The China-New Zealand free trade agreement comes into effect tomorrow (October 1st) and the event will be celebrated with a "Shooting Yourself in the Foot" competition at parliament.
Competitors are welcome to turn up at 12 noon on Wednesday on parliament lawn. The best impersonation of a New Zealand politician or bureaucrat shooting them self in the foot will be presented with a cheap plastic toy.
The event has been organised by the Wildcat Anarchist Collective. Wildcat International Trade and Investment Spokesperson Sam Buchanan says free trade disempowers workers.
"Free trade gives companies the option of choosing which country’s laws suit them best – jobs are moved to places where workers have less power.
"We are not saying jobs should not be moved to China because New Zealand workers deserve to benefit at the expense of Chinese workers, but that jobs should stay in jurisdictions where workers are relatively empowered. Globalised ‘free trade’ does the opposite of this – disempowerment of workers becomes a ‘comparative advantage’ and an attraction to investors," says Mr Buchanan.
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