Workers Unite for Democracy Against Corporate Courts
New on Huffington Post: ISDS is a threat to all of us. Why? Well, read this:
"Why is the AFL-CIO standing in strong solidarity with the workers of Uruguay in that country's fight to protect its democracy against policy intervention by foreign corporations? We believe that the people, through their elected officials, should be the ones to determine which policies are best for their health, their environment and the general welfare.
Unfortunately, a major foreign multinational corporation is using the investor-to-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provision of the Switzerland-Uruguay Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) to challenge such democratic decision making in Uruguay. Specifically, the suit is challenging Uruguay's plain packaging law.
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Just how much of a threat to democracy is ISDS?
Forbes magazine says, "that's actually the point and purpose of the agreement, to protect investments from whatever nonsenses might cross the synapses of the body politic."
The libertarian Cato Institute calls it "a subsidy that mitigates risk for U.S. multinational corporations."
And a leading American lawyer, once named "Dealmaker of the Year," has tried to raise the alarm about the danger of investment treaties like the Switzerland-Uruguay BIT at issue here, calling them "weapons of legal destruction.""
Let's be clear: global corporations are not being pushed around by governments. Quite the contrary. They are trying to control our economies. We do not need to given them more power through our trade agreements like TPP, TTIP, and TISA. Please speak up during this election season and let your preferred candidate know that you want him or her to OPPOSE ISDS.
Where can you read more about this? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/celeste-drake/aflcio-uruguayan-workers-_b_5775474.html?utm_hp_ref=politics&ir=Politics