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News from the movements

The peasant women of La Via Campesina in Africa are saying NO to the WTO and the FTAs
Global resistance to free trade intensifies: International day of action against the WTO and free trade agreements
A new framework for trade based on food sovereignty
The current international trade order was established to support the expansion of transnational companies and to keep colonial powers in control of the world’s natural resources.
Farmers, food and freedom
How trade deals are undermining the right to seeds.
Day of action against the WTO and FTAs: Statement of organizations in Canada and the US
Organizations of La Via Campesina in Canada and the United State recommit ourselves to the struggle for food sovereignty here in North America and globally, in solidarity with our movement allies.
Serbia’s lithium gamble: Reviving Rio Tinto’s mine amidst protests and economic promises
In 2021, Rio Tinto filed a notice of dispute related to the government announcement to cancel the Lithium project in the Jadar Valley under the UK-Serbia bilateral investment agreement.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA): for whose benefit?
This webinar, scheduled on Thursday 12 September 2024, aims is to collectively reflect on what does this trade deal mean for ordinary Africans in a time of deep climate, economic and food crises.
A portrait of transnational power in Mexico: the investment protection system and its consequences
This report looks at Mexico’s investment protection regime and outlines its main consequences for the country.
NFUniversity: Colonial roots of modern free trade agreements
This talk explored the colonial origins of modern international trade. Geopolitics, power relations, and corporate interests have shaped trade rules for over 500 years before it reached its current form.
An EU trade policy fit for the future
It is time to move on from a worn-out, broken model of trade policy and create a new approach to trade that is fit for the future.
International day of action against the WTO and free trade agreements: Call to action!
The 10th of September is recognized by La Via Campesina and its allies worldwide as the International Day of Action Against the World Trade Organization and Free Trade Agreements.
bilaterals.org podcast: Special economic zones & the African Continental Free Trade Area
This podcast examines the controversial link between Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and the African Continental Free Trade Area, which promotes the use of SEZs to further liberalise the economy, with potentially dramatic consequences for the people of Africa.
APEP should be used to eliminate ISDS, say members of Congress, US and Latin American civil society
Members of Congress, grassroots activists, and civil society organizations from the US and Latin America urged the United States to use the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity (APEP) to undo the damage of decades of corporate-dominated trade policy.
Stop burdening people at the end of the term, Mr. President!
A total of 37 organizations and 29 people conveyed their urge to President Joko Widodo via open letter to stop negotiations between Indonesia - European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA). This demand was conveyed after Indonesia completed the 19th round of negotiations on 1-5 July 2024 behind closed doors.
TC Energy loses $15-billion NAFTA lawsuit against US
The welcome decision shines a light on Canada’s flawed defence in similar investor-state case against Canada.
Dismissal of $15 billion NAFTA legacy case on Keystone XL pipeline is welcome, but billions in egregious claims still remain
The World Bank has dismissed Canadian oil company TC Energy’s $15 billion ISDS case against the US sought due to lack of jurisdiction.
Australian legal experts call for swift removal of ISDS
62 Australian lawyers and legal scholars have issued an open letter urging the Australian government to swiftly implement its policy of excluding Investor-State Dispute Settlement provisions from current and future trade and investment agreements.
I-EU CEPA negotiations hijack democratic rights and ignore potentional impacts on society
Indonesia for Global Justice (IGJ) and the Indonesia AIDS Coalition (IAC) criticized the I-EU CEPA, which hijacked the people’s rights to democracy while ignoring the negotiations’ wider impact. The I-EU CEPA negotiations lacked transparency, ignored public aspirations, and did not allow for meaningful participation from civil society groups.
Next steps on the USMCA corn case: What the panelists should ask
This week the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) dispute over Mexico’s restrictions on genetically modified (GM) corn and glyphosate enters a new phase.
NAFTA at 30: The mother of all free trade agreements
As the first free trade agreement in contemporary history, the North American Free Trade Agreement, turns 30, it’s a good time to ask why this particular treaty played such a watershed role in the history of the global regime of trade and investment.
The corporate colonization of Latin America
How Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) harms indigenous communities.