Tag Archives: nafta

Obama Administration Pursuing Panama FTA

Posted on May 13, 2009 by | Comments Off

Panama Free Trade Agreement

The Obama administration is currently considering plans to pass the Panama Free Trade Agreement (Panama FTA). The agreement–which is a NAFTA-style free trade agreement–was negotiated under the Bush administration but was not passed before he left office.

Presently, it is being pushed by a number of large banks–many of which received government bailout money. Obama’s trade representative has indicated that the administration is supportive of the agreement.

This is unfortunate as during the 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama expressed opposition to NAFTA, saying that he was open to having that treaty “renegotiated” to expand environmental and labor protections.

Public Citizen’s Citizens Trade Campaign came out against the agreement, stating:

On behalf of our more than twelve million combined members, we are writing to express our strong opposition to the Panama “Free Trade Agreement” (FTA). This pact reflects the unsuccessful ending point of the past administration’s trade policy and should not serve as the starting point for the new Congress and administration.

Responding to broad public demand for change, more than one hundred candidates from both parties ran on platforms of trade reform in 2008. The past trade model has led to massive American job loss, downward pressure on wages, the loss of nearly 300,000 family farms and massive trade imbalances that have contributed to our current economic crisis. It has given broad, expansive new rights to foreign corporations to challenge our environmental and public health standards, and flooded the United States with unsafe imported food and products. And, it has devastated developing nations where millions of family farmers have been forced off their land and poverty, despair and desperation-driven mass migrations have grown.

Like many of the proposed free trade agreements in the Americas, the Panama FTA uses language that is almost directly replicated from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). This language is problematic and raises doubts about the extent to which environmental and labor standards will be enforced, limits access to medicines, and grants preferences to foreign investors that allow them to sue governments in order to create a more business-friendly climate.

Panama’s Offshore Tax Haven Status also an Issue

Public Citizen has also released a report criticizing the prospect of a free trade agreement with Panama because the country makes it easy for U.S.-based corporations to setup subsidiaries in Panama in order to avoid paying taxes. In fact, it is so easy to do so that Public Citizen’s dispatched one of its interns to give it a try. Here’s what she found:

Passage of the Panama FTA would not reign in these practices. In fact, Public Citizen argues it would take away regulatory provisions aimed at restricting the use of offshore tax havens.

More on the Panama FTA can be found on Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch website.

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Headlines: Obama Calls for NAFTA Changes; US Commander says US Troops Needed in Afghanistan for 3 More Years

Posted on February 20, 2009 by | Comments Off
Democracy Now Headlines: Obama Calls for NAFTA Changes; US Commander says US Troops Needed in Afghanistan for 3 More Years

Headlines from DemocracyNow.org, a daily TV/radio news program, hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, airing on over 650 stations, pioneering the largest community media collaboration in the US.

Obama Calls for Climate, Labor Safeguards in NAFTA

President Obama visited Canada on Thursday in his first trip abroad since taking office. Obama spent seven hours in the Canadian capital of Ottawa meeting Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Obama called for a new round of talks on adding labor and environmental provisions to the North American Free Trade Agreement.

President Obama: “With a NAFTA agreement that has labor provisions and environmental provisions as side agreements, it strikes me, if those side agreements mean anything, then they might as well be incorporated into the main body of the agreements so that they can be effectively enforced. And I think it is important, whether we’re talking about our relationships with Canada or our relationships with Mexico, that all countries concerned are thinking about how workers are being treated.”

Obama and Harper announced one initiative: a dialogue on developing clean energy. On the issue of Canada’s environmentally destructive extraction of oil from the Alberta tar sands, Obama was ambiguous. The President stressed the need to curb global warming but also noted Canada’s status as the top energy provider to the United States. On Afghanistan, Obama said he did not press Harper to reconsider Canada’s plan to withdraw its troops by 2011.

US Commander: 60,000 Troops Needed in Afghanistan for at Least 3 Years

Meanwhile, the top US commander in Afghanistan says at least 60,000 American troops will remain there for at least three to four years. General David McKiernan also says at least 10,000 additional US troops will be needed on top of the 17,000 ordered by President Obama this week.

Hundreds Protest NATO in Poland

In Poland, hundreds of people demonstrated outside a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Krakow Thursday. The US has used the meeting to call for greater involvement of other NATO forces in Afghanistan. The protesters denounced the US-led occupation.

Protester: “NATO really could have stopped its existence after the Cold War. It should not exist at all. Now it’s looking for new enemies, looking for expansion, and that leads to a rise in arms deals in the world. It’s a huge waste of human resources, and it kills people in Afghanistan.”

Kyrgyz President Orders Closure of US Base

The president of Kyrgyzstan has signed into law a measure closing a US military air base. The move came hours after the Kyrgyz Parliament overwhelmingly approved the closure and ordered US forces out within six months. Despite the call, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday the US is finalizing a new offer to ensure continued use. The Manas Air Base has played a central role in the US occupation of Afghanistan.

Report: Gitmo Prisoner to Be Returned to Britain

The British resident Binyam Mohamed will reportedly soon be freed from Guantanamo Bay. The Washington Post reports Mohamed will be flown to Britain next week. Mohamed’s case has drawn international controversy amidst torture allegations and a US-British row over the release of documents. Mohamed has claimed his confession to terrorism charges was given only after he had his penis sliced by a blade. The Bush administration refused to release key documents to Mohamed’s lawyers and warned British officials that trying to obtain them would jeopardize British “national security.”

Netanyahu to Become Israeli PM

In Israel and the Occupied Territories, Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu appears to have locked up the Prime Minister’s office after winning support from another right-wing politician. On Thursday, Avigdor Lieberman said he would join a Netanyahu coalition government, giving Netanyahu a large advantage over Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, whose Kadima Party narrowly edged Likud in elections earlier this month. Meanwhile, Livini has ruled out joining Netanyahu’s coalition over his opposition to peace talks with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank.

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni: “Sixty-five members of parliament decided to say to the Israeli president that they prefer Bibi Netanyahu as their prime minister. So this is a coalition that I cannot be part of, since I know that I believe in a peace process. I believe that any peace process should be based on two states for two peoples.”

Although Livni disagrees with Netanyahu on holding peace talks, she’s promised to seek “maximum” Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank under any peace deal.

Kerry, Congress Members Tour Gaza

Meanwhile, three US lawmakers have visited the Gaza Strip in the most high-level American contact with the coastal strip in over eight years. On Thursday, Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, as well Congress members Keith Ellison of Minnesota and Brian Baird of Washington, toured Gaza on separate trips. The lawmakers refused to meet Hamas leaders but were shown some of the destruction from the three-week Israeli assault that ended last month. Kerry said US policy won’t change from insisting Hamas renounce violence, recognize Israel and respect previous agreements signed by the Palestinian Authority.

Sen. John Kerry: “None of us have any illusions that there is a place for terrorists at the table. People need to change their attitude. People need to change their approach. And we’re hopeful that this new opportunity will provide us with a chance to explore the possibilities of real peace.”

The US position has been criticized because it refuses to demand the same conditions on Israel. The Israeli government has refused to renounce violence, recognize previous agreements, and recognize a Palestinian state, which it continues to prevent through settlement construction in the West Bank and the ongoing siege of Gaza. After their tour, Congress members Ellison and Baird expressed sympathy for Palestinians in Gaza. In a statement, Baird called the human suffering in Gaza “shocking and troubling beyond words.” Ellison said, “People, innocent children, women and non-combatants, are going without water, food and sanitation, while the things they so desperately need are sitting in trucks at the border, being denied permission to go in.”

Aid Convoy Heads to Gaza from Europe

A 100-vehicle, mile-long aid convoy is making its way through Europe with a stated final destination of the Gaza Strip. The group “Viva Palestina” set off from London on Saturday. Organizers plan to gather more participants as the convoy passes through France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, where they hope to cross the Rafah border into Gaza. The vehicles include a fire engine and ambulances. They’re carrying goods including clothes, blankets and children’s toys.

Report: Covert Israeli Program Targets Iran Nuclear Officials

The Telegraph of London has revealed new details on covert Israeli operations inside Iran. Intelligence sources say Israel has established a “decapitation” program to assassinate Iranian officials involved in nuclear activities. Israel has been linked to the deaths of several figures in Iran’s nuclear program, including a scientist who died under mysterious circumstances in 2007.

Texas Financier Served with Fraud Papers

Here in the United States, federal agents have served civil papers to the Texas billionaire Robert Allen Stanford in the case accusing him of an $8 billion fraud. The Securities and Exchange Commission says Robert Allen Stanford used his Antigua-based bank to defraud investors by selling them phony certificates of deposit. Stanford wasn’t taken into custody, because he hasn’t been charged criminally. Like the Bernie Madoff fraud scandal, Stanford’s case has again raised questions about the SEC’s ability to regulate the securities industry. Critics say the SEC missed a series of warnings about Stanford, as they did with Madoff.

California Senate Passes Education Cuts, Tax Hike

In California, the state Senate has approved a contentious $42 billion budget bill. The measure cuts $15 billion in education spending and imposes a $12 billion tax hike.

NYU Student Protest Grows Despite Expulsion Threats

Here in New York, a group of several dozen students continue to occupy a school cafeteria at New York University. The group Take Back NYU has submitted demands including the establishment of a socially responsible investment committee, a union for graduate student teachers, a tuition freeze, a full disclosure of the school’s annual budget, and support for Palestinian students in the Gaza Strip. The students say they’ll continue their occupation despite threats of expulsion. Overnight, hundreds of supporters gathered in the streets outside the cafeteria to cheer the protest. A group of new protesters reportedly joined the sit-in after breaking through a police barricade.

Post Offers Limited Apology as Cartoon Protests Continue

Meanwhile, protests are continuing today outside the offices of the New York Post following the publication of a cartoon that critics say depicts President Obama as a chimpanzee. Amidst boycott calls from a number of civil rights activists and organizations, the Post issued an apology of sorts last night. It said in part, “To those who were offended by the image, we apologize. However, there are some in the media and in public life who have had differences with The Post in the past–and they see the incident as an opportunity for payback. To them, no apology is due.”

Peace Activist Peter DeMott Dies at 62

And the longtime peace activist Peter DeMott has died at the age of sixty-two. Shortly before the US invasion of Iraq, DeMott and three other peace activists poured their own blood on the posters, flags and walls of a military recruiting station outside of Ithaca, New York. The activists became known as the St. Patrick’s Day Four. Demott served four months in federal prison for the action.

He became a peace activist after fighting with the Marines in Vietnam.

Peter DeMott: “I arrived in Vietnam on 8th of December of 1968 and was there, for about two more weeks–I left on the 30th of November of ’69, so there for about one week shy of a year. And so, I participated in that war, and I know firsthand that war only begets more war, that war is organized mass murder and that it doesn’t really solve anything. It just makes the likelihood of enduring peace coming about all the more difficult. And then, so I–in the buildup to the war in Iraq, you know, my personal experience of having been in the Vietnam was very motivational for me in that it inspired me and kind of morally compelled me to speak out in a nonviolent way to say, ‘No, this war must not happen, and I’m willing to put my body in the way of the war and its actualization in any nonviolent way that I can.”

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Obama Chief of Staff Emanuel Key in Passage of NAFTA

Posted on November 8, 2008 by | 1 Comment

110808-rahm_emanuel.jpg

Obama’s first appointment–Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel–has been widely reported in the corporate and progressive media. In most of the coverage, the focus has been on Rahm’s political style and the hard line antics that earned him the nickname “Rahmbo.”

In this vein, an Associated Press article that ran in The Grand Rapids Press on Friday–”Obama’s First Pick: ‘Rahmbo’“–is representative of much of the coverage. The article focuses almost exclusively on Emanuel’s personality and his political style. For example, it includes a story about how Emanuel once mailed a Democratic pollster a dead fish to express his disapproval. However, there was little exploration of his politics.

Emanuel is a centrist democrat who worked in the Clinton White House before leaving for the private sector (where he earned millions as an investment banker) and then joining Congress. He supported the congressional resolution that authorized the use of military force against Iraq, is a strong supporter of Israel, is aligned with the Democratic Leadership Council, and has what can best be described as a hawkish–or imperialist–view of US foreign policy.

But, it is Emanuel’s role in securing the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that seems most at odds with Obama’s campaign and the economic debate over NAFTA during the 2008 Democratic Party primary.

Emanuel and the Passage of NAFTA

The passage of NAFTA under President Bill Clinton was one of Clinton’s most controversial actions. It pitted environmentalists, organized labor, and activists against the Democratic Party’s corporate backers and ushered in a debate that still rages to this day. Many of these constituencies saw the passage of NAFTA as a betrayal and point to job losses, weakened environmental standards, and other problems as proof of their critique.

In facing down stiff opposition to the trade agreement from the Democratic Party’s base and grassroots groups, Clinton turned to Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel cut his teeth as a fundraiser during Clinton’s 1991 presidential campaign. Following the campaign, Emanuel become one of Clinton’s key operatives in the fight to pass NAFTA. Emanuel worked closely with the so-called “NAFTA czar”–William Daley, the son of late Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley (and a friend of Obama’s who was recently appointed to his transition team)–in mustering enough votes for the trade agreement. In The Selling of ‘Free Trade,’ Emanuel is remembered for his “aggressive” work on NAFTA and being a critical part of the administration’s NAFTA working group. Emanuel lobbied for votes, helped direct the media strategy (including one targeted leak to undercut news of an anti-NAFTA politician’s election in Canada), and participated in the administration’s campaign to get the agreement passed–over public opposition–no matter what the cost. An October 26,1993 article in The Hotline said that the White House’s NAFTA effort “came to life” under Emanuel, who served as its “operational director.”

Emaneul has reflected positively on the administration’s passage of NAFTA:

“You know, politics is about mending and tacking and so on, and setting your priorities. We were a very determined administration. We made a lot of compromises to get NAFTA passed and a lot of deals to get NAFTA passed.”

Emanuel’s Support for NAFTA and Obama’s Position: Not that Strange After All?

In his statement announcing Rahm Emanuel’s appointment, Obama makes no mention of Emanuel’s support of NAFTA–even when he highlights his work during the Clinton administration. Instead, Obama says:

“During his seven years in the Clinton White House, Rahm was the point man on some of the most difficult issues, from the passage of landmark anti-crime legislation to the expansion of health care coverage for children.”

Most press coverage of Emanuel’s appointment has mentioned that he played a key role in the passage of NAFTA, but none has explored how this may be at odds with Obama’s campaign.

During the primaries, Obama aggressively criticized NAFTA. However, following the end of the primary, Obama began to tone down his rhetoric and appeared to retreat on his NAFTA rhetoric. In an interview with Fortune magazine, Obama stated that much of the anti-NAFTA rhetoric was “overheated and amplified” and that he is a supporter of free trade and is looking for ways to make free trade agreements work for all.

Emanuel now has issued mild criticisms of NAFTA and has said that it would be negotiated differently now, but that the NAFTA issue is a distraction from larger problems with the economy. These mild criticisms are a lot like what Obama has said and are in many ways similar to Obama’s position: it isn’t the logic of free trade agreements and neoliberalism that is wrong, it’s how they are done. For his part, Rahm earlier this year urged the passage of several pending neoliberal trade agreements.

Rahm and NAFTA: Does it even Matter?

There is certainly a progressive case to be made against Rahm and a such critique certainly has merit. On issues from NAFTA to the Iraq War, Rahm’s position has been disappointing or at odds with what many progressives believe.

However, many progressives are defending Rahm as being necessary to navigate the difficult inter-workings of Washington politics. They argue that Rahm will not set policy priorities, but simply reflect Obama’s goals and direct his staff. Still, the Chief of Staff is responsible for determining the president’s schedule and controlling access to him–which gives Emanuel a key role in determining the voices Obama will hear.

At the same time, Emanuel is representative of some of the worst of Clinton’s politics and the rightward shift of the Democratic Party over the past two decades. Emanuel’s appointment–coupled with the appointment of a slew of former Clinton administration officials to Obama’s transition team–serve as important reminder that progressives need to be on their toes if they want to be represented in the Obama administration.

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Last NAFTA Tariffs Removed

Posted on January 2, 2008 by | Comments Off
10,000 years of corn

Yesterday, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) came into full effect with the cancellation of all remaining tariffs protecting Mexican agricultural products. NAFTA is responsible for the displacement of Mexican farmers, a growing disparity between the rich and poor in Mexico, and increased immigration to the United States. Moreover, in the United States, NAFTA has meant the loss of thousands of jobs for US workers.

Here in Grand Rapids, Red Hydrant Press is hosting an event exploring the history of corn in Mexico and the effects of NAFTA:

“10,000 Anos de Maiz / 10,000 Years of Corn

On January 1, 2008 one of the provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will lift all limitations on how much corn the US can export to Mexico. Since 1994, US corn has flooded the Mexican market and put thousands of small farmers out of business, often times forcing them off their lands. The genetically modified corn from the US also infects the more than 80 varieties of corn that are cultivated in Mexico.

Join us for an evening of art, poetry, music, video and information that both celebrates the cultural heritage of corn in Mexico and provides opportunities for anyone to take action in support of campesinos in Mexico.

6-9pm this Friday, January 4 at the Red Hydrant Press studio space – 314 Straight St. SW

For more directions and more information, contact Alynn Guerra at 808-0092

Sin Maiz, no hay Paiz!”

In Mexico, the first was marked by protests against NAFTA and a declaration against NAFTA:

“Declaration Against the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Migra

To All Communities in Resistance to Exploitation and Oppression.

To All Communities in Struggle for Indigenous Peoples’ Dignity and

Self-Determination.

To All Communities of the World.

We are the Frente Contra las Redadas del Condado de Ventura. We are a network of organizations, collectives and individuals that was formed in 2007, when Union del Barrio, one of the oldest Mexican Liberation organizations north of the U.S./Mexico border called for broad unity and organized resistance against the increased racist laws and Migra-terror against migrants.

Today, January 1st 2008 the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) enters its final stage of implementation. NAFTA, since its inception, was designed to help the rich U.S. Agriculture and Industrial Corporations take over the markets of Mexico and destroy the small farms and national industries. It has caused millions of displaced or unemployed Raza to move to the cities or migrate to what today is the United States and Canada.

According to America’s Policy Program analysts, “Every hour, Mexico imports $1.5 million dollars worth of agricultural and food products, almost all from the United States” While, “In that same hour, 30 people–men, women, and children–leave their homes in the Mexican countryside to take up the most dangerous journey of their lives–as migrants to the United States.” (America’s Policy Program Congressional Briefing, “Standing Up to NAFTA”)

For the rich this is good news, but for us, the working poor, it signals more poverty, more repression, and more death. This is why we resist. We resist the oppression and exploitation of our work, our lands, our community, and of our dignity.

Every year over 400 people die crossing the U.S./Mexico border, a border that each day is more militarized. Every day this Wall of Death stretches onward, inch by inch, and everyday more Migra agents are added to the ranks, signed ujp to terrorize and chase down workers like hunted animals. Every day, some racist politician or their lackey, conjures up new legal ways to implement their laws of oppression against migrants, against the workers that come across the Wall of Death.

The Migra has unleashed a wave of repression against migrants, against workers, men, women and children with laws and plans like Operation Gatekeeper, a plan that forces migrants to cross the border through the deserts to die. At the same time, another vicious plan to repress us is Operation Endgame, a plan that aims to deport 12 million undocumented workers out of the United States by the year 2012.

The cycle of fear and death continues and now the very same campesinos that are forced off our lands in Oaxaca, Guerrero, Chiapas, and other areas of Mexico, are here in the barrios of the United States, waking up at 4 a.m. everyday, to go pick the same crops that are shipped off around the world, making those at the top richer, while we at the bottom get poorer.

Just as our brothers and sisters, the Zapatistas, descended down from the Chiapas Lacandon Jungle on the eve of 1994 when the first phase of NAFTA was implemented, we today, fourteen years later, on this eve of 2008, in one of the oldest Mexican barrios in California, el Barrio de La Colonia, declare Ya Basta! Enough is Enough! We call on all those that stand on the side of humanity to join us and fight for justice and dignity.

We will organize for the next four months in preparation for our March for Dignity that will take place on International Workers’ Day, May 1, 2008 in Colonia Park, here in the city of Oxnard. Meet us here, march with us. If you cannot come, organize a March for Dignity in your community, wherever you are.

But as we march, we must understand that we cannot just march for one day or believe that politicians will solve our problems. We must organize ourselves. As our Zapatista sisters and brothers said in the First Declaration of the Lacandon Jungle, we must organize and struggle for work, land, housing, food, health care, education, independence, freedom, democracy, justice and peace.

We are in the same struggle as our Chiapaneco brothers and sisters, because we are, as we said loud and clear in the Mega-Marchas of 2006 against the racist law HR-4437, One People Without Borders!

Stop NAFTA! Stop Migra-Terror!

El Pueblo Unido! Jamas Sera Vencido!

Frente Contra Las Redadas del Condado del Ventura

January 1, 2008

Chumash Peoples’ Territory”

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