The controversial Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations process has been, for the most part, kept under wraps, but that may soon change, as WikiLeaks has offered a crowdfunded reward to anyone willing to leak the secretive trade agreement.
Opposition to mysterious TTIP leads to WikiLeaks' reward offer
Calling TTIP "Europe's most wanted secret," the whistleblower website on Aug. 11 announced its intention to raise a €100,000 ($111,000) reward for anyone willing to reveal the full details of what would be a free trade deal between the U.S. and Europe. The negotiations process started in 2013 and has been anything but smooth, with a number of setbacks and a slew of activist groups protesting the negotiations.
On Aug. 12, Wired reported that the website had raised $44,871 via 1,067 people, including politicians, philosophers, journalists and fashion designers. The same day, Vice reported a total of around $61,300. Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, and Daniel Ellsberg, the man who leaked top secret documents during the Vietnam War, were all among the donors.
TTIP seeks to lift restrictions on trade between the U.S. and the European Union (EU). The massive agreement would harmonize various trade regulations among countries in the EU and the U.S., making transporting goods across the Atlantic much easier in a regulatory sense. However, plenty of opposition exists. Activists in Europe have suggested that products like chlorine-washed chicken from the U.S. would make their way into the EU should the trade agreement pass.
Emerging economies kept out of free trade negotiations
In requesting that someone leak TTIP documents, WikiLeaks explained an effort to cut out the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) from TTIP, as well as the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) – two secretive agreements that were also partially leaked following a reward offer from WikiLeaks.
An editorial on New Zealand news outlet Stuff.co.nz noted that the exclusion of these economies from the three trade deals could "hardly be understated." The opinion piece by Terence O'Brien went on to explain that the BRICS nations are "growing impatient" with the slow pace of negotiations. Not much is known about how far along the discussions are, due to the effort to keep details under wraps.
"The secrecy of the TTIP casts a shadow on the future of European democracy. Under this cover, special interests are running wild, much as we saw with the recent financial siege against the people of Greece," Julian Assange, WikiLeaks founder, said, according to the website. "The TTIP affects the life of every European and draws Europe into long term conflict with Asia. The time for its secrecy to end is now."
Controversial sticking points, such as the Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism – which allows corporations to settle disputes with governments – continue to turn the on-going negotiations process into a slog. As the U.S. and EU work to find a balance between sovereignty and free trade, the very active opposition to the agreement may soon shine a light on discussions that have proceeded, for the most part, in the dark. That is, if WikiLeaks' reward is tempting enough to a potential whistleblower.