For Immediate Release
May 14, 2008

Contact: Arthur Stamoulis, 503-736-9777

Presidential Candidates Get Specific on Trade
Senators Clinton and Obama Detail Their Views for the Oregon Fair Trade Campaign

PORTLAND, OR -- Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama detailed their views on trade policy in questionnaire responses released today by the Oregon Fair Trade Campaign. According to their responses, both believe that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has done more to hurt than to help the U.S. economy, and that United States needs to change the way it conducts international trade. The Democratic candidates both voiced support for renegotiating NAFTA and expressed opinions on the different provisions of existing trade pacts.

Hoffa Says U.S. Should Not Deal With Government Linked to Death Squads

WASHINGTON, April 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa applauded the National Conference of State Legislatures for rejecting a resolution of support for the Colombia FTA.

The NCSL, in Washington for its Spring Forum, on Friday voted down a resolution in support of the Colombia FTA.

"I don't see how state leaders could support a deal with a government linked to right-wing death squads," Hoffa said. "One out of every 10 of Colombia's 268 federal lawmakers is in jail. One out of every 10, including the Senate's president, is being investigated. Many of those are from President Alvaro Uribe's own party."

Just three days ago, President Uribe's family member and political ally was arrested for supporting paramilitaries that kill trade unionists.

by Raul Fernandez and Daniel Whitesell

Something peculiar happens in United States political and media circles when the discussion is about “free trade” with Colombia.

Take for instance the topic of labor conditions. We have grown accustomed to serious and needed condemnations against child labor, sweatshop conditions, etc, when discussing trade issues with China, Thailand and other countries. This is as it should be.

By Peter Cohn. Thu. Apr. 24, 2008. Congress Daily AM.

The AFL-CIO Wednesday filed the first legal complaint with the Labor Department over the treatment of workers in Guatemala, alleging violations of the labor chapter of the Central America Free Trade Agreement, which Congress passed in 2005.

Miami Herald, Fri, Apr. 18, 2008. By PABLO BACHELET

An irate Colombian Vice President Francisco Santos set aside diplomatic niceties and lashed out Friday at opponents of a U.S. free trade pact with Colombia, accusing them of distorting the country's record on violence.

CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS. April 18, 2008 – 2:05 p.m. By Timothy R. Homan

Colombia’s top officials have received no assurances that the pending free-trade agreement will come up for a vote this year, following last week’s House vote to suspend action on the pact’s implementing legislation.

Inside US Trade - April 15, 2008

Union presidents from the AFL-CIO and the Change to Win coalitions late last week urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) not to have a vote on the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement this year, even if the Bush administration offered to cooperate on other Democratic legislative priorities, according to sources familiar with the meeting.

blog.aflcio.org, by James Parks, Apr 15, 2008

The union movement, members of Congress and human rights leaders vowed today to keep the pressure on the Colombian government to get serious about ending the violence against trade unionists and prosecuting paramilitary death squads. Until that happens, they say they will continue to fight to defeat the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).  

By a 224–195 vote April 10, the House removed the 90-day deadline under Fast Track trade-promotion authority for an up-or-down vote on the Colombia FTA. The vote will delay consideration of the deal indefinitely, probably until after Bush leaves office in January. In fact, Bush told reporters Monday that the deal is dead unless House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) schedules a vote.

Washington Post, by John Sweeney. Monday, April 14, 2008; A15

Last Sept. 27, 16-year-old Andres Damian Florez Rodriguez was on his way home from school when he was forced into a van by three armed men. Andres is the son of Jose Domingo Florez, a leader of the Coca-Cola bottling union in Santander. The assailants drove along, beating the boy while they received radio instructions. Then they gave him a message to convey: "Tell your papa that we won't rest until we see [the union leaders] quartered in pieces."

On March 22, Adolfo Gonzalez Montes, a member of the Barrancas local Union of Coal Miners, was found dead in his home, tortured and shot, after his union received death threats during a union conflict.

On March 9, Carlos Burbano, vice president of the National Hospital Workers' Union in Colombia, was murdered in San Vicente del Caguán after leading a local peace march. His corpse was found in the city dump, his face disfigured with acid. He was one of four Colombian trade unionists killed in a single week. Their deaths were not random crimes in a dangerous country. Rather, the Colombian government has falsely denounced union activists as guerrilla sympathizers, opening the door for paramilitary groups' death threats.

And these assassinations are not anomalies. Seventeen unionists have been murdered since Jan. 1 -- up 70 percent over last year at this time -- according to the National Labor School, a respected nongovernmental organization.

Against this backdrop, President Bush has sent the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement to Congress for ratification, over the opposition of the Democratic congressional leadership. What, then, is the fundamental test of globalization? Is it corporate profits alone?

Cauca, Colombia
April 11, 2008

“Three years later, like us, you said no to the Colombia-US FTA”

Dear Representative Pelosi and Congress of the United States of America:

First, we would like to express our joy and gratitude for the decision made yesterday, April 10, 2008, in the United States Congress. With 294 votes in favor and 195 against, the House of Representatives, over which you preside, decided to indefinitely freeze the FTA between Colombia and the US. We know that this is but one step on a long path, but the result is profoundly meaningful for our peoples, and it opens a window through which we can breathe with strength and rejuvenated spirits. With this letter, beyond expressing our recognition and appreciation as peoples, we seek to open a space for communication between us, because we feel that we deserve the right to be heard and respected. It is long overdue that Democratic Party members of Congress under your leadership should become aware of our democratic decision and analyses, all of which are rooted in dignity and respect for life.