Protesters of Trans-Pacific Partnership lined Queen Kaahumanu Highway near Waikoloa Beach Road. The Aloha Aina “Day of Action” against TPP and for home rule, sovereignty, democracy and transparency was held Saturday.
The United States is negotiating an ambitious trade accord with 11 other Pacific Rim countries that’s meant to ease barriers to fast-growing Asia-Pacific markets and streamline customs rules that can bedevil exporters.
Yet the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, is also stirring opposition. Critics say it will destroy U.S. jobs, allow multinational corporations to sidestep laws they don’t like and let drug companies use stricter patent protections to drive drug prices beyond the reach of patients in poor countries.
The TPP would erase most tariffs and other barriers to trade and investment among the United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Combined, these countries supply 40 percent of the world’s economic output.
The deal would also clarify and standardize trade rules, thereby making it easier for companies to sell goods and services in the Pacific Rim.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.