NEWS: Barlow builds on CETA win in Windsor

Yesterday evening, Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow spoke to more than 150 people gathered at the Giovanni Caboto Club in Windsor.

As reported by the Windsor Star earlier in the day, “A trade deal being quietly negotiated between Canada and the European Union will privatize our drinking water, among other consequences, according to the Council of Canadians, a progressive citizens’ organization. The council’s national chairwoman Maude Barlow will bring a cross-country tour to Windsor tonight to warn of the dangers they see in the massive deal. The group argues that negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement have been conducted without public discussion. Critics say CETA would put corporate rights first, threaten local job creation and buy-local policies, allow corporations to skirt environmental regulations and cause prescription drug costs to skyrocket $2.8 billion per year. The free public meeting, which uses the tagline ‘Canada’s communities are not for sale!,’ is tonight at 7 at the Caboto Club.”

On September 21, Council of Canadians Windsor Chapter activists Doug Hayes and Randy Emerson presented to Essex County Council on the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. The County comprises seven municipalities in southwestern Ontario which straddle the Windsor-Detroit border region. As a result of their presentation, Essex County Council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution demanding a total municipal exemption from any procurement commitments in CETA. More on that at http://canadians.org/blog/?p=10676.

This CETA speaking tour has now been to Calgary (on April 29), Montreal (May 24), Toronto (May 26), Saskatoon (May 31), Winnipeg (June 27), Halifax (June 28), St. John’s (June 29), Hamilton (September 27), and Windsor (September 28). To date, the tour has reached an audience totalling more than 1750 people in 7 provinces, with multiple media articles reaching an even larger audience.

The tour next goes to:
Abbotsford – October 11
Vancouver – October 12
Victoria – October 13
Ottawa – October 19

For more details on the tour, please go to http://canadians.org/ceta.