[Announce-DAN] Resist the Latest Corporate Offensive

["david martin" <p_hayze@hotmail.com>]

Some "alarming facts" from the CEOs of Americas largest corporations (read 
the press release from the Business Roundtable below).

That's right, US corporate leaders have launched a political campaign to 
regain the momentum of "free trade" agreements. The direct action in Seattle 
that shut down the WTO meeting and instigated the collapse of a new "round" 
of global trade negotiations put these leaders on notice that resistance is 
a growing to their trade agenda.

Now, they are taking the offensive and will have the strong support of the 
new Bush Administration. Because of the collapse of global level 
negotiations, these leaders are focusing on expanding NAFTA to include every 
country in this hemisphere (except Cuba, known as the Free Trade Area of the 
Americas (FTAA).

To succeed in these negotiations, Bush will need to have "Fast Track" 
authority from Congress. Such authority allows the President to negotiate a 
trade treaty in secret and once signed Congress has only 60 days to vote up 
or down on it with no amendments. The basic purpose of "fast track" is to 
minimize democratic input on trade negotiations and leave such matters to 
the exclusive realm of corporate lobbyists.

At the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City April 20-22, these corporate 
leaders hope that Bush will demonstrate "leadership" and reach agreement to 
expand NAFTA to include the rest of this hemisphere under the FTAA. We must 
accept this challenge and demonstrate our resistance to a corporate 
dictatorship.


Press Release:

The Business Roundtable Unveils Paper Stressing Need for U.S. Leadership in 
New Era of International Trade
Contact: John Schachter
(202) 872-1260
Release Date: 02/09/2001

Chief Executives Urge U.S. Aggressiveness in Negotiating Trade Agreements

Of the estimated 130 free trade agreements (FTAs) in force around the world 
today only 2 include the United States.

Only 11 percent of world exports are covered by U.S. FTAs, compared with 33 
percent for European Union FTAs and customs agreements.

While Western European nations have negotiated 909 bilateral investment 
treaties, the United States is party to 43.

These are just a few of the alarming trade facts from The Business 
Roundtable’s new paper – The Case for U.S. Trade Leadership: The United 
States is Falling Behind – which calls attention to the new era in trade 
negotiations (read FTAA), an era of greatly expanded activism on trade on 
the part of our trading partners. (To read it check out: www.brt.org)

"The numbers and facts are clear: the rest of the world is more engaged than 
we are in shaping the future of global trade," said Philip M. Condit, 
chairman of BRT’s International Trade and Investment Task Force and chairman 
and CEO of The Boeing Company. "It’s time to reinvigorate our trade efforts 
and push forward aggressively. We cannot afford to be left behind as other 
nations negotiate and reap the benefits of one trade agreement after 
another, gaining access to markets that should be benefiting American 
workers, farmers, consumers and companies (read US corporate profits). It’s 
time for the United States to get back into the game."

The BRT has long played a key role in trade issues for years and led last 
year’s effort by the business community to secure Permanent Normal Trade 
Relations with China. The new BRT paper on trade leadership notes that the 
first step for getting the United States "back into the game" is to build a 
national consensus that can form the basis of an agreed mandate from the 
Congress for the Executive Branch to move forward on breaking down trade 
(read "Fast Track" authority) and investment barriers through negotiations 
(read FTAA to protect investor's rights not workers rights).

# # # #

a20: Quebec, April 20 2001 -  Get ready for the next International Day
of Action!  http://www.a20.org
----------------------------------------
April 18-22 The global corporate elite are headed to Quebec to discuss
the FTAA, the Free Trade Area of the Americas: "think NAFTA on
steroids." This trade pact extends the impact of NAFTA to the rest of
Central and South America, in a hemispheric "race to the bottom."
Working families, students, farmers, environmentalists, people of faith,
animal rights activists and many others are mobilizing around the world
to fight this encroachment of corporate control. http://www.a20.org

Info on the FTAA:

Ten Reasons to Oppose the FTAA -
http://www.globalexchange.org/ftaa/topten.html
The FTAA and AIDS - http://www.a20.org/feature.cfm?ID=45
FTAA Factsheet - http://www.tradewatch.org/FTAA/factsheet.htm

Citing the case of US-based waste disposal company Metalclad, which used
NAFTA to sue a small Mexican town for prohibiting construction of a
toxic waste processing plant, the city of Vancouver has unanimously
passed a resolution requesting the Canadian government not sign the
FTAA. http://www.canadianliberty.bc.ca

The northern border:

The Vermont Mobilization for Global Justice plans to coordinate crucial
support on the Vermont side of the US-Canadian border for the FTAA
mobilization. The coalition includes the Native Forest Network (NFN),
Action for Community and Ecology in the Regions of Central America
(ACERCA), the Vermont Action Network (VAN), UVM Student Political
Awareness and Responsibility Coalition (SPARC), American Friends Service
Committee - Vermont (AFSC), and others.
Info: Robert Dorman redorman@theofficenet.com

Community activists in Kingston ON are inviting all FTAA opponents to
take part in a border action caravan to "fight against international
capital every inch of the way." Contact Smash FTAA
http://www.tao.ca/~kdawg/smashftaa.html , ON/NY regional listserve: send
an email with "Smash FTAA' in the subject line to msilburn@kingston.net

The southern border:

The Mexico-US Mass Mobilization to Liberate the Border is planning an
April 21 multinational day of protest in the San Diego/Tijuana region in
support of worker's rights, immigrant rights, indigenous rights and the
environment. 626-403-2530 borderactions@aol.com  List Serve: send e-mail
to border01-subscribe@yahoogroups.com http://www.actionla.org/border.htm

How to get involved?

o Schedule a roadshow stop in your town! (see below)
o Have a benefit show  http://www.davidrovics.com,
http://www.roberthoyt.com
o Show a Seattle Video  http://www.thisisdemocracy.org
o Blockade a Citibank  http://www.ran.org/

See http://www.a20.org and http://www.stopftaa.org for local organizing
contacts

On the road:
----------------------------------------
In February and March 2001 the Turning Point Road Show will be touring
the American southeast (FL, GA, SC, NC, VI, KT, AL, MS, TN). Focusing on
corporate globalization as well as the secret negotiations currently to
construct the FTAA. Info, or to schedule a stop in your town:
solilawrence@yahoo.com

From February 12 to March 3, starting from the New England states and
continuing south to the Washington DC area, CASA and CLAC are organizing
teach-ins and events in an Anti-FTAA Tour and Caravan to the Northeast
U$A. Host a stop in your area: clac@tao.ca or
514-526-8946.

Call To Action (CtA) Spring 2001 tour - Skills and issues workshops
focusing on the FTAA and its poster-child: Citigroup. If your group is
interested in tackling the prison industrial complex, third world debt,
forest destruction and predatory lending as well as expanding your
organizing skills, then bring us to your town. Contact:
campaigns@calltoaction.org 503-804-9378  http://www.calltoaction.org

Through March and April, ending in Quebec City April 15-21, Rights
Action will be traveling with community human rights and development
activists from Honduras, Guatemala and Chiapas through the US and
Canada, speaking in public educational forums. Info, or to schedule a
stop: Rights Action, formerly Guatemala Partners, Grahame Russell
416-654-2074 info@rightsaction.org http://www.rightsaction.org


News you may have missed
----------------------------------------
In a moving victory, the Charas Community Center in New York City won
its court battle against eviction as the steady gentrification pressures
continue. The jury decided unanimously that the developer did not plan
to comply with the community use restriction. Supporters packed the
courtroom throughout the high profile trial.

Ecuadoran indigenous, labor and other organizations have launched a
massive campaign to reject the IMF-imposed adjustment program in that
country, encountering repression and mass arrests. Two people have died
in confrontations with the police. About 4,000 Indians occupied the
university in Quito for more than a week. The coalition has won many of
their demands, including lower fuel prices and cheaper public transport
fares, after threatening a national strike for February 7. Info: Soren
Ambrose 202-544-9355 soren@igc.org  http://www.indymedia.org/

On Thanksgiving day, Washington DC housing activists with a homeless
family occupied a house in Northeast Washington DC to fix it up and make
it permanent housing for the family. Two months later, the family has
been provided housing, the activists are "invited guests" of the house
owner, and they're looking for more run-down buildings to rescue.
http://www.homesnotjails.org Realaudio interview:
http://dc.indymedia.org/display.php3?article_id=4348
http://dc.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=5475

Northern California / Situation Critical - In an inconceivable mission
to defend 3,000 acres of magnificent old-growth douglas fir, Mattole
Forest Defenders have conducted numerous lock downs and constructed
blockades on logging roads. Since November 28 Maxxam/Pacific Lumber (PL)
has been clearcutting what is the second largest intact stand of lowland
old-growth Douglas Fir in California  http://sf.indymedia.org/#mattole


More News and Events:
----------------------------------------
2/15 Woburn Massachusettes FTAA Planning Meeting cassiefw@aol.com
617-524-8996

2/18 Hartford Connecticut FTAA all day workshop, sponsered by the
Mexican Solidarity Network. Info: gianninik@hotmail.com 860-768-6380

3/1 Connecticut Shut Down Bradley International Airport in solidarity
with HERE 217 local union members and cafeteria workers.
joehill@riseup.net 860-246-2561

3/9-3/11 Kansas Global Justics Conference
http://www.kcactivism.org/calltoaction/

3/11-3/18 Florida RAN/Ruckus Alternative Spring Break
http://www.ruckus.org

3/13 Washington DC Commemorating the 13th anniversary of the massacre of
student activists in
Burma, there will be a rally at the Burmese embassy in Washington DC to
pressure the military regime to end all human rights abuses. 2300 S
Street NW 7pm. Info: Jeremy Woodrum 202-547-5985
jeremy@freeburmacoalition.org  Sign the on-line petition to ban the
Burmese regime's membership in the United Nations -
www.freeburmacoalition.org

International Calendar http://www.a20.org/calendar.cfm
International Contact List  http://www.a20.org/network.cfm

http://www.indymedia.org
http://www.directactionnetwork.org
http://www.earthfirstjournal.org
http://www.protest.net




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