Many of the articles in this debate have highlighted overt crackdowns on domestically based NGOs, including state practices that close down opportunities to mobilize and finance opposition movements. This is certainly a clear and present danger. But there is another aspect, less visible, which merits attention: the avenues for NGOs to cross borders and contribute to good governance. A case in point is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), where negotiators missed an opportunity to include civil society in labor compliance oversight.
The TPP requires the 12 member states to uphold basic International Labour Organization (ILO) standards. But there is a simple problem: no one knows what to do about non-compliance. Recent reports from The Atlantic Monthly and the House Ways and Means Committee cast doubt on the ability of the United States to hold some of the TPP partner countries to their labor rights commitments.
Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei, for example, have agreed “consistency plans” with the United States to ensure compliance, but there are serious weaknesses in enforcement capacity and political will. The labor chapter of the TPP requires member states to create “consultative or advisory bodies” for public input, but these are still dependent on the good will of governments who caused or contributed to the problems in the first place.
