horrible - investment treaties like FIPPA/FIPA, NAFTA, TPP, and SPP give foreign corporations, aka “investor-states”, the rights to by-pass their own governments and directly sue the government of another country if they believe their “right to profit” has been affected by a law or practice in that country... heres some examples: SD Myers, an America company specializing in the disposal of hazardous waste, including PCBs, was awarded over $8 million from the Canadian government for loss of profit after Canada banned the trade of PCBs to protect its water. Currently, Lone Pine Resources, an American energy company, is suing the government of Canada for $250,000 because in 2011, the province of Quebec passed a moratorium on shale gas fracking in order to protect its water reserves. The Newfoundland government argued that the water belonged to the province and was only allocated to the company as long as it operated a mill there. Abitibi Bowater sued the Canadian government under Chapter 11 of NAFTA, and the Harper government settled without going to a NAFTA tribunal, giving the company $130 million in compensation. An April 2013 report by the South-North Development Monitor on the rise of international investment disputes found that there were 62 new cases of corporations challenging governments for compensation in 2012, the highest number of known treaty-based cases ever filed in one year. This brings the overall number of known cases to 518. Since most arbitration forums do not maintain a public registry of claims, the total number is likely much higher. In their 2012 report Profiting from Injustice, Corporate Europe Observatory and the Transnational Institute say that the silent rise of a powerful international investment regime has ensnared hundreds of countries and put corporate profits before human rights and the environment. This “investment arbitration boom” is costing taxpayers billions of dollars and preventing legislation in the public interest ~ Statements by Maude Barlow, National Chairperson of the Council of Canadians watershedsentinel.ca/content/trading-away-our-water-rights
Posted on: Mon, 14 Apr 2014 20:04:33 +0000
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