APTU meeting in Bangkok, part 2

In Part 1 of this discussion, I briefly introduced the Asia Pacific Taxpayers Union (APTU) and some of its member-organizations, and the World Taxpayers Association (WTA).

I was not able to attend the APTU meeting in Bangkok last week due to financial constraints. And it was good that I did not go there because my two daughters got sick and I have to bring them to a doctor on those days that they were meeting in Bangkok.

Mr. You of Japan Taxpayers Association (JTR) sent me this group picture below.

From left, 2nd row: Ms. Gulyaim Nurbekova of Kazakhstan Taxpayers Association, Mr. You of JTR, Mr. Bjorn Tarras-Wahlberg, WTA Sec-Gen. and APTU Chairman, Mr. Fengiang Liu of Beijing International Taxation Research Society (BITRS), Mr. Raymond Ho of Momentum 107-HK, Mr. Jaya Naidu from Australia. In front is Mr. Kim SunTaek of Korea Taxpayers Association. Beside him are English translators of Mr. Kim, Mr. Liu, and... I don't know the 2 other ladies :-)

From several email exchanges where I was cc'd, it was a good meeting, good. Below is a portion of the presentation made by Bjorn.

Many countries are now competing at 10 percent flat income tax rate. Since this trend in tax competition is likely to continue, not reverse, then we should be seeing income tax rates going down to 6-7 percent or lower in some countries in the coming years.

Below is another slide from Bjorn. Georgia is stepping hard on the tax competition pedal.

Next year, Georgia's personal income tax will go down to only 7 percent and it will abolish taxes on dividends and interest income. It has also abolished capital gains tax. All other things being equal, it should be safe to assume that more and more foreign investors and professionals will be trooping to Georgia to do business there.

The governments of the Philippines and many other countries should think hard of this tax competition currently on-going. Higher taxes will either discourage businesses, or businesses will still come provided various loopholes and tax credits can be availed of. Or higher taxes will encourage government corruption, more tax cheating and avoidance, with the likely connivance of several officials and personnel of tax collection agencies themselves.

APTU meeting in Bangkok, April 2011

The Asia-Pacific Taxpayers Union (APTU) will hold its annual meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, late this week, April 29-30. Venue will be the Rembrandt Hotel. I am supposed to be a part of this meeting, but I could not find a local sponsor to finance my trip.

APTU is the regional "branch" of the World Taxpayers Association (WTA). Members of APTU and WTA are taxpayers' associations or organizations or unions in various countries that fight for low and simple taxes, accountable government and taxpayers' rights. Minimal Government Thinkers, Inc. which I represent, is not exactly a member of APTU because MG is a think tank, not a taxpayers' movement. But we got into the APTU network because "small government, small taxes,..." are among our major advocacies.

This is my favorite picture in the WTA network. Bjorn, the Secretary General of WTA and Chairman of APTU (left), Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reforms (ATR), and me. This was during the 3rd Pacific Rim Policy Exchange held in Singapore in late September 2009. WTA and ATR are among the major sponsors of that big conference. ATR is also a member of WTA.

Among the members of APTU are the Korea Taxpayers Association (KTA), represented by its President, Mr. Kim Suntaek, 2nd from right, and the Mongolians for Fair Taxes and Wise Spending, headed by Jargal Dambadarjaa, right. KTA is perhaps the biggest taxpayers movement in the whole of Asia as they have several hundred thousands of dues-paying members. This picture was also taken during the Singapore conference in 2009.

Another affiliate of APTU is the Lion Rock Institute (LRI) in Hong Kong, headed by Peter Wong, here speaking. Some LRI fellows and members were the founders of Momentum 107, a taxpayers' movement in HK.

Some may wonder why HK, having among the lowest tax rates around the world, would need a taxpayers movement, or a free market think tank. Precisely the point, as there are moves by some HK politicians, to raise certain taxes, to expand government, to provide more welfarist programs, to enact interventionist policies like having a minimum wage law and creating a new bureaucracy, an Anti-Trust Commission. LRI and Momentum 107 are among the vocal groups that oppose such moves, to remind the HK government that HK progressed because of free market, not because of government interventionist policies.

Another important member of APTU is the Japanese for Tax Reforms (JTR) headed by Masaru Uchiyama or simply "Mr. You", leftmost. Mr. Raymond Ho, rightmost, is the the head of Momentum 107-HK, rightmost. Picture taken during the 4th Pacific Rim Policy Exchange in Sydney in late September 2010. Beside Mr. You is Khalil Ahmad, the head of Alternate Solutions Institute, Pakistan's real free market think tank, based in Lahore. AS Institute is not a member or affiliate of APTU yet.

I wish Bjorn and the participants from various Asia-Pacific countries, success in holding the annual meeting and conference.