On the previously published articles, the editorial board
have delivered to readers benefits offered to Vietnam by joining The
Trans-Pacific-Partnership (TPP) agreement. However, rose always has thorns and
TPP also has shortcomings. Aiming at providing various perspectives on TPP’s
effects, this article would present challenges and risks issued by independent
unions and free association that Vietnamese workers could encounter to while
becoming a part of TPP mechanism…
Lately the bill allowing the U.S government to apply the
fast-track mode in TPP negotiation has been introduced to the U.S Congress.
Accordingly, in the case that the U.S Congress approve the bill, TPP agreement
would soon be reached in 2015 emerging 12 members into a Free Trade Area with
more than 800 million citizens, giving a yield of 30% worldwide commerce turn-over
and 40% global economy’s output. The benefits of TPP should be undoubted to Vietnam
Under the provisions of TPP, member states are responsible
for establishing constitutions permitting workers to form free-standing unions
(independent unions). Fundamentally, independent union is a form of ‘civil
society’ – the term defines critic factors playing a role of assisting
governments in policy making and laws complementing. Thus, the creation of
free-standing union is indispensable for struggling against the so-called
“golden unions” established by employees in some locals to violate workers’
rights. But as a coin has two sides, perpetrators could exploit free-standing
unions for personal interests or political purposes.
Throughout Vietnam’s integration into
international economy, opportunists and criminals have been starting up groups
in the name of ‘protecting labors’ or ‘charities’ such as “Committee to Protect
Vietnamese Workers” (2007), “Coalition to Abolish Modern Slavery in Asia”
(2010) or “Free Viet Labor Federation” (2014) to cover their illegal activities
including human – trafficking, financial aids fraud, etc. and even being for
political ambitions.
For no longer had those disguised unions and
charities made a living out of labor scams, they have been taking advantages of
Western’s efforts on boosting civil-society’s role in developing countries like
Vietnam in recent years. Besides, those groups have been certainly incited by
the coming TPP agreement. Their common frame nowadays is to compile lists of
every Vietnamese worker’s accidents or strikes to make a false image of
Vietnam’s labor movement; distort state’s policies on worker’s rights and
define themselves as ‘the lead independent unions’ to call for financial aids
from NGOs and Western governments.
Several of them have been also conducting
activities in relation to conspiracies to overthrow Vietnam
goverment by inflaming labor revolutions - the plot was once occurred in Poland China
Supposedly could Vietnam