eu-vietnam trade agreement
On 2 December 2015, the EU and Vietnam announced the conclusion of the negotiations for an EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The European Commission does not appear to have done enough to adress the impact of the free trade agreement on human rights in Vietnam. Despite the recommendation by EU Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly to conduct a Human Rights Impact Assessment (HIRA), the EC has not done so for this trade agreement citing that the mix of instruments it uses for EU-VN Trade is akin to a full HRIA.
The European Parliament should not vote to accept the EU-Vietman agreement unless ISDS/ICS is taken out and full legal provisions for the protection of human rights are included at the very least. Health concerns within the agreement relate to liberalisation of markets for unhealthy food, tobacco, alcohol and a potential flood of European goods that could undermine local agricultural production. The effects of a stricter intellectual property regime and increased market access to Vietnam's health, education and water services on universal healthcare and population will all need to be assessed and monitored.
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