Message from APD for Economic and Social Development, Sue Challoner
Fairtrade and the Trade and Justice Movement’s campaign on Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)
STOP EUROPE’S UNFAIR TRADE DEALS
Sue Challoner
Trade Justice Movement says:
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has stated that the UK's international trade policy must move to address world poverty. One of the current challenges for his Government is to address concerns with Europe’s unfair trade deals, called Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), with 76 poor African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.
The EU is keen to complete these deals by the end of 2007 and ACP countries are effectively being forced into a negotiating corner. However three regions in Africa have now requested more time to allow for fair deals to be negotiated.
The Trade Justice Movement is calling on the UK Government to use its full influence to stop unfair deals going ahead, to listen to the serious concerns of poor countries and work with those countries to develop new deals that will help deliver trade justice.
Fairtrade Foundation states:
We need to get Gordon Brown to take action before it’s too late.
EPAs in their current form will have a severely detrimental effect upon the livelihoods and futures in the very communities that are currently benefiting from Fairtrade. As one representative from East and Southern African churches stated, ‘EPA negotiations are a threat to the well-being of our people and our economic development’.
Please, as individual Soroptimists and in regions and clubs, can we take action by writing to the Government or signing the on line petition at www.tjm.org.uk, which will also give you more information on this subject. This will be short term as the closing date for the petition is February 2008.
Download sample letters for clubs and individuals to send
Visit the Trade Justice Movement page on this website for a link to the on-line petition