Mr. Speaker, thousands of Canadians have joined the call to stop the Canada-Colombia trade deal. The petitioners call on Parliament to reject the Canada-Colombia trade deal until an independent human rights impact assessment is carried out, the resulting concerns addressed, and the agreement be renegotiated along the principles of fair trade which would take environmental and social impacts fully into account while generally respecting and enhancing labour and rights of all affected parties.
A review of the text of the Canada-Colombia trade deal confirms that the type of labour and the environmental protection clauses being sought do not provide meaningful effective protection and lack enforcement mechanisms. The labour protection clauses in the trade deal include as a penalty for lethal violence against workers a token fine to be paid by the offending government into a cooperation fund which makes a mockery of human rights. The offending government also benefits from the fund which does nothing to address impunity and allows the continuation of violence.
It is time for Parliament to stop this free trade deal.