Amy Goodman, Colin Crouch In Japan: Revival Of Democracy In The Global Age?
A day-long symposium hosted by the Institute for Global Concern, Sophia University.
Doors open 9:30 am, program from 10 am–17:45.
Featuring keynote addresses by Amy Goodman and Colin Crouch.
Event is free, but pre-registration is required, as seating is limited.
To register, or for more information, call or email:
Phone: 03-3238-3023 (Institute of Global Concern, Sophia University)
email: 33rd.symposium.igc@gmail.com
please cc: all email registration requests to denis@democracynow.org
It has been an interesting week for those who follow the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations as Wikileaks managed to get hold of and share important documents related to the Environment Chapter. Still massive disagreement among the 12 countries that are trying to seal this anti-democratic trade pact, according to the files. Not much yet in Japanese media about this new leak but the New York Times wrote:
WASHINGTON
— The Obama administration is retreating from previous demands of
strong international environmental protections in order to reach
agreement on a sweeping Pacific trade deal that is a pillar of President
Obama’s strategic shift to Asia, according to documents obtained by WikiLeaks, environmentalists and people close to the contentious trade talks.
The
negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would be one of
the world’s biggest trade agreements, have exposed deep rifts over
environmental policy between the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim
nations. As it stands now, the documents, viewed by The New York Times,
show that the disputes could undo key global environmental protections.
The
environmental chapter of the trade deal has been among the most highly
disputed elements of negotiations in the pact. Participants in the
talks, which have dragged on for three years, had hoped to complete the
deal by the end of 2013. (...)
That together with the growing opposition in the US to Fast Track authority, which would make it impossible for US Congress to make any demands or changes once the negotiators from the 12 countries have agreed on the TPP, makes the debate even more worthwhile right now.
Democracy Now! has more about the TPP debate: Japan Remains Hotbed of TPP Protest as U.S. Tries to Fast-Track Trade Deal, Crush Environmental Laws
On Sunday, Amy Goodman will talk in Kyoto, and on Monday at the Foreign Correspondents Club in Tokyo.
Interview with Colin Crouch, author of such books as Post Democracy and The Strange Non-Death of Neo-Liberalism here.
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