The or in ( fil, Kasunduang Pangkabuhayan ng Hapon at Pilipinas) or commonly known as JPEPA is an economic partnership agreement concerning

bilateral Bilateral may refer to any concept including two sides, in particular: *Bilateria, bilateral animals *Bilateralism, the political and cultural relations between two states *Bilateral, occurring on both sides of an organism ( Anatomical terms of l ...

investment and

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...

agreement between Japan and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. It was signed in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

on September 9, 2006, by

Japanese Prime Minister The prime minister of Japan ( Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Stat ...

Junichiro Koizumi Junichiro Koizumi (; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a former Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2009. He is ...

and

Philippine President The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

. It is the first bilateral trade treaty which the Philippines has entered since the Parity Right Agreement of 1946 with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. This treaty consists of 16 Chapters and 165 Articles, with 8 Annexes.

Aims & goal

Chapter 1 (General Provisions), Article 1 (Objectives) of the JPEPA, the agreement has the following objective. * Create effective procedures for the implementation and operation of this Agreement and for the resolution of disputes. * Promote transparency in the implementation of laws and regulations respecting matters covered by this agreement. * Establish a framework for further bilateral cooperation and improvement of business environment. * Promote competition by addressing anti-competitive activities and cooperate in the field of competition. * Enhance protection of intellectual property and strengthen cooperation in the field thereof to promote trade and investment between Japan and the

. * Promote transparency in government procurement. * Increase investment opportunities and strengthen protection for investments and investment activities in Japan and the Philippines. * Facilitate the mutual recognition of the results of conformity assessment procedures for products or processes. * To liberalize and facilitate trade in goods and services between Japan and the Philippines.

Controversy

Environmentalists cry foul over this provision, stating that various laws are bound to be violated if the agreement pushes through. Under the Constitution alone, it is imperative that the State promotes the people's

right to health The right to health is the economic, social, and cultural right to a universal minimum standard of health to which all individuals are entitled. The concept of a right to health has been enumerated in international agreements which include the U ...

(Article II, Section 15), and right to a balanced and healthful ecology (Article II, Section 16). Other laws that may be violated include Republic Act No. 6969 (Toxic Substance and Hazardous and Nuclear Waste Act of 1990) which prohibits the entry of hazardous wastes into and their disposal within the country for whatever purpose, and Republic Act No. 4653 (An Act to Safeguard the Health of the People and Maintain the Dignity of the Nation by Declaring it a National Policy to Prohibit the Commercial Importation of Textile Articles Commonly Known as Used Clothing and Rags) wherein worn clothing and other worn articles, used or new rags, scrap twine, cordage, rope and cables and worn out articles of twine, cordage, rope or cables, of textile materials are also prohibited from being imported into the Philippines. Aside from local laws, one international treaty is also said to be a direct contradiction to the JPEPA. The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal was ratified in 1989 by 133 countries and is currently adopted by 170 countries, including Japan and the Philippines. It is the most comprehensive global environmental treaty on hazardous and other wastes, addressing cleaner production, hazardous waste minimization and controls on the movement of these wastes. One of the main concerns regarding JPEPA is the possibility of having Japan export their waste products and hazardous materials to the Philippines. Such products are included in Article 29 of the agreement, which defines "originating goods. Under Article 18 of the agreement, both Japan and the Philippines shall either "reduce or eliminate its customs duties eliminate other duties or charges of any kind imposed on or in connection with the importation and take part in "improving market access conditions for originating goods.

Ratification

This treaty was ratified by

Senate of the Philippines The Senate of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines with the House of Representatives ...

on 2008, after two side agreements had been signed where Japan agreed to not send any toxic waste to the Philippines and to avoid violating the Philippine Constitution.

Constitutionality

In January, 2024, the Supreme Court of the Philippines in a 95-page

En Banc In law, an en banc session (; French for "in bench"; also known as ''in banc'', ''in banco'' or ''in bank'') is a session in which a case is heard before all the judges of a court (before the entire bench) rather than by one judge or a smaller p ...

Judgment Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...

(G.R. Nos. 184635 and 185366 'IDEALS, Inc. v. Senate') penned by Senior Associate Justice

Marvic Leonen Marvic Mario Victor Famorca Leonen (born December 29, 1962) is the Senior associate justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines since May 14, 2022 upon the retirement of Senior Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe. He became an associate ...

, upheld the

constitutionality Constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applicable constitution. When l ...

of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreementof dismissing the consolidated petitions for certiorari and

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

of petitioners Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services, Inc., (IDEALS), et al. and Fair Trade Alliance (FairTrade).

References

External links