Eyes on Trade

Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch blog on globalization and trade

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Global Trade Watch

January 20 - Press Release: Public Citizen Applauds Obama Administration's Appeal of Trade Ruling Against U.S. Dolphin Protection Measures
January 06 -Press Release: Public Citizen Applauds Obama Administration's Continued Efforts to Reduce Teen Smoking
January 04 - Listen to Lori Wallach talk about the WTO rulings' attack on consumer policies on The Kojo Nnamdi Show
December 22 - Read the Teamsters, Sierra Club and Public Citizen's legal brief on the NAFTA Cross-border Trucking Case

2011 WTO Financial Deregulation

Check out the discussion: The future of trade in financial services: Safeguarding stability at the 2011 WTO Public Forum.

Official Summary

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Public Citizen | Investment Rules and Human Rights - Investment Rules and Human Rights

Investment Rules and Human Rights

The MAI also would apply the principle of "Most Favored Nation" (MFN) treatment to investment rules, requiring equal treatment among all foreign investor and target countries. This would prevent governments from distinguishing between foreign investors or foreign investment targets based on countries' human rights, labor or other criteria.

It has been said that if the MAI had been law in the 1980s, Nelson Mandela would still be in jail. This is the case because the MAI would require revocation of investment boycotts or restrictions except those defensible under a narrow "essential security" exception. A paper now being prepared at the Harvard Law School describes in detail how the MAI would contradict many existing human rights treaties and ravage the enforceability of those rights.

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