Canadian And US Green Parties Blast Secretive NAFTA-Plus Trade-Security Deal

During one-day Counter Summit, Greens from the US and Canada will discuss the history, mechanics, and implications of the Security and Prosperity Partnership, and plan strategies for opposition WASHINGTON, DC/OTTAWA, ONT. -- Green Party leaders in Canada and the US are alerting their respective parties and the public about the 'Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America' (SPP), a secretive deal between President Bush (US), Prime Minister Harper (Canada), and President Calderón (Mexico). Green Party of Canada leader Elizabeth May stated, "The SPP is integrating the military, security, trade, economic, regulatory, and foreign polices of Canada, the US, and Mexico without public input or Parliamentary or Congressional scrutiny. The threat of widespread surveillance of citizens, greenhouse gas emissions from tar sands development and 'super-corridors,' increased fossil fuel dependence, privatization of water, erosion of food safety and environmental regulations, and expanded corporate power at the expense of economic stability for working people -- these are some of the reasons we oppose the SPP." North American Green Parties are calling for transnational opposition, beginning with a 'Counter Summit' teach-in and strategy session August 20 in Ottawa to coincide with a meeting of the leaders of Canada, the US, and Mexico at the third annual summit in Montebello in nearby Quebec. The Green Party of the United States has endorsed the Counter Summit and will send representatives. Greens will also participate in civil society opposition to the Montebello Summit, with two days of activites planned for August 19 and 20. Dr. Janet M. Eaton, International Trade Critic with the Green Party of Canada, who spoke about the SPP at the annual meeting of the Green Party of the United States in Reading, Pennsylvania, in July, said: "The SPP, also called 'NAFTA-Plus' within a 'security trumps all' framework, is the next big step in moving from a free trade agreement to a customs union and some suggest common market and eventually a union like the European Union." "But we should heed the words of the Secretary General of the European Greens, Juan Behrand, who said that the process for North American integration does not resemble the democratic and consultative European Union model." Eaton said that the so-called North American Partnership is fraught with profound implications for sovereignty and Constitutional and Charter rights. http://www.greenparty.ca/en/policy/documents/deeper_look_spp http://www.gp.org/press/pr_2007_08_15.shtml [Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on August 16, 2007]

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