Feb. 22 - Canadian cattlemen's NAFTA challenge over mad cow border closing shows trade model’s assault on consumer safeguards

The looming congressional fight over the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will be greatly affected by the growing list of NAFTA “investor-state” cases, now totaling billions in compensation demands, in which foreign investors are attacking regulatory and other government actions before closed, extra-judicial tribunals, Public Citizen said today.

In a new report, NAFTA Chapter 11 Investor-State Cases: Lessons for the Central America Free Trade Agreement, Public Citizen describes how Canadian cattle producers are using NAFTA to demand $300 million in compensation from U.S. taxpayer funds, claiming that the Canadian cattle import ban instituted after mad cow disease was found in Canada violates their NAFTA rights.

Passage of the proposed controversial CAFTA-NAFTA expansion would extend the investor-state tribunal system, which allows private enforcement of extraordinary investor privileges granted in international “trade” pacts, to corporations and investors operating in six additional nations.

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