The Tonga Public Service Association is yet to receive word on a petition to defer the signing of the PACER Plus regional trade agreement in Nuku’alofa tomorrow.
Tongan businesses, workers` organizations and civil society organisations submitted a petition to the Prime Minister’s Office last Thursday afternoon requesting the deferment claiming the current text is detrimental to Tonga for several reasons.
Tonga PSA and other petitioners say while they are very supportive of PACER Plus, they do not agree with the current text of the agreement because it affects businesses in Tonga, employment opportunities of workers in businesses that will be affected, young entrepreneurs and new businesses and the health of the Tongan consumers in importation of cheap, low quality food products when Tonga does not have the legal food safeguards in place yet.
“The government’s argument that ratification can take place later but that is not our concern,” the petitioners said.
“The concern is the text which needs to be improved to be conducive to the businesses in the PICs.
Tonga PSA and other parties say the signing should be deferred for a year and the text renegotiated.
They also want representatives of businesses, workers and consumers to be included in the national negotiation committees.
Eleven Pacific island countries: Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Republic of the Marshal Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, hosts Tonga and Tuvalu are expected to sign the PACER plus agreement with Australia and New Zealand in Nuku’alofa tomorrow.
Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Vanuatu will not sign the agreement.
PACER Plus is meant to open up opportunities for trade in the Pacific.
The agreement is intended to “avoid unnecessary barriers to trade, facilitate and liberalise trade and thereby promote integration between the economies of the parties.”
However, critics are concerned that Australia and New Zealand will continue to dominate the region’s economy and that few ordinary people will receive any direct benefits from the agreement.
Photo by PINA