Free trade deal will not lead to democracy
in Colombia, say Canadian election monitors.
March 18, 2010
Carleen
Pickard of the Council of Canadians and
Barbara Wood representing CUPE were part of
an international election monitoring mission
to Colombia head of the presidential
election in May. They say systematic human
rights abuses, corruption and escalating
violence cast doubts on whether the election
can be free and fair.
Most
disturbingly, the mission’s report
highlights:
1. The
involvement of illegal armed groups in the
elections, including paramilitaries and drug
traffickers, who benefit from campaign
financing as well as determining outcomes;
2.
Electoral fraud and corruption, including
vote buying, voter intimidation, use of
fraudulent identification cards and vote
rigging;
3.
Illegal campaign financing including the use
of public funds and contracts, the use of
drug trafficking profits and exceeding
campaign financing limits; and
4. The
manipulation of social programs designed to
assist the poorest of the poor – recipients
of such programs have been told to vote for
certain candidates, otherwise the
state-funded program would be cut and with
it, their benefits.
In
regards to the Canada – Colombia Free Trade
Agreement, we conclude:
“The
serious concerns raised by the pre-electoral
mission combined with the ongoing human
rights violations and the continued climate
of impunity in Colombia further support the
immediate halt of the CCFTA and the call for
an independent and comprehensive human
rights impact assessment. Canada entering
into a free trade agreement with Colombia
now not only sends the wrong message to
Canadians and the Colombian regime, it also
may make Canada and Canadian companies
complicit or passive supporters of continued
violence in Colombia.”
Keep up the pressure to
defeat Bill C-2…
Public pressure was
successful in deterring the Harper
government from forcing Bill C-2 through
parliament but we still need to keep up the
pressure!
MPs will be called to vote
on Bill C-2 again soon, so we need you to
write to your MP and send a copy to the
leaders indicated below.
Threats and attacks continue
against trade union activists. According to
the National Labour School (ENS) of
Colombia, 45 trade unionists were murdered
in 2009 alone.
In promoting the new
legislation, the government says Colombia is
“a strategic destination” for Canadian
direct investment in mining and oil
exploration, amongst other sectors. But on
February 23 2010, Amnesty International
released a new report that documents an
intensification of violence against
Indigenous leaders and communities, many of
whom live in areas valued for their
minerals, oil and other natural resources.
During 2009 alone, thousands of Indigenous
women, men and children were killed,
threatened or driven from their land.
According to the National Indigenous
Organization of Colombia (ONIC), the
survival of 32 Indigenous groups is at risk
of extinction as a result of the armed
conflict, large scale economic projects and
a lack of state support. OPSEU has given
concrete assistance to ONIC to launch a
campaign for the survival of these
communities.
Express your concern about
the intensification of violence against
Indigenous peoples living in areas of
economic interest in Colombia and the
continued attacks on trade unionists and
human rights activists, by:
Write to your MP:
Click on:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Compilations/HouseOfCommons/
MemberByPostalCode.aspx?Menu=HOC
Please send a copy to:
International Trade Minister
Peter Van Loan
House of Commons
Ottawa ON K1A 0A6
Fax: (613) 992-8351
EMail:
VanLoan.P@parl.gc.ca
Michael Ignatieff, Leader of
the Liberal Party of Canada
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6
Fax: (613) 992-5880
EMail:
IgnatM@parl.gc.ca
Jack Layton, Leader of the
NDP
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6
Fax: (613) 995-4565
EMail:
LaytoJ@parl.gc.ca
Gilles Duceppe, Leader of
the Bloc Québécois
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Fax: (613) 954-2121
EMail:
DucepG@parl.gc.ca
