Following the most recent round of Trans-Pacific Partnership
negotiations in Lima, Peru, more than 130 organizations have come out
against such international trade agreements calling them a "deadly
weapon" against democratic rule, the protection of individual rights and
environmental justice.
(Photo: Caelie Frampton/ Flickr)
"These
agreements further consolidate the asymmetry of laws that propagate
that the rights and power of corporations are protected by ‘hard law’
and are above the rights of peoples and communities," write the groups
write in
an open letter criticizing the agreements.
"We believe that Nation-states should have not only the obligation
but also the full freedom to implement laws and policies in favour of
the people and the environment, without the threat of being sued by
transnational capital," the letter continued.
According to the
alliance—which includes such groups as
Friends of the Earth,
Global Trade Watch,
Institute for Policy Studies,
Global Exchange—under
International Investment Agreements (IIAs) such as the Trans-Pacific
Partnership, a co-signed country can be sued by a transnational
corporation if their laws or policies go against the interests of the
corporations, such as legislation that favors people or the environment.
"International Investment Agreements grant unprecedented rights to foreign corporations and investors,"
said
Alberto Villarreal from Friends of the Earth-Uruguay, adding, "They are
deadly weapons against democratic rule and the protection of peoples'
rights and environmental justice."
The group is calling on State signatories to "denounce and stop
signing" these agreements that have "unlawfully subjected them to
foreign jurisdictions and violate peoples' rights."
Rather, they propose an alternative legal framework for international
economic relations that is based primarily on democratic principles,
prioritizing the rights of humans and nature over "private interests and
profits."
They
explain:
This framework should include binding obligations for private and
public transnational corporations on issues of human rights, as well as
economic, labor, social rights, and respect for mother nature. It should
also guarantee governments’ possibility to enact public policy for the
realization of these rights. In this context, any investment agreement
should also include a mechanism for public participation and democratic
discussion with representatives of the relevant social sectors.
The 11 member states of the Trans-Pacific Partnership—including
Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, United States of America, Malaysia,
Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam and Peru—are expected to
finalize their negotiations by the end of 2013.
Friends of the Earth produced the below video, "Peril in the
Pacific," to further explain how countries are impacted by the
Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Peril in the Pacific (sub esp) from
Radio Mundo Real on
Vimeo.
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