(VOVworld) – 3 days after the parliament of the French Community of Belgium rejected the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada, thousands of Europeans took to the street to protest the deal. The deal, which is a result of 7 years negotiations, is in jeopardy.
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| Andre Antoine, president of the Walloon regional parliament chairs a debate on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), a planned EU-Canada free trade agreement, Belgium, October 14, 2016. (Photo: Reuters) |
On October 12, the Legislative Assembly of the French Community of Belgium approved a resolution vetoing the signing of a free trade agreement between the European Union and Canada. With 68 “yes” votes and 23 “no” votes, the Belgian regional parliament wants to prevent CETA from coming into force. The Belgian government can only approve CETA when the deal is approved by all legislative assemblies at the federal, regional, and community levels. The rejection by French community of 4.5 million people is making the deal at risk. CETA needs the EU’s approval before being officially signed by an EU representative and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on October 27, in Brussels.
On October 15, thousands of people demonstrated in France, Spain, and Poland to protest CETA and a more ambitious agreement between the EU and the US. Protesters were concerned of lowering the European standards on consumption and environmental protection and reducing jobs. They said the signing of CETA will create a dangerous precedent and pave the way for a similar deal with the US: the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
On September 20, from 9,000 to 15,000 CETA protesters gathered at the head office of the EU in Brussels. Protests were staged by trade unions and organizations, including the Federation for Human Rights, the Green Peace organization, the Farmers’ Union, and the Federation of French Language Students. They expressed their concerns over the possible impact on the rights of workers and other social rights and warned that a series of proposals stated in CETA may lead to pressure on the collective bargaining agreements. A source from the European Committee also expressed pessimism about the prospect of CETA approval, fearing that the deal will damage internal political issues.
CETA is expected to increase the exchanges of goods and services between the EU and Canada by 20% and the GDP of the EU by more than 12 billion euros per year. But economic benefits appear unattractive to Europeans as long as their civil rights are threatened by the deal.