Could Peru be the first to fall to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)? If one report is anything to go by, it may very well be Peru that will pull the trigger first. While no specific date was set, government officials say they are getting ready to table the controversial agreement in spite of the widespread protests on the streets.
The people of Peru have been fighting the hugely controversial agreement by taking to the streets in protest. While the people of Peru have been trying to make their voices heard, it seems that the government of Peru may be largely ignoring those voices.
According to Andina, the Peruvian government is getting ready to table the TPP in Congress for the purpose of ratification. From the report:
The Government of Peru is preparing to submit the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement text to the Congress of the Republic for its debate and ratification, Foreign Trade and Tourism Minister Magali Silva informed.
“We have embarked on an internal process to head the TPP to the Parliament, but we have no control over the time (required for its approval), because we are subject to the Congress agenda,” she indicated.
According to Silva, the government has not set a date to submit the document to the Legislative Power, but they are working on it.
“The Congress debate and consultation process will take place when they feel that it is appropriate, according to their internal agenda,” she stated.
The report is apparently a follow-up to an earlier report where Peruvian prime minister Pedro Cateriano Bellido said that he was confident that congress would pass the agreement. From that report:
“The TPP is the most important deal several countries have signed towards economic integration. As well as the Pacific Alliance, its markets will lead to greater economic growth in the country in the following years,” he noted.
[…]
“It’s time to confront ideas and points of view and, in the end, the Congress will pass or not the treaty […] I am confident the Congress will do so, because the treaty is essential to development,” he insisted.
The Cabinet’s Chief recalled the President handles foreign affairs by powers of the Constitution, so he will determine an appropriate moment to send the document to the Congress for its debate.
When asked about the criticism over the TPP, Cateriano recalled the country faced a similar situation in the last decade, when it inked the FTA with the United States; he thinks it is mere political noise, since those forecasts failed to materialize.
We do note that the TPP was only signed on February 4. So far, it has only been two weeks since the signing. This is hardly enough time for adequate study and debate on the agreement which is pegged at being a whopping 6,000 pages long and touches virtually every facet of the countries economy.
The breakneck speed of which it seems Peru intends on ratifying the agreement is unlikely going to quell criticism towards the agreement.
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Google+.
