and internet privacy, as well as for the creative, intellectual, biological > and environmental commons. > > Particular measures proposed include supranational litigation tribunals to > which sovereign national courts are expected to defer, but which have no > human rights safeguards. > > The TPP IP Chapter states that these courts can conduct hearings with > secret evidence. > > The IP Chapter also replicates many of the surveillance and enforcement > provisions from the shelved SOPA and ACTA treaties. > > The consolidated text obtained by WikiLeaks after the 26-30 August 2013 TPP > meeting in Brunei – unlike any other TPP-related documents previously > released to the public – contains annotations detailing each country’s > positions on the issues under negotiation. > > Julian Assange emphasises that a “cringingly obsequious” Australia is the > nation most likely to support the hardline position of US negotiators > against other countries, while states including Vietnam, Chile and Malaysia > are more likely to be in opposition. > > Numerous key Pacific Rim and nearby nations – including Argentina, Ecuador, > Colombia, South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and, most significantly, > Russia and China – have not been involved in the drafting of the treaty. > > In the words of WikiLeaks’ Editor-in-Chief Julian Assange, “If instituted, > the TPP’s IP regime would trample over individual rights and free > expression, as well as ride roughshod over the intellectual and creative > commons. > > If you read, write, publish, think, listen, dance, sing or invent; if you > farm or consume food; if you’re ill now or might one day be ill, the TPP > has you in its crosshairs.” > > Current TPP negotiation member states are the United States, Japan, Mexico, > Canada, Australia, Malaysia, Chile, Singapore, Peru, Vietnam, New Zealand > and Brunei. > > Read the full secret TPP treaty IP chapter here: > > http://wikileaks.org/tpp/static/pdf/Wikileaks-secret-TPP-treaty-IP- > chapter.pdf > > Message sent using MelbPC WebMail Server > > > > _______________________________________________ > Link mailing list > [email protected] > http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/link _______________________________________________ Link mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/link
