Colombia Trade Agreement Not Free or Fair
Before he jetted off to Europe, Bush demanded that Congress pass the flawed Colombian Free Trade Agreement, an agreement neither free nor fair, but a big boost for his right wing buddy, President Alvaro Uribe and Uribe's corporate cronies.
As reported in Reuters, "Many Democrats, including presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, oppose the Colombia free trade agreement because they say the government still has not done enough to stop murders of trade unionists and jail their killers.
" 'President Bush just doesn't get it. Our so-called 'courageous ally in South America' is home to the worst violence against union members in the entire world,' Rep. Phil Hare, an Illinois Democrat, said in a statement.
"Thirty-nine trade unionists were murdered in 2007, and another 10 to date in 2008. Of the more than 2,500 murders of trade unionists since 1986, only 80 cases -- around 3 percent -- have resulted in convictions."
Meanwhile, IPS News reports, " 'If their slogan was land, dignity and peace, this time it will be terror, murder and hell,' said a threat sent to human rights defenders and trade unionists who took part in a Mar. 6 march in homage to the victims of Colombia’s far-right paramilitary groups.
"Since the march, four of the organisers have been murdered and another survived an attempt on her life. In addition, more than 50 people and organisations have been named in written threats distributed by a group calling themselves the "Black Eagles", who say they will be "implacable" with those who organised the demonstration.
"The paramilitaries, whose modern version emerged in 1982 to fight the leftist insurgents, have concentrated their attacks on civilians whom they deem guerrilla sympathisers. Between three and four million Colombians have been displaced from their rural homes by the violence, and much of their land has ended up in the hands of paramilitary leaders.
"The ties between the paramilitaries and the security forces have been amply documented.
"Uribe had publicly stated at the time that the members of the peace community, which had declared itself neutral in the armed conflict, were "collaborators" of the FARC, who the president describes as 'terrorists.'
" 'You are either with Colombia or with terrorism': this recent statement by Uribe that has been put up on billboards in Bogotá and other cities defines the government’s view with respect to neutrality in the armed conflict.
Where have heard a version of that before? From the authoritarian, right wing regime of King George, who bullied countries to support his illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq and threatened those that wouldn't.
What would the Colombia Free Trade Agreement do? According to Jonathan Tasini:
"The FTA's grant of duty-free U.S. access for flowers and certain other commercial-scale agri-export crops will certainly put pressure on Colombia to expand agribusiness plantations for such exports. These plantations have been a disaster for the regular farmer.
"Foreign investor rights--a typical pro-corporate, so-called "free trade," measure--would tighten the grip that large corporations have on the country's natural resources and launch a large-scale plundering of those resources such as timber and minerals.
"...the so-called "free trade" deal would likely displace hundreds of thousands of poor rural Colombians from their lands, sending them into far deeper economic despair--and forcing many of them to work for the very groups that violently displaced them from their lands. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs conducted a study of the effects of the 1990s economic "liberalization" and concluded that such a move led to a 35 per cent drop in employment.
"After NAFTA drove down commodity prices in Mexico and eventually 1.3 million Mexican campesinos were driven out of the business of growing corn and beans, many Mexican farmers turned to illegal drugs to compensate for lost income.
"Pharmaceutical companies will get exclusive patent rights, getting 20-year monopoly rights to market drugs in Colombia--the very kind of provisions that have driven up drug prices in the U.S. Generic drugs will effectively be banned for ten years--putting tremendous economic pressure on the health care system in Colombia.
"Put simply, the deal would benefit business and political interests tied to the paramilitary forces. If you have any doubts about the links between the government and these right-wing paramilitary forces, check this out. In November 2006, two powerful senators and two members of Congress--allies of President Uribe - resigned because of evidence they had conspired with paramilitary groups. The Uribe government was rocked this past Monday when its foreign minister resigned
"There is nothing new about trade--we've traded among countries and civilizations for the entire course of human history, sometimes by delivering goods that took weeks and months to reach their destination, whereas today such trade can happen in the blink of an eye. What the economic, political and media elites want us to believe is that somehow something magical has happened requiring that we accede to economic realities that are natural and unavoidable.
"But, that is utter nonsense. Economics is not nature. It's a question of power and politics."
The Democratic controlled Congress should politely tell Bush to put his Columbian Free Trade Agreement where the sun don't shine and bury the deal.
As reported in Reuters, "Many Democrats, including presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, oppose the Colombia free trade agreement because they say the government still has not done enough to stop murders of trade unionists and jail their killers.
" 'President Bush just doesn't get it. Our so-called 'courageous ally in South America' is home to the worst violence against union members in the entire world,' Rep. Phil Hare, an Illinois Democrat, said in a statement.
"Thirty-nine trade unionists were murdered in 2007, and another 10 to date in 2008. Of the more than 2,500 murders of trade unionists since 1986, only 80 cases -- around 3 percent -- have resulted in convictions."
Meanwhile, IPS News reports, " 'If their slogan was land, dignity and peace, this time it will be terror, murder and hell,' said a threat sent to human rights defenders and trade unionists who took part in a Mar. 6 march in homage to the victims of Colombia’s far-right paramilitary groups.
"Since the march, four of the organisers have been murdered and another survived an attempt on her life. In addition, more than 50 people and organisations have been named in written threats distributed by a group calling themselves the "Black Eagles", who say they will be "implacable" with those who organised the demonstration.
"The paramilitaries, whose modern version emerged in 1982 to fight the leftist insurgents, have concentrated their attacks on civilians whom they deem guerrilla sympathisers. Between three and four million Colombians have been displaced from their rural homes by the violence, and much of their land has ended up in the hands of paramilitary leaders.
"The ties between the paramilitaries and the security forces have been amply documented.
"Uribe had publicly stated at the time that the members of the peace community, which had declared itself neutral in the armed conflict, were "collaborators" of the FARC, who the president describes as 'terrorists.'
" 'You are either with Colombia or with terrorism': this recent statement by Uribe that has been put up on billboards in Bogotá and other cities defines the government’s view with respect to neutrality in the armed conflict.
Where have heard a version of that before? From the authoritarian, right wing regime of King George, who bullied countries to support his illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq and threatened those that wouldn't.
What would the Colombia Free Trade Agreement do? According to Jonathan Tasini:
"The FTA's grant of duty-free U.S. access for flowers and certain other commercial-scale agri-export crops will certainly put pressure on Colombia to expand agribusiness plantations for such exports. These plantations have been a disaster for the regular farmer.
"Foreign investor rights--a typical pro-corporate, so-called "free trade," measure--would tighten the grip that large corporations have on the country's natural resources and launch a large-scale plundering of those resources such as timber and minerals.
"...the so-called "free trade" deal would likely displace hundreds of thousands of poor rural Colombians from their lands, sending them into far deeper economic despair--and forcing many of them to work for the very groups that violently displaced them from their lands. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs conducted a study of the effects of the 1990s economic "liberalization" and concluded that such a move led to a 35 per cent drop in employment.
"After NAFTA drove down commodity prices in Mexico and eventually 1.3 million Mexican campesinos were driven out of the business of growing corn and beans, many Mexican farmers turned to illegal drugs to compensate for lost income.
"Pharmaceutical companies will get exclusive patent rights, getting 20-year monopoly rights to market drugs in Colombia--the very kind of provisions that have driven up drug prices in the U.S. Generic drugs will effectively be banned for ten years--putting tremendous economic pressure on the health care system in Colombia.
"Put simply, the deal would benefit business and political interests tied to the paramilitary forces. If you have any doubts about the links between the government and these right-wing paramilitary forces, check this out. In November 2006, two powerful senators and two members of Congress--allies of President Uribe - resigned because of evidence they had conspired with paramilitary groups. The Uribe government was rocked this past Monday when its foreign minister resigned
"There is nothing new about trade--we've traded among countries and civilizations for the entire course of human history, sometimes by delivering goods that took weeks and months to reach their destination, whereas today such trade can happen in the blink of an eye. What the economic, political and media elites want us to believe is that somehow something magical has happened requiring that we accede to economic realities that are natural and unavoidable.
"But, that is utter nonsense. Economics is not nature. It's a question of power and politics."
The Democratic controlled Congress should politely tell Bush to put his Columbian Free Trade Agreement where the sun don't shine and bury the deal.
Posted by Kaz at 4/1/2008 4:02 PM 
Categories: labor, NAFTA, Global Engagement, Manufacturing, Foreign Policy, Bushites, Economics
Categories: labor, NAFTA, Global Engagement, Manufacturing, Foreign Policy, Bushites, Economics
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