Widening protest against threats of TTIP & CETA Third multi-sectoral European civil society strategy and campaigning meeting. Workshops, 2-3 February 2015, Brussels
Civil society campaigning against the threats of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP, or TAFTA in French) and the Canada-EU free trade agreement (CETA), proved to be successful. Since our last meeting in July 2014, two Europe-wide key campaigning activities helped to broaden the protest and to increase the pressure on our governments and the European Commission: the self-organised European Citizen Initiative and the European action day on 11 October. Many more activities on the national and European levels helped the movement grow in force and numbers. Since November 2014 we have entered into a new phase: the new European Commission took office with Cecilia Malmström as the new Trade Commissioner and the European Parliament has decided to prepare a resolution on TTIP which is to be voted in full plenary mid-May 2015. more: http://rosalux-europa.info/events_en/Widening_protest_against_TTIP/ +++ Stephan Kaufmann: Free Trade as a Weapon in the Global Power Struggle Beyond Chlorine Chickens and Arbitration Courts: The Political Goals Underpinning the Transatlantic Free Trade Agreement TTIP January 2015 abstract: http://www.rosalux.de/publikationen/publication/41119/free-trade-as-a-weapon-in-the-global-power-struggle.html full text: http://www.rosalux.de/fileadmin/rls_uploads/pdfs/Standpunkte/policy_paper/PolicyPaper_01-2015.pdf +++ John Hilary: The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) in 15 minutes (video) Stockholm, November 2014 http://rosalux-europa.info/news/TTIP_JohnHilary_Video_en/ +++ The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). A charter for deregulation, an attack on jobs, an end to democracy By John Hilary, Director of War on Want. Ed. Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, Brussels Office, 2014. Available in several languages. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is a comprehensive free trade and investment treaty currently being negotiated – in secret – between the European Union and the USA. As officials from both sides acknowledge, the main goal of TTIP is to remove regulatory ‘barriers’ which restrict the potential profits to be made by transnational corporations on both sides of the Atlantic. Yet these ‘barriers’ are in reality some of our most prized social standards and environmental regulations, such as labour rights, food safety rules (including restrictions on GMOs), regulations on the use of toxic chemicals, digital privacy laws and even new banking safeguards introduced to prevent a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis. The stakes, in other words, could not be higher. This booklet, written by John Hilary, Executive Director of War on Want, explains in short what TTIP is and how it will affect the lives of all of us if it comes into force. The Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung tries to cast some light into this secretly negotiated treaty and to encourage resistance, by bringing together experts, civil society and politicians in workshops and conferences in Europe and the USA. The brochure is available in several languages. more: http://rosalux-europa.info/news/TTIP/ English booklet: http://rosalux.gr/sites/default/files/publications/ttip_web.pdf +++ TTIP News http://bilaterals.org/?-TTIP-&lang=en +++ Free Trade Faults: Europeans Fear Wave of Litigation from US Firms By Christoph Pauly Spiegel Online International, January 26, 2015 With broad public resistance and a European Parliament majority against it, EU officials are rethinking their positions on the proposed free-trade agreement with Washington. Many fear investor protection rules will wreak havoc on national laws. When Bernd Lange talks about the advantages of a free trade agreement with the US, he often cites the example of the VW bus. The hippy favorite has been the target of a 25 percent tariff since 1964, a punitive move after the European Economic Community raised levies on imported chicken, shutting the Americans out of the market. Sales have been hampered for decades as a result. But if the levy were significantly reduced, its price tag would plunge. Lange is a classic car enthusiast -- and the chair of the European Parliament Committee on International Trade, which focuses on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) treaty. But despite the possible benefits for Volkswagen, the Social Democrat has had little choice but to emphasize the negative aspects of TTIP during his public appearances. In Europe's leading exporting nation, broad swathes of the population are opposed to the free trade agreement. You can even find anti-TTIP flyers in many churches. The main sticking point is special rights given to investors, who would be able to challenge countries in special international dispute settlement panels that bypass national courts. It's a pill that even those who believe in the deal are having difficulty swallowing. Some 145,000 European citizens voiced their disapproval in a "public consultation" undertaken by the European Commission, with many expressing fear that US companies might seek to overturn EU laws on genetic engineering, environmental protection and food quality. "This is indeed a very toxic issue," European Commissioner Cecelia Malmström, who is leading negotiations with the Americans, admitted last fall. But rather than addressing the widespread criticism, it instead appears she is playing for time. full: http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/eu-fears-ttif-free-trade-agreement-could-spur-litigation-a-1015013.html _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
