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'Wolf in Sheep's Clothing': Thousands Protest Against TPP in New Zealand

© AFP 2023 / SAUL LOEBDemonstrators protest against the legislation to give US President Barack Obama fast-track authority to advance trade deals, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
Demonstrators protest against the legislation to give US President Barack Obama fast-track authority to advance trade deals, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) - Sputnik International
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Thousands of people took to the streets throughout New Zealand to protest against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement on Saturday, a local radio broadcaster reported.

Anti-TPP protest - Sputnik International
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The TPP is a controversial trade pact currently negotiated in great secrecy between the United States and 11 Asian and Pacific Rim nations, including Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Taiwan, South Korea and Malaysia.

According to Radio New Zealand, almost 3,000 of anti-TPP protesters gathered in the capital city of Wellington, about 2,500 people marched in Auckland, a major city in the north of New Zealand’s North Island, and about 1,500 people in Dunedin, the second largest city in the country.

"If the tide of political and public opinion turns against the TPP, the National Party are likely to think that this could be a very unpopular thing for them. Very unpopular come the next election, once people find out the consequences," an organizer of the event in Dunedin, Jen Olsen, was quoted by the radio station as saying.

The proposed TPP deal is expected to cover about 40 percent of the global economy. The opponents of the deal argue that world’s transnational corporations aim to undermine nations’ sovereignty in the interest of greater profits.

Another protester in Dunedin, Cameron Wood, said that "it's a wolf in sheep's clothing and I think that is why there hasn't been any transparency around it, why they're happy to keep it secret up until the last minute," according to the broadcaster.

No incidents were reported during the protests.

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