Trade Justice Advocates to Rally at International Conference

By Desert Star Staff

Protesters will be in Palm Springs at noon today to draw attention to ongoing negotiations on a huge international trade deal, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.

Trade negotiators from the U.S. and 13 other countries are attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference over the next two weeks.

Will Jamil Wiltschko, director of the California Trade Justice Coalition, said any deal needs to be workercentered and climate-friendly.

“It can’t be another backroom deal that helps big corporations offshore jobs, drive down wages, and ignore environmental rules,” Wiltschko asserted.

Labor and environmental groups are asking for a seat at the table but said they have not been fully included thus far. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative did not respond to a request for comment. The Biden Administration said the trade deal will strengthen ties to the Indo-Pacific region and aims for a stronger, fairer, more resilient economy.

Wiltschko explained he would like to see the largest industrial nations sign a climate peace clause, where they pledge to stop dragging each other before the World Trade Organization to block programs intended to cut down on carbon emissions.

“Countries have been fighting policies that could combat climate change,” Wiltschko pointed out. “With the argument that it infringes on a multinational corporation within their country’s right to profit, which makes it so that we can’t really take much action on climate change.”

Advocates are also asking for close scrutiny of any digital trade provisions that could make it easier for companies to sell personal data. And they want more transparency in the computer algorithms powering potentially discriminatory software programs, like those used for facial recognition or evaluating employee performance.