Minnesota leaders respond to meeting between Obama and Colombia President Uribe on U.S.-Colombia trade deal

Say "No deals until human rights are restored in Colombia."
President Obama met Monday, June 29, with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to discuss U.S. foreign policy with Colombia including the Colombia Free Trade Agreement and Plan Colombia. In light of this meeting, community leaders in Minnesota gathered on the same day, at Bethany Lutheran Church on Franklin Avenue, demanding that President Obama not push forth a U.S.-Colombia trade agreement until human rights are restored and the Colombian government permanently cuts ties with paramilitary death squads. In attendance were representatives from the Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition, Witness for Peace Upper Midwest, Colombian Action Network, Workers Interfaith Network, Resource Center of the Americas and others.

Gerardo Cajamarca, member of the Colombian labor union SINALTRAINAL Inter-national Mission, gave testimony of the links between the Colombia Free Trade Agree-ment and the corruption and violence perpetrated with the support of the Colombian government. “This isn’t just about labor union assassinations, which is terrible. It’s about a plan to be able to impose a free trade agreement that goes hand in hand with the paramilitary and violence.”

The Colombia Free Trade Agreement is considered the most controversial of three pending trade deals negotiated by the Bush Administration because of the extraordinarily high rate of human rights abuses and labor union assassinations. The bill is opposed by many members of Congress including Minnesota Rep-resentatives Betty McCollum, Tim Walz, Keith Ellison, Jim Oberstar, and Collin Peterson. President Obama also opposed the bill during his presidential campaign.

Minnesota leaders respond to meeting between Obama and Colombia President Uribe on U.S.-Colombia Trade Deal