Speaking of "harmony," birds on a wire, chickens in a coop, whatever [ducks in a row]- Stephen Harper (Canada) has also been pushing for free trade with Colombia in S.America too.
Re mining, cocaine, the Americas ...
Stephen Harper's Free Trade Mantra: Hush, Rush, and Sign
http://mostlywater.org/stephen_harpe..._rush_and_sign
Stephen Harper's bizarre logic of free trade with Colombia
http://www.nupge.ca/news_2008/n13ja08b.htm
Harper touts free trade, shies away from terrorism reports in Colombia talks
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/...949/story.html
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Colombia's current government is accused of corruption, links to paramilitary death squads and drug traffickers, and state sanctioned impunity for crimes committed.
Almost 400 trade unionists have been murdered over the past five years and only 1.9% of the crimes have been solved.
Criminal networks control economic activities and political institutions in 23 of the 31 provinces.
Paramilitary terror and massacres have been used to try to dismantle Indigenous, Afro-Colombian and other social movements and vulnerable groups in order to take over their resource rich territories for the benefit of the mostly multinational extractive industries and agriculture such as "African" palm oil. Few controls exist to ensure that extractive companies behave responsibly.
Extrajudicial executions by the army are on the rise.
There are 3.8 million internally displaced people, 57% of which are women. The UN calls this the worst humanitarian disaster in the Western Hemisphere and it is growing.
Given this reality, I believe it does not make sense to negotiate a free trade deal with Colombia before measures are taken to ensure the following:
1. the rule of law and an end to impunity for crimes against union leaders, human rights defenders and the civilian population;
2. that Canadian extractive companies operating in Colombia act responsibly to the communities in which they operate;
3. that displaced communities can return to their lands;
4. that Indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities are involved and allowed a say on development projects which take place on their territories;
5. that no products, resources or other commercial goods are produced on lands illegally appropriated by drug traffickers and paramilitary groups;
6. that a trade deal does not benefit government linked criminal networks;
7. that an international business deal with Colombia or any other country fosters "fair trade", and does not only benefit international investors while worsening widespread conditions of poverty and social exclusion.
Ineffective labour and environmental side agreements with no teeth on rights and standards will do nothing to improve the situation described above.
Until you can assure the Canadian public that these concerns have been addressed please stop negotiations now.
http://petition.web.net/usw/node/1