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Nicaraguan parliament
postpones approval of FTA
Nicaragua's National Assembly
has delayed the approval of the
free trade agreement (FTA)
between Central America and the
United States, on grounds that
its population will not benefit
from the deal, an official said
on Wednesday.
Legislators from the Sandinista
Front of National Liberation (FSLN)
and the Liberal
Constitutionalist Party (PLC)
oppose the FTA, saying it will
benefit neither workers nor
small producers, according to
Nicaraguan chief negotiator
Carlos Sequeira.
Many small producers' businesses
would go bust because of the FTA,
which also violates the rights
of workers, representatives of
the FSLN say.
The official said the criticism
is of a political nature and
Nicaragua may turn out to be the
only country to cause
difficulties for the
ratification of the FTA.
El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa
Rica signed the FTA with the
United States last May in
Washington. The Dominican
Republic later joined it in
August.
The Salvadoran congress became
the first parliament to ratify
the accord in December, and
Guatemala and Honduras followed
suit. The agreement will come
into effect when the
legislatures of all the
signatory countries give it the
green light.
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