PM asked to stop 'money for murder' trade talks with Colombia

Letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper by Canada's four major public sector unions

Ottawa (22 May 2008) - Canada’s four major public sector unions, representing more than one million workers, have condemned the continued killing of trade union activists in Colombia and called on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to halt free trade negotiations with the lawless South American regime.

“We are appalled to learn that trade union lives are being treated as tradable commodities in Canada’s on-going negotiations with the Colombian government,” say the national leaders of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) and the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC).

The four unions have a combined membership of 1.1 million members across Canada. The four labour leaders, Denis Lemelin of CUPW, Paul Moist of CUPE, James Clancy of NUPGE and John Gordon of PSAC, have sent a jointly-signed letter to Harper on the issue.

The four leaders also issued a joint statement after learning that a free trade agreement would allow the Colombian government to pay a token monetary amount into a ‘cooperation fund’ when a Colombian trade unionist is murdered.

Money for murder

“This is abhorrent on a tragic scale,” the leaders said. “That the Canadian government should continue to discuss trade with a country that would suggest such a buy-off of human life is unacceptable and further trade negotiations must be rejected if we are to continue calling ourselves a fair and humanitarian democracy.”

The leaders agreed with other critics who have stated that the idea of a country simply paying a fine for murder, as if it were paying a parking ticket, is not only non-negotiable but also an unforgivable violation of the moral principles of all democracies.

Colombia is one of the world’s worst human rights violators. It is also one of the most dangerous countries in the world for trade unionists, accounting for the killing of 78 trade unionists in 2006, 37 in 2007 and 25 as of the beginning of May this year.

The four union leaders condemned the Colombian government for its failure to address these killings. "We ask you to publicly denounce the Colombian government for not providing adequate protection for its citizens and for failing to bring the murderers to justice," their letter said.

They also joined the call for a public campaign to stop free trade negotiations with Colombia, made by the New Democratic Party (NDP) and the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). They have urged the Canadian government to stop free trade negotiations with Colombia until that country stops abusing human rights and stops allowing the murder of trade unionists and civil society leaders to continue unabated. NUPGE