Protest against a New Zealand/China Free Trade Agreement Wednesday September 1st Hyatt Hotel, Corner Princes Street and Waterloo Quadrant From 5pm

Global Peace and Justice Auckland are holding a protest outside a business promotion for a New Zealand/China Free Trade Agreement.

The promotion is being held at the Hyatt Hotel on Wednesday September 1st. This seminar is not for the financially challenged - cost $556.00!

It is titled “Gateway to China” and is organised by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, the New Zealand Asia Institute and the New Zealand Herald.

Speakers include corporate activist Mike Moore, Trade Negotiations Minister Jim Sutton, Herald Editor in Chief Gavin Ellis, conservative journalist Fran O'Sullivan and Michael Barnett of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce.

This proposed FTA is part of the WTO, IMF and World Bank attempts to create a single international free market for goods and services.

Globalisation such as this has huge benefits for big businesses and international corporations but dreadful effects for the rest of the community.

Already so-called free trade with China has cost tens of thousands of skilled jobs in New Zealand manufacturing industries.

For example, Under a New Zealand/China FTA even more cheap, low quality imports from China will flood into New Zealand undermining skilled jobs.

These will be replaced with low paid, low skill, low quality "stack the shelves in the Warehouse with cheap rubbish from overseas" jobs.

Under such an FTA the negative impacts will be felt by working New Zealanders and their families while the profits of trans-national corporations will soar.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

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