As the latest rounds of the negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement continue in Auckland, New Zealand, IFLA has joined with the Internet Society (ISOC) and other organisations to express concern regarding the transparency and inclusiveness of the negotiating process.

The TPPA is a free-trade agreement involving Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Canada, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States, covering all aspects of commercial relations between the countries.

IFLA issued a statement on the lack of transparency related to the TPPA’s procedures, provisions, and priorities in July 2012 but we are concerned that little has changed in the following months. At a time when all of the negotiating parties are officially supportive of multistakeholder participation in the area of Internet Governance, and mindful of the fact that the TPPA contains chapters relating to the Internet, we join the other signatories of the statement in allowing all interested parties to actively participate and provide input during the negotiations.

By making this happen, TPPA negotiators can give the agreement greater legitimacy and make it inclusive of broader technical, economic and social perspectives.

Read the full text of the statement