Mass protests held in Germany against US, Canada trade deals

German demonstrators have taken to the streets in seven major cities in protest against transatlantic trade deals involving the European Union and countries such as the United States and Canada.

Organizers of the nationwide demonstrations said Saturday that hundreds of thousands were expected to convene to show their resentment against the pending trade deals, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which involves the EU and the US, and a smaller version called Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which is in the works between the EU and Canada.

“We hope that more than 250,000 participants will join in the march nationwide,” Roland Suess from the anti-globalization group Attac, said, adding that the marches were taking place in Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Cologne, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart.

Local media said posters and stickers had been plastered on any available surface in the capital Berlin, where reports said about 80,000 were taking part in the demonstration.

The protesters say the TTIP and CETA could further complicate the situation in the job market. They say the deals would also have huge environmental implications as they give firms and companies more of a leeway to expand their activities at the expense of public safety.

The TTIP, which aims to create the world's biggest free trade market of 850 million consumers, has already faced opposition at governmental levels, with France fiercely seeking to abandon the talks on the deal, which began in 2013. However, Berlin, the leading player of the European economy, continues to support it, although elements in the coalition government of Chancellor Angela Merkel have expressed doubt about the prospects of the agreement.

Merkel said in a recent interview that the EU’s burgeoning unemployment justifies the TTIP, saying, “We should do everything we can to create jobs, the free trade agreements are part of that.”

SS