While the Senate may have snubbed their petition for the junking of the Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), militant groups vow to bring their fight to the doors of the senators’ offices.

No Deal! JPEPA, an alliance of militant people’s organizations like Anakpawis, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, and Kilusan People’s Network, filed on November 23 a petition to junk JPEPA due to its alleged adverse impacts on the country’s economy, trade and industry, agriculture and human resources.

According to Ronalyn Olea of BAYAN, the petition will no longer be heard by the Senate, as succeeding hearings will largely focus on the discussions on the bilateral accord’s provisions and safety nets.

JPEPA is designed for maximum exploitation of the country by Japan, said
No Deal! Spokesperson Arnold Padilla. “Hindi basta uubra ang safety nets dahil by experience, with the World Trade Organization, for example, nababalewala lang [sila],” he added.

“JPEPA is tantamount to a second “Japanese Invasion” of the Philippines, this time in the sphere of economics,” stated the militant groups in their petition.

The alliance argued that under the trade liberalization outlined in the agreement, tariffs for 239 products of Japan were removed. The agreement also requires the Philippine government to pay Japanese firms for any damages resulting from protest actions.

Human resource exploitation is also decried by the militant groups. This, they said, includes job losses in the manufacturing and automobile sectors in the Japanese firms, further suffering of farmers and agricultural workers from contract-growing  arrangements with transnational agri-business corporations, and providing no protection to the domestic fisheries sector from the entry of Japanese fishing vessels.

Senator Mar Roxas, chair of the senate committee on trade and commerce, said in reports that the Senate hearings will probably end early next year, as deliberations on budget issues are taking much of the Senate’s time this December.

Two more hearings were set by the Senate on December 13 and 14 for government negotiators to prove that the agreement is beneficial, Olea revealed.

“Magbabantay kami kapag plenary na,” added Padilla. He vowed that No Deal! will intensify its campaign for the junking of JPEPA by launching demonstrations and lobbying with individual senators to vote against the agreement.

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# Philippine Collegian