Analysts and economic groups told Thai Enquirer this week that the Thai government should join formal negotiations on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in August.
“We should enter the negotiation,” an economist and independent analyst Somchai Pakapaswiwat told Thai Enquirer.
“The reason is simple. There are both pros and cons in this deal and entering the negotiation does not mean that we will join the pact, it means that we are not going to shut the door and just stop talking,” he added.
He said entering the negotiation would give the countries two choices to continue to talk, or leave, instead of just leaving.
Secondly, this kind of multilateral agreement is usually based on absolute gain.
This means that when comes to pros and cons, all sides must have more pros in joining than cons or else the entire pact would not have work.
“There must be a win-win solution for this kind of agreement,” he said.
The JSCCIB, which consists of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), Thai Bankers’ Association, Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand (TCC), also agree that Thailand should join negotiations.
TCC’s Chairman Kalin Sarasin said the JSCCIB have already considered the pros and cons of joining the agreement before deciding that Thailand should enter the negotiation.
He said there are procedures which include requesting to join the formal talk, the actual negotiation itself, and then the cabinet’s consideration of the deal.
The JSCCIB added that there should also be a public hearing on the results of the negotiations before parliament can debate on it.
Overall, these procedures could take up to four years and the Thai government has the option to leave negotiations if they feel the deal was not going the benefit the country.
The Ministry of Commerce’s Trade Negotiations Department said in April that a commissioned study done by Bolliger & Company Thailand showed that the trade deal would boost the country’s GDP by 0.12 per cent or 13.3 billion baht in revenue per year.
Without the CPTPP, Thailand could lose 26.6 billion baht worth of revenue per year.
There are 11 countries currently involved in the negotiations and a part of the CPTPP, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
Thailand is also accelerating its free trade talks with the European Union as they were put on hold during the coup of 2014.
Opposition
Many civic groups have opposed the Thai government’s push to join the CPTTP, citing concerns over the country’s food security and access to medicine.
“No one should be allowed to rob the rights and benefits of the people to support big businesses,” Pheu Thai’s chief strategist Sudarat Keyuraphan posted on her Facebook page on Tuesday.
The supporters of the deal are now saying that the trade agreement would boost trade to CPTPP countries, attract foreign investment and create jobs.
They also said new trade and investment regulations would lift the country’s standards and maintain its regional competitiveness.
Those who oppose the CPTTP say that the agreement would increase crop prices and decrease its biological variety.
The Department of Trade Negotiations said earlier that such concerns are invalid since farmers can currently hold on to their crops and grow anything they want.
Access to certain medicine and the country’s ability to research new ones could be limited because of the government-to-government procurement agreement and intellectual property rights, opponents say.
