On Tuesday, October 11, the Senate Chamber – after four years of processing in Congress – approved the Comprehensive and Progressive Treaty of Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, better known as TPP11), thus only remaining the ratification of President Gabriel Boric.
The document was endorsed with 27 votes in favor, 10 against and one abstention, this divided the ruling party (I approve Dignity and Democratic Socialism), who -from their sides- maintained various reluctance.
One of those who did approve the treaty is the senator from the Socialist Party José Miguel Insulza, who in conversation with The Counter at The Key, addressed the actions of the Government of President Boric in the matter.
“The truth is that I don’t understand much about the government’s action. I am a supporter of the government and a supporter of TPP11. When I was president of the Foreign Relations Commission, TPP11 was approved unanimously, having split with some members who were very reluctant” , he indicated.
“However, they came to the conviction that an entire artificial campaign had been created against a treaty that not only has nothing different from the others we have signed, but also has even better things,” he added.
Regarding the criticism of President Boric for not having used his power and withdrawing the project, Senator Insulza pointed out that “he can withdraw the treaty from Congress at any time during its processing.” “If we are going to have problems and we wanted side letters, why didn’t the President withdraw it in Congress? He could have done it,” he added.
“Until 5:00 on Tuesday afternoon, President Boric could have sent a letter to Parliament saying ‘I withdraw the treaty’. To say that now ‘we are going to delay its entry into force’, that ‘now is the time for the President and before it was the Senate’, if you wanted not to sign it or delay it, you should have withdrawn it,” he concluded.
