Members of the European Parliament’s International Trade Commission expressed their views after voting on the EVFTA’s draft resolution.
On January 21, the International Trade Commission (INTA) of the European Parliament held a meeting in Brussels to vote to approve the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA)’s draft resolution with the results: June 29 / 5 (29 votes affirmative, 6 votes against and 5 votes abstain).
The EVFTA will be submitted to the European Parliament for voting during its working session from February 10.
Bernd Lange, chairman of the European Parliament’s INTA, voted in favor and wrote on Twitter “We have used our leverage and made positive changes to improve the situation of millions of workers in Vietnam. We ensure that labor and human rights issues remain at the forefront of the political agenda of the negotiations.”
Another vice president of the international trade commission, Iuliu Winkler, also supported and said “There is still a long way to go until the plenary session in February.” And “Vietnam must continue to implement its commitments and maintain consistency in its relations with the EU.”
Geert Bourgeois, currently a rapporteur of the Free Trade Agreement with Vietnam (EVFTA), stated “Besides the economic and geopolitical importance, I believe this agreement will accelerate the reform process within Vietnam… The passage will promote further progress on labor standards, the environment and respect for human rights.“
Some representatives said that INTA had voted in spite of opposition voices about the worsening human rights situation in Vietnam.
Congressman Saskia Bricmont, one of the 6 Deputies to vote against, spoke to RFA after the results of the INTA’s vote “I am really shocked that my colleagues only listen to the voice of the government despite efforts from overseas communities and international organizations such as Human Right Watch, Reporter Sans Frontière and Amesty International report on the situation in Vietnam, but unfortunately it seems that they only see it as a normal commercial business. They did not make a question. And that is the problem!”
Bricmont said the agreement’s approval at this time was in conflict with the resolution on Political Prisoners signed by the European Parliament in November 2018.
Congressman Anna Cavanizzi announced a vote of opposition when the EU Trade Commission (INTA) conducted a vote for the recommendation on January 21.
On Twitter she wrote: “Tomorrow, the European Parliament’s International Trade Commission will vote on free trade and investment protection agreements with Vietnam. I will vote against it. Here is my reason”
Czech MP Markéta Gregorova wrote on Twitter “Today, I did not support the EU – Vietnam agreement in the International Trade Commission.”
“Vietnam is an authoritarian regime that crushes human rights, controls the internet and the media.“
While the European Parliament’s International Trade Commission (INTA) met in Brussels on the ratification of EVFTA, outside, a demonstration was organized by the Vietnamese Political Refugee Community in Europe and the Vietnamese Community in the Kingdom of Belgium.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Nam said the message of the protesting delegation to INTA’s European Representatives: “With 3 very clear messages that there is no Human Rights, there is no EVVFTA, meaning that trade not used to serve People cannot be approved. When there were no free trade unions to protect the workers, this agreement could not be signed. Those are our appeals to the EU’s legislators who have the authority to make decisions about EVFTA.”
Mr. Ngo Hoang Phong, an activist in Germany, went inside INTA to hand over to the European delegates a Petition along with a number of Human Rights records. Mr. Ngo Hoang Phong said:
“I made an appeal with many signatures from Vietnamese as well as Germans and I submitted them, and it also has Dong Tam files for European MPs to read and care about. That’s more of it. “
The collision in Dong Tam, January 9, killed at least 4 people, including 1 resident and 3 police officers.
Many domestic activists claim that the government has not been transparent about the attack and so created the Dong Tam Report to send to human rights organizations and foreign embassies in Vietnam.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Nam said that the killing of Mr. Kinh, a old resident of Dong Tam commune, who was also a Communist Party member, was a drop of water that spilled a glass.
“A drop of water that spilled our patience is the Dong Tam case, they mercilessly killed an 84-year-old old man, a man who used to be their comrade, who has been serving them for over 50 years. Yet they slaughtered like that.
So from now until February, the final phase of this negotiating faction, we will continue to inform them of the real incidents that happened in the country.”
Mr. Le Huu Dao, one of the organizers of the Organizing Committee said that although he predicted that EVFTA would eventually be approved, he still held a protest because after all, overseas Vietnamese also need to speak up.
From Europe, overseas Vietnamese Le Huu Dao said: “I am not against Vietnam signing the FTA with the EU, but I want them to comply with the laws of Europe and the world. ”
The Organizing Committee said it would continue to hold its protest in February in Strasbourg when the European Parliament conducts voting on EVFTA.
Mr. Dao added “If they (EU) sign this agreement, they can influence the Communist regime. They thought that if they did not sign this agreement, the Vietnamese Communists would follow China. So around February 10, we’ll still be there. But from here to there, we must contact and give all the necessary documents so that 751 congressmen will have the facts to make the right decision. ”
A free trade agreement between Vietnam and Europe is essential for Vietnam at the moment, because it will help goods from here to export to European countries, reducing pressure on the Chinese market.
Also through this Agreement, the Vietnamese government must amend and introduce the same laws to protect the rights of workers, they can set up independent unions to negotiate with employers, creating more fair at work.
However, the most disadvantageous thing is that Vietnam is currently under the dictatorial rule of the Communist Party, so will General Secretary cum President Nguyen Phu Trong and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc seriously enforce the law and the requirements of Vietnamese workers?
In the near future, those who will stand up for independent Trade Union organizations in Vietnam will be suppressed and killed by General To Lam as in Dong Tam? – All of this is still open and over 90 million Vietnamese people will continue to supervise and alert the domestic and the international community.
Trung Nam from Da Nang – Thoibao.de (translated)
