New Straits Times-Aug 16
The government has been urged to withdraw from ratifying the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
In making the call, Permatang Pauh member of parliemant Nurul Izzah Anwar said CPTPP does not add any benefit to the poor, terminally-ill, women and the government. “Rising from the ashes of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), which was tanked by the United States (US) President Donald Trump, the new trade deal will instead have serious implications on Malaysia.
“Assuming all past negotiations were carried out in secret and we are yet to see the new documents, the CPTPP is all out to seduce the US back to negotiating table in the next years.
“The main change is that 20 provisions of the original pact, backed chiefly by the US, have been suspended.
“The suspension and not removal of these regressive provisions is not a reason for celebration as they can be reinstated to please the American administration,’” she said in a press conference held at Parliament.
Present was Subang MP Wong Chen.
She added that CPTPP still requires enforcement of patents, including on medicines that are significantly stronger than what the World Trade Organisation’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (WTO-TRIPS) rules, which would have adverse implications for access to medicines.
“This would see the cost of live-saving medicines skyrocket as a result of patent protections that safeguard the interests of large pharmaceutical companies at the expense of average Malaysian citizens.
“The extended patent on new medicine, will choke entry of the cheaper generic medicine, cutting short the lifeline of terminally ill Malaysians.”
Wong Chen said PH has been against TPPA since 2014 until now. “We were against TPPA when US was part of it and what’s more when US decided to withdraw from the original trade pact.” he said.
