The Council of Canadians issued a media release today that states, “Over 50 prominent individuals and organizations have sent Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff a letter urging him to help stop the ratification of the proposed Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement until a full and independent human rights impact assessment can be carried out. The letter was sent today, the first day of the Liberal Party convention in Vancouver.”
The media release notes, “’We the undersigned are deeply concerned that Canada would abandon its values and its support of internationally recognized human rights in order to gain economic advantage for its companies at the expense of millions of displaced, impoverished Colombians,’ said the letter, which was signed by Maude Barlow, Stephen Lewis, Ed Broadbent, Claudette Carbonneau, Alex Neve, Paul Moist, Rev. Bill Phipps, Farley Mowat, Sarah Polley, Naomi Klein, and others, as well as organizations like the Council of Canadians, Greenpeace, the Canadian Council for International Cooperation, Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec, the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, the B.C. Teachers’ Federation, Lawyers Rights Watch Canada, the National Union of Public and General Employees and many more.”
The full letter can be read at http://canadians.org/trade/documents/Letter-Ignatieff-CCFTA.pdf.
The full media release is at http://canadians.org/media/trade/2009/30-Apr-09.html.
Be sure to respond to our action alerts on the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement. To do so, please go to http://canadians.org/action/2009/24-Apr-09.html and http://canadians.org/action/2009/9-Apr-09.html.
