1. RCEP at papatinding pagsasamantala sa manggagawa
The past years have seen the collapse of World Trade Organization (WTO) multilateral negotiations principally brought by the strong resistance of people’s movements against intensified neoliberal attacks. In a bid to overcome the WTO deadlock, monopoly capitalists have diverted their focus on Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), which go beyond WTO rules and aim to dismantle existing labor, environmental, health and financial standards enshrined in national laws while boosting corporate profit and control.
FTA – Treaty between two or more countries for movement of goods and services without tariff, may im pose a uniform tariff (called common external tariff) on trade with non-member countries.
ECUMENICAL INSTITUTE FOR LABOR EDUCATION AND RESEARCH (EILER) SEPTEMBER 2017

2. FTAs in 48 ADB-member countries
Source: (2017)
A total of 147 FTAs involving 48 countries in Asia and the Pacific has been signed and are in effect within and outside the region (with only three discontinued). Singapore leads the ASEAN-countries with involvement in over 30 FTAs in its push to strengthen its footing in Southeast Asia. The city-state has sealed more FTAs compared to South Korea (25), Japan (24), and China (23). Almost 300 bilateral and plurilateral FTAs currently exist (signed or under negotiation) in Asia and the Pacific. Asia in the past decade has experienced more FTAs proposed, negotiated and implemented than any other region in the world. These FTAs, though diverse, are not mere mutually exclusive agreements as they complementarily fortify regional control in the guise of regional integration.
As monopoly capitalists continue to establish the global production process in their favor, mega-FTAs play a critical role in wide-scale coordination and intensification of global production networks.

3. RCEP at mega-FTAs
Sasaklawin ng RCEP ang mga probisyon sa kalakal at serbisyo, investment, intellectual property rights (IPR), competition, dispute settlement, e-commerce, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), at iba pa.
Iginigiit ng RCEP policy guidelines ang partisipasyon ng MSMEs sa global value chains (outsourcing at offshoring).
Disenyo ng mega-FTAs ang institutional clustering (ASEAN, APEC, etc.) upang palawakin at padaliin ang akses at kontrol ng malalaking korporasyon sa mga murang lakas-paggawa, hilaw na materyales, produksyon at konsumo ng mga mamayang Asyano (invest and impose regional control).
Central to RCEP policy guidelines is further reducing tariffs on trade of goods in the region and facilitating engagement of small and medium enterprises (SMEs, including micro-enterprises), which comprise 90 per cent of the businesses in the 16 participating countries, in global and regional supply chains (pandaigdigang kalakalan at halagahan).
Trans-national corporations that thrive on tax holidays and related incentives brought by volatile trade agreements will gain the most in engaging SMEs, since industrial chains are built upon interconnectivity
Regional control in the guise of regional integration over natural resources, production, and consumption. Small companies are linked with the TNCs’ global networks through offshoring and outsourcing of production processes

4. ATAKENG NEOLIBERAL SA MGA MANGGAGAWA
Pinalala ng proteksyon sa dayuhang pamumuhunan ang pagdausdos ng sahod at paglala ng kalagayan ng mga manggagawa (lowest common denominator rule at race to the bottom).
Ayon sa ILO, 21 million tao sa daigdig ang nakakaranas ng mala-aliping trabaho, at higit kalahati nito ay nasa Asia-Pacific. Kabilang ang mga domestic workers, manggagawa sa agrikultura, manupaktura, konstruksyon at entertainment.
FTAs ay nagpwersa sa manggagawa na makipagkumpetensiya sa mababang-sahod at mala-aliping trabaho. (sa susunod na slide)
The consequences of mega-FTAs on trade, labor and employment is much shown in developing countries where, in order to maintain competitiveness, must adhere to “lowest common denominator rules” rather than meeting the highest possible standards. Recent developments in trade liberalization have permitted monopoly capitalists to dictate the cheapest value of labor and other production facilities, thereby disregarding decent standards, to accumulate bigger profit.
This concerted break-down of standards enable the TNCs in establishing global value chains and easily shifting the production to the cheapest source in the region, as they secure massive profits. Mega-FTAs like RCEP are intended to reassure greater corporate control by orchestrating the race to the bottom of member countries which have weaker lobbying power to overcome pressure from the front runners (i.e., Japan, China, and South Korea compared to Southeast Asian countries).
Jayant Menon, “From Spaghetti Bowl to Jigsaw Puzzle? Fixing the Mess in Regional and Global Trade,” Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 470–483, 2014

5. Mahabang oras ng trabaho ngunit naghihirap ang mamamayan.
Yung may mahahabang oras ng trabaho ay nasa mas mahihirap na bansa sa SEA. Pinakamalalang insidente ng overtime. At ngayon, nagbabadya ang Compressed Work Week Scheme.
Consideration: Bangladesh and Japan have completely different labor standards. Poor practices in developing country factories often are a reflection of development status.
The previous figure indicates the negative relationship between long working hours and the GDP per capita, implying that poorer countries particularly in Southeast Asia, tend to work longer hours, or the high incidence of overtime work. Mexico and Costa Rica worked the most.
Working hours and GDP per capita in Asia Source: Asian Development Bank, September 2016

6. ATAKENG NEOLIBERAL SA MGA MANGGAGAWA
Sa napakatagal na napanahong pinatutupad ang mga kasunduan sa kalakalan at preskripyon ng mga neoliberal na polisiya, tuluyang naging malaya ang mga higanteng korporasyon na gumawa at magpatupad ng sariling batas sa pleksibleng paggawa at pwersadong migrasyon bunsod ng labor export policy.
Pananatilihin ng RCEP ang export-oriented at import-dependent na mga ekonomiya sa ASEAN na naka-asa sa contractual labor at di- makataong klase ng trabaho.
Decades-long forced implementation of neoliberal trade agreements gave way for monopoly capitalists to create their own rules and labor standards.
impacts will be felt deeper domestically
RCEP will further open the Asia Pacific countries to more aggressive foreign investments that promise jobs and prosperity by easing trade barriers and eliminating government regulation. These prescriptions lead to depression of wages, worsening conditions in workplaces and labor flexibilization that have prevented countries in the region to build strong industries and generate decent and regular jobs for the workers.

7. ATAKENG NEOLIBERAL SA MGA MANGGAGAWA
Cumulative real growth in wages in Asia Pacific Region and the world ( ) 1999 = 100
Pinaka-bansot ang naging pagtaas ng sahod ng manggagawa sa ASEAN sa buong Asya.
At saan ka man mapunta sa ASEAN, matinding krisis ang kinakaharap ng manggagawa. At habang mahaba ang oras ng trabaho, napakababa naman ng sahod. Mahigit isang bilyong manggagawa sa buong mundo, kasama ang Pilipino, ang kumukita ng napakababang sahod. STAGNANT WAGE, DECREASE BENEFITS.
Almost 1 billion workers.
Workers in the region still earn extremely low wages compared to workers in developed countries, indicating a widespread wage inequality. Data from World Trade Organization show that offshoring and outsourcing of productive activities of US MNCs to their affiliates. Halimbawa ang Verizon workers.

8. INTERES NG IILAN? 8
kapitalista at kanilang pag-aari ay katumbas ng 3.6 billion pinaka- mahirap sa daigdig.
EXTREME WAGE INEQUALITY. The gap between the super rich and the poorest half of the world has extremely widened.
Data from OXFAM, January (
It details how big business and the super-rich are fuelling the inequality crisis by dodging taxes, driving down wages and using their power to influence politics.
New and better data on the distribution of global wealth – particularly in India and China – indicates that the poorest half of the world has less wealth than had been previously thought.  Had this new data been available last year, it would have shown that nine billionaires owned the same wealth as the poorest half of the planet, and not 62, as Oxfam calculated at the time.
Sa pagitan ng 1988 at 2011 tumaas ng $65 ang kita ng 10% pinakamahihirap sa daigdig. Samantala, ang 1% pinakamayaman naman ay $11,800 – 182 beses na mas malaki

9. Hindi pantay-pantay ang pagtamasa sa mga karapatan
Right to work
Right to social security
Right to adequate housing
Right to health
Right to free education
Right to participate in cultural life
Hindi pantay-pantay ang pagtamasa sa mga karapatan sa isang lipunang nakabatay sa pagsasamantala at paghahari ng illang makapangyarihan. Hindi kusang ipinagkakaloob ang ating karapatan – ito ay ipinaglalaban.
Under the neoliberal globalization, they gradually slice our rights and retract what our struggles have achieved in the previous century.

10. ATAKENG NEOLIBERAL SA MGA MANGGAGAWA
Hadlang ang mga FTAs sa karapatan ng manggagawa na mag-organisa at mag-unyon.
Mega-FTAs further divide the working class. what unions fear the most is increased competition from non-union businesses that benefit from free trade.

11. RCEP LEAKED TEXTS ( )
Import duties to O – the investment chapter largely builds on TPP provisions that nonetheless provide excessive new powers and rights to foreign investors while severely crippling government capacity to regulate corporate actions in the name of public interest. Such a strict intellectual property regime will restrict generic manufacturing of medicines at affordable prices, adversely affect public health objectives and increase cost of treatments for cancer, HIV/AIDS and many other life threatening diseases.
RCEP like TPP is advancing the corporate agenda by pushing for an investment regime that will give corporations the right to sue the government over policies and regulations. Under the infamous Investor State Dispute Settlement Mechanism or ISDS, corporations are given the power to take legal action against the State in private and exclusive investment arbitration courts. ISDS, which has been highly criticized in the context of TPP negotiations, should be strongly rejected as well by governments across Asia as an instrument for weakening the right of State to regulate investments in the name of the greater public interest. ISDS foreign companies to challenge policies and judicial decisions in secret arbitration courts. Medicines - The strong push from Japan and Korea for TPP-provisions on intellectual property rights in the RCEP negotiations will make it harder for poor people in the region to access affordable medicines particularly life-saving drugs, and for governments to advance public health policies for the benefit of the poor.
Agricultural development - The stringent intellectual property rules being pushed for adoption by some RCEP members will have an adverse effect on the livelihoods of small and traditional farmers in poorer member states. Hanggang buto ang IPRs, buto = cellular level. plant breeder rights (PBRs) at the cost of farmers' rights. Isinasaalang-alang nito ang protection of people's knowledge and their priority access to their local biological resources. Elimination of import duties on industrial products would intensify the cut-throat competition to reduce the cost of production. It will lead to poor quality of employment and downward pressure on wages in the region. Also, data exclusivity on agricultural chemicals. While the demands of agroecology require that we move our farming systems away from use of harmful chemical fertilisers and pesticides, the fact is that wherever the mainstream industrial model of agriculture prevails, it remains chemical-intensive.
Import duties reduction to 0, in favor or monocaps 01
Investor State Dispute Settlement 02
IPRs on medicines and health care 03
Restriction on farmers’ seeds 04

12. 767 ISDS ISDS cases documented (UNCTAD, 2017)
Tinitiyak ng Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanism na mapapatupad ang Investment Chapter ng RCEP sa lahat ng pagkakataon. Ang alinmang RCEP-member na hindi tutupad ay maaring sampahan ng kaso sa international tribunal.
Korporasyon laban sa mga RCEP-governments = one way lamang. Manalo o matalo ang gubyerno, gagastos ito para sa legal fees na umaabot sa bilyon ang halaga.
Ang mga mahihirap na bansa tulad ng Pilipinas ay mapipilitang umatras sa kaso at pwersahang susunod sa dikta ng RCEP investment chapter.
Ang probisyong “standstill” naman ang haharang sa mga bansa na baguhin o isapawalang-bisa ang anumang batas na hindi papabor sa investors.
Sa datos ng Ibon, 7 out of 10 kaso, panalo ang korporasyon. Ginamit na halimbawa ang 3.42 billion claim ng Maynilad na nanalo matapos nitong sampahan ng kaso ang regulators na hindi pumayag sa taas-singil nila sa konsyumer. Noong 2016, 62 kaso ang isinampa ng mga korporasyon sa 41 bansa. 74 noong Sa kabuuan, may 767 kaso ang naidokumento ng UN Conference on Trade and Development

13. Sa makatuwid, ang RCEP ay panig sa kapitalista, hindi sa mamamayan
Sa makatuwid, ang RCEP ay panig sa kapitalista, hindi sa mamamayan. Ito ay kontra-manggagawa.

14. RCEP: CORPORATE AGENDA
RCEP: walang tunay na intensyong paunlarin ang malalang krisis ng pandaigdigang kalakalan. Layunin nitong i-ayos ang Asian trade procedures and rules upang matiyak ang rehiyunal na kontrol sa yaman ng Asya.
Tulad ng ibang mega-FTAs, RCEP ay direktang umaatake sa mga napagtagumpayan ng mga manggagawa sa loob ng daang-taong pakikibaka: established standards of labor, social protection, safety, natural resources and the environment.
Ginagarantiya ng RCEP ang tuloy-tuloy na pagbuhos ng super-tubo ng mga monopolyo kapitalista mula sa neoliberal na polisiya sa pamumuhunan at kalakalan.
Tulad ng ibang mega-FTAs, ang RCEP ay kontra-manggagawa. Palalain nito ang kahirapang nararanasan ng batayang sektor ng lipunan (manggagawa, magsasaka, maralita, atbp.) sa pamamagitan ng pambabarat sa sahod at pagtanggal ng karapatan sa disenteng kabuhayan.
This intensified push for mega-FTA deals such as RCEP is a consequence of the increased neoliberal rivalry between the imperialist powers, foremost between US and China. Mega-FTAs only enable the re-neocolonization of the Asia’s less developed countries through trade agreements that cement corporate control over the region. These agreements will funnel the Asia’s wealth and resources in the hands of the 1% who control the TNCs, which will benefit mostly from increased trade liberalization, privatization and investment protections.
RCEP’s agenda has no genuine intent on improving the disarray in global trade and its members. It rather overlaps with other FTA’s to gain deeper footing and control in Asian trade.
RCEP and other mega-FTAs are direct attack on a wide-range of established standards of labor, social protection, safety, natural resources and the environment to guarantee the continued profits of monopoly capitalists from investments and trade.
RCEP and other mega-FTAs continue to worsen living conditions of the workers, peasants, urban poor and other marginalized sectors as floor wage continue to flounder and cases of land grabbing persist.

15. Tulad ng WTO framework, ang RCEP ay magpapalala sa mga kalagayan ng manggagawa habang ikikokonsentra nito ang kontrol sa daigdig sa nag- aagawang imperyalistang bansa.
RCEP shows the intensified neoliberal objective of concentrating wealth at the hands of global corporate elites.
This intensified push for mega-FTA deals such as RCEP is a consequence of the increased neoliberal rivalry between the imperialist powers, foremost between US and China. Mega-FTAs only enable the re-neocolonization of the Asia’s less developed countries through trade agreements that cement corporate control over the region. These agreements will funnel the Asia’s wealth and resources in the hands of the 1% who control the TNCs, which will benefit mostly from increased trade liberalization, privatization and investment protections.

16. ANO ANG PWEDENG GAWIN? Sumali sa pagkilos kontra-RCEP
Manawagang isa-publiko ang negosasyon
Genuine agrarian reform at national industrialization
Pag-aralan ang implikasyon ng RCEP at mega-FTAs