Boston Cambridge Alliance for Democracy c/o Jean Dunbar Maryborn, Co-chair 427 River St. Norwell MA 02061 617-826-2482, [EMAIL PROTECTED] 5/21/97 For Immediate Release Contact: Jean Maryborn 617-826-2482 NATIONAL SPEAKERS COME TO BOSTON FOR CITIZENS' CONFERENCE ON MAI GATT, NAFTA, now MAI -- A First in the Nation Conference on the Next Step in Corporate Governance. Boston. Saturday; May 31, a first in the nation citizens' conference titled "MAI: Big Business Over the Rest of Us?" brings national experts in the areas of business, public policy and citizen advocacy for debate over the merits of MAI, the Multilateral Agreement on Investment. The event is 9:30 to 5:00, at Devlin Hall, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Ave. Chestnut Hill. The Agreement, negotiated quietly by government and trade representatives of the 29 richest nations, is designed to free the flow of investment capital and profits. The Conference will be the first time for citizens to debate the issue, explore and expose it to public scrutiny, asking how it will effect their lives, their jobs, their environment, and the ability of their elected governments to control corporate behavior on issues important to them. The program features: Keynote: Lori Wallach of Public Citizen, the watchdog group in Washington DC founded by Ralph Nader, setting the context of MAI. Introduced by Ronnie Dugger, Alliance for Democracy, the talk will be followed by a discussion period, then workshops on potential MAI impact, with experts in their fields. (List attached.) Debate on the potential impact of MAI, moderated by US Rep. John Tierney. Participants: Cynthia Beltz, American Enterprise Institute; Ronnie Dugger, founder of the Alliance for Democracy; Lori Wallach, Public Citizen. Marino Markesh of the National Association of Manufacturers has been invited, plus a representative of the Department of State, Treasury, Commerce or the EPA. Economic Alternatives: In Boston's proud tradition of fostering independent thinking, the day will round out with Pat Choate, Vice Presidential Candidate, Reform Party, and Hilary French of the Worldwatch Institute, looking at alternative economics. The conference is sponsored by local chapters of the Alliance for Democracy, Public Citizen, and the Sociology Department of Boston College, with a wide variety of co-sponsors, (list attached.) Public Citizen and the Alliance expect this first in the nation event to be replicated across the country. Cost is $10, $8. preregistered, $5 low income . To pre-register, send a check by 5/28 to "Boston/Cambridge Alliance for Democracy," c/o Adams, 10 Newland Rd, Arlington MA 02174. For more information: 617- 266-8687 or 508-872-6137. Web page: http://world.std.com/~dadams/MAI. Devlin Hall is handicap accessible. Specialized Workshops: The trade agreements' potential impacts on: Small and Medium Business. Raymond Vernon (Kennedy School, Harvard), and Alan Tonelson (US Business & Industry Council) Labor. Thea Lee (AFL-CIO) Regional Development. Scott Nova (Preamble Collaborative) Environment. Andrew Deutz (Woods Hole Research Center) On and by Media. Charles Sennott (Boston Globe) Culture, Community and Organizing : Mary Zepernick, Virginia Rasmussen (Program on Corporations, Law & Democracy; WILPF) Law & the States. Robert Stumberg (Georgetown University Law Center) Political Power and Democracy. State Rep. Jim Marzilli, Mel King, Simon Billenness (Franklin Research and Development Institute) Workshops to be followed by an Action/lunch-workshop "How to Campaign: Making Your Convictions Count," with Simon Billenness, Scott Nova, State Reps. Jim Marzilli and Byron Rushing. Co-sponsors: AFL-CIO, Bikes Not Bombs, Boston CISPES, Center for Popular Economics of UMass, Amherst; Community Church of Boston, CPPAX, Dollars and Sense, 5th District Citizens Concerned about Central America, Franklin Research and Development Corp., Rev. David Garcia, Dir. Episcopal City; Mission, Mass. Federation of Teachers, MassPIRG, Mobilization for Survival, New England Council for Responsible Investing, Northeast Action, Sisters of Saint Joseph Office of Justice and Peace, United Church of Christ/Norwell Peace and Justice Committee. Background: by Paul Johnson 508-281-2699 Will International Business Over-ride Laws Passed by our Elected Governments? At a time when more responsibility is being shifted to state and local government to deal with social needs, new laws are being drafted at the international level which will restrict the power of state and local government to affect economic development, environmental or labor standards, and the retention of domestic industries. The Multilateral Agreement on Investment, being prepared by O.E.C.D. (The European-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) with the United States, is designed to make it easier for corporations and big investors to expand their operations into new locales by overriding many federal, state, and local requirements. MAI as it stands would jeopardize the Community Reinvestment Act, which prevents redlining by banks, as well as programs in cities like Baltimore which require a living wage be paid by any company with a city contract, minority hiring requirements, plant closing requirements, development funds for local business or these owned by women or minorities, requirements for job creation or retention when tax breaks or other subsidies are given, and human rights laws such as the Massachusetts Burma law which restricts the state from doing business with companies based in countries with gross violations of human rights. MAI could be, in short, a devastating assault on the right of local self determination. Although MAI was scheduled for ratification by the US Senate this fall, it has not yet been released to the public. It has been drafted virtually in secret over the last two years and has had almost no coverage in the press. Multilateral agreements like NAFTA and GATT, which removed trade barriers and allowed the free importation of goods from low-wage countries with few environmental standards, have resulted in the loss of many good jobs in US and-- in the interest of remaining "competitive"--a race to the bottom of low wages and low environmental standards. MAI is the latest in that tradition and perhaps the most critical, because it goes beyond NAFTA and GATT in establishing--for the first time--the right of powerful, multinational corporations to sue and collect compensation from local communities that exercise various kinds of control on investment behavior. Local and national governments would have no right to sue corporations on behalf of their people. MAI proponents say the agreement will put the US in a stronger position to attract investment, build new facilities, and compete in the global marketplace. Opponents see it as an assault on community rule and the democratic process, an agreement that will reduce wages and lower environmental standards while giving much more power to large multinationals. It is clear that any agreement with such a massive impact on local authority deserves adequate time for presentation and debate. Our goal is to start a national debate.
