So much for labor protections

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 02:07:08 -0400

Every time I hear one of our Congressional leaders talk about improved labor standards on these NAFTA-style trade deals, something like this reminds me we are far from that...

MORALES, Guatemala, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Masked gunmen dumped a

Guatemalan banana picker's bullet-ridden corpse yards from fields of
fruit bound for the United States, a grim reminder of the risks of
organizing labor in the Central American country.

Marco Tulio Ramirez, killed last month, was the fifth Guatemalan
labor leader murdered this year.

Activists say the deaths show promises to protect labor rights under
a U.S. trade pact have changed little at a time President George W.
Bush is pressing for similar deals in other Latin American nations
with bad labor records.

The Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA, was approved by
the U.S. Congress in 2005 after a tough battle with Democrats who
argued that worker safeguards in the agreement were too weak.

CAFTA breaks down tariff barriers between Central American countries
and the United States. It has increased Guatemala's export revenues
and improved the investment climate in the country, the government says.

Guatemala, which began implementing the pact last year, was notorious
for labor abuses during its 36-year long civil war and rights are
still weak.

Opponents of CAFTA both in the United States and Central America
complained that Washington should not encourage trade with countries
like Guatemala without tougher rules to protect workers.

The U.S. Trade Representative gave $40 million to spend in Guatemala
on strengthening the labor ministry, resolving industrial disputes
and monitoring work-related abuses. But little has changed.

"Organizing a union in Guatemala is life-threatening," said Noe
Ramirez, Marco Tulio's brother and the head of the banana workers'
union SITRABI.

"We know the Central American Free Trade Agreement has a chapter on
labor protections, but it is not followed," he said, at the union's
office in the town of Morales.

CAFTA

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 20:29:47 -0400

A nationwide referendum was held earlier this week on whether Costa Rica would join CAFTA. It passed by a narrow 52-48 margin despite polls showing it would fail 60-40. Not surprisingly, there has been accusations of fraud. Millions were spent in the campaign, almost all of the money in favor of the measure, yet days before the election 150,000 people marched in San Jose against CAFTA.

Here is what one of my Costa Rican frineds said about the people fighting the corporations over CAFTA:

Well we are sad, is too bad as you said, is really hard to accept.

In the South we won (against CAFTA) a the moviment was beatiful there was many peolpe working just for love, just because we belive that a diferent country is posible.

A week ago I had the oportunity of going to San Jose and be part of a masive meeting in the Paseo Colon about 150 000 went there to say NO, it was beatiful, it was a party, was the essence of democracy, all

America in Solidarity - CAFTA

So much for labor protections

CAFTA