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Perceptive observers believe the Japan-Philippines
Economic Partnership Agreement, or JPEPA, notwithstanding the
objections raised against it, will be able to pass muster in the
Senate. Individual senators, they predict, will find it in their
collective wisdom to ratify the treaty, of course after going
through it with a fine-tooth comb. The accord, after all, is
necessary to hasten the country’s economic development.
Sure, Japan expects to derive
benefits from JPEPA as well, along with similar deals struck with
other countries. That is the primary reason it signed the agreement
in the first place. But only the paranoid would describe it as
lopsided, skewed in favor of the other side. Despite its economic
clout, Japan cannot dictate—or hope to dictate—on the
Philippines, or any other country for that matter, as if it were a
client state. This is no longer the age of colonialism.
As explained by the Department of
Trade and Industry (DTI), JPEPA will result in the expansion of the
country’s market in Japan, not only for its agricultural products
but also for its industrial output, with close to 95 percent of its
exports granted zero duties. Of course, Japan’s exports to the
Philippines will also enjoy the same preferences. It is this
particular trade-off that draws the ire of leftist groups. They
claim that the Philippines will be flooded with manufactured
products. Well, we already import cars and television sets from
Japan, but no country can force consumers to increase their purchase
of these items, treaty or no treaty.
Detractors train their guns on
the supposed entry of toxic wastes as a result of the treaty.
There is nothing in the treaty
that remotely suggests that the Philippines will allow itself to be
a dumping ground for hazardous substances. Moreover, the exchange of
notes between the two countries expressly prohibits it. Still, those
who choose to oppose the treaty claim the assurance is not nearly
enough. If so, will it help if the two governments renounce the
pledge to protect people and the environment?
In any case, we are not a nation
of half-wits, who will accept things that threaten to poison us and
our children.
The provision on nurses and
caregivers is another argument used by those who oppose
ratification. As the Philippine Nurses Association tells it, Japan
dangled the entry of workers as a bargaining chip to win concessions
without giving something substantial in return. It looks great at
first glance, but requiring the nurses to pass the licensure
examination in Nihongo practically makes the provision
unenforceable, or so says the group.
To the protesters, it’s like a
case of the left hand taking back what the right hand gives away.
But Japanese hospitals and health-care institutions really need the
services of foreign nurses. The language requirement is insisted
upon to ensure that the nurses, who will be working under Japanese
doctors, understand the orders given them, particularly in
life-and-death situations. No doubt, the nurses cannot pass the
examination without prior language training. And Japanese officials
are aware of that fact. That is why training is made part and parcel
of the agreement, and the Japanese are footing the bill, proof of
their honest intentions to hire the nurses as full-fledged
professionals.
About the only valid concern
raised against the treaty is the loss of customs revenue, projected
at P16.1 billion in the next few years. But DTI says the additional
taxes derived from an expanded export volume will more than offset
the loss. If that is true, then the Senate must put its stamp of
approval on the treaty at the earliest possible time.
We have not much time left.
Barely a week ago, Indonesia approved a similar economic partnership
agreement with Japan. And it is only the latest of the countries to
have done so, after Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. If we fail to
ratify JPEPA, these countries will reap all the benefits—to our
detriment.
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