The Council of Canadians - Winnipeg Chapter

Chapter Activist Profile

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 02:45:00 +0000

Located at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, Manitoba’s capital city is steeped in a long tradition of radical politics – from the Red River Rebellion of the 1860s to the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919. Mary McCandless is the chapter chair of the Winnipeg Chapter, one of the many activist groups keeping Winnipeg’s radical tradition alive in the 21st century.

How did the Winnipeg Chapter get started?

In 2008, community concern started to grow around the municipal government’s plans to create a city-owned corporate utility and a public-private partnership with Veolia [a private multinational water company] to manage the city’s water and wastewater services. The Winnipeg Chapter, which had been inactive for some time, was rejuvenated for the fight and joined with many other groups in the defence of our public wastewater services. The chapter brought an enthusiastic new perspective to Winnipeg activism.

The campaign to keep Winnipeg’s water system public was the chapter’s major focus for a number of years. What did you learn from that campaign?

Focusing on a single, close-to-home issue helped to rebuild a strong core membership over time. Through co-operation with partner groups, we achieved some significant victories in the campaign. As new details of the deal were released and important aspects changed, we needed to remain flexible and try to react in a timely manner. Sometimes we missed the mark, but we always stayed focused and regrouped for the next action.

What campaigns or initiatives is the chapter currently involved in?

We’ve been very active in supporting the campaigns to save the Canadian Wheat Board and the Experimental Lakes Area, and also stood with Occupy Winnipeg and now Idle No More. After focusing much of our efforts over the last two years on stopping the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in Manitoba, we are now turning our attention to improved collaboration between local activist groups, water issues, and preparation for the 2014 municipal election.

The chapter has used creative actions to highlight issues. What are some of the creative things you’ve done, and why do you think it’s important in your activism?

During our CETA campaign, “CETA Clause” sent each MLA a Christmas letter accompanied by a gift-wrapped lump of coal to emphasize the potential effect of CETA on the local economy. For Valentine’s Day we delivered an enormous heart created from 300 of the 3,000 “Keep Manitoba out of CETA” postcards. Each MLA also received an individual heart with a message of love for Manitoba, and we made a video of the whole action. During Occupy Winnipeg, we set up a tent, pinned our banner to it, and held chapter meetings nearby as a way to publicly support Occupy and connect with a whole new group of dedicated activists.

Each time we engage creatively, we reach observers in a direct and memorable way. The security guards tasked with escorting us around the Legislature slipped easily from laughing about our giant Valentine’s heart to a conversation about CETA. Conservative-leaning friends and coworkers enjoyed the joke of our “downtown office” turning out to be an old tent at Occupy, and through that opening became more willing to learn more about the reasons for Occupy. It all leads to communication and co-operation between people who might not normally have had anything meaningful to say to each other.

Another area the Winnipeg Chapter has really excelled at is in using online and social media in its campaigns. What advice would you give to other chapters expanding their online activism?

We keep connected to our growing network of collaborators through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and our website. We also have begun to dabble with newer social media like Diaspora and Tumblr. We use our Facebook group for open discussion amongst members, even to the point of almost never deleting posts. The Facebook page is for chapter announcements. Whenever we release a blog, or launch an action, we send a mass message to our ever-growing email list, then post to the Facebook page and share it with the group, and then “like” and share on our own walls, while doing the same in Twitter. It’s an effective way to reach a large audience using our own networks.

Originally published in Canadian Perspectives Spring 2013

Report warns Manitobans about trade deal

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 19:40:00 +0000

More and more bad news on the CETA front - it's now confirmed that CETA would severely limit the way government spends tax dollars to build healthy local economies and provide public services that are truly public.

No other free trade deal has reached so far into the pockets of taxpayers, and imposed such limitations on government's ability to govern. With government purchases in Manitoba totaling $5 - $8 billion annually, there's an enormous amount of good that can be done when decision makers put that money into local economies. Gaining control (through the rules of free trade agreements and CETA in particular) over how that money is spent is an incredible boon to corporate and business interests.

"Under existing free trade agreements, public expenditure is one of the few remaining policy tools provincial and municipal governments can use to directly support regional economic development, increase productivity, promote environmental policies and support disadvantaged communities." ff

Foreign takeovers of our natural resources become much more likely - indeed inevitable - as investment restrictions are lifted in areas such as energy, agri-food, mining and natural resource extraction in particular.

"CETA could remove the ability of the provincial government to require that jobs and business opportunities are created for Manitobans as a condition for the depletion of the province’s non-renewable resources by foreign investors." ff

Because of the European demand for longer pharmaceutical patent protections, Manitobans will have to pay an additional $42 million in drug costs, and the Pharmacare program will bear the burden of an extra $38 million a year. Less expensive generic drugs will be shelved for several more years until patents run out on name brand - and expensive - drugs, so that pharmaceutical companies can increase already high profits.

When governments attempt to regulate water or air quality for the benefit of citizens, corporations can (and will, as has already happened under NAFTA Chapter 11) demand compensation for loss of profits due to new anti-pollution or green energy requirements.

"An American firm has recently launched a $250 million claim for compensation due to Quebec’s recent environmental moratorium on fracking for natural gas underneath the St. Lawrence River." ff

Public services, once turned over to a private corporation, may never become public again, even if the private business cannot provide a minimum level of service, hikes fees for essentials like water, or fails altogether. Here in Winnipeg, we are already under contract to Veolia, one of the largest water corporations in the world, known to have been found guilty of many labour and human rights violations. Once CETA is signed, there's a good chance we'll be stuck with them - and many more profit-first corporations without any interest in local economies, or local people.

"The recent leaks from the high stakes “end game” negotiations indicate that the capacity of governments in Canada to promote the interests of their citizens and communities is being traded away while Canadians are largely unaware of what is at stake." ff

Please contact your MLA and tell them that CETA would be a bad deal for Manitobans. For some easy ways to talk to your MLA please check out our blog posting from this time last year. Let's stop CETA here!

Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter 2012 Stop CETA Campaign

ff - CCPA Fast Facts: Canada - EU Trade Deal Bad for Manitoba
Full 42 page report: CETA: Constraining Manitoba's Economic Prospects and Policy Options

CETA - The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between the EU and Canada

Save the Experimental Lakes Area

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 00:20:00 +0000

The Experimental Lakes Area is a unique federal research program that studies the long-term impacts of global threats to freshwater lakes.

In mid-October, the CBC reported that three-quarters of Canadians, including 60 per cent of those who voted Conservative in the last election, oppose the cuts to the Experimental Lakes Area in northwestern Ontario (about 250 km east of Winnipeg and 50 km east of Kenora).

Council of Canadians National Chair Maude Barlow, university professor David Schindler and local-hero PhD candidate Diane Orihel made clear the reasons for this widespread, cross partisan opposition at an inspiring 'Save the Experimental Lakes Area' public forum at the end of November, here in Winnipeg at the Fort Garry Hotel.

Maude Barlow at Save the Experimental Lakes Area .... Our Global Asset!

Although it will cost $50 million to shut down the ELA, and only $2 million a year to keep it, the Harper government thinks it's a good idea to spend the $50 million to get rid of it. This isn't a fiscal decision. It's a decision to put an end to a world renowned scientific research centre and thus put an end to the kind of research that gets in the way of corporate resource exploitation and profit.

Operating for more than 40 years, the ELA consists of 58 small lakes where scientists study the effects of water pollution, climate change and other threats.

But if the effects of resource development are damaging to the environment and to people, it would seem that the Harper government doesn't want to know. Without the ELA, there will be far less information on the harmful impacts of tar sands development. And that's good for corporations trying to convince the public that the tar sands are safe.

Stop the War on Science - Save the Experimental Lakes Area

Recently, the Harper government launched an ad campaign called "Responsible Resource Development" - a campaign with a budget of $9 million. That $9 million would fund the ELA for almost 10 years, ensuring that top quality research continues to provide real information and direction for truly responsible use of our natural resources.

The war on science, and on the ELA in particular is just one of the many ways that the Harper government is tearing down barriers to big business getting ever bigger. They are also doing everything they can to push through trade deals like the FIPPA with China, and CETA with the EU. These trade deals rely on government abolishing regulations that protect environment, resources, water, sustainability practices, and local economic health. It is evident that the Harper vision for Canada is one of corporate power run amok, where traditional Canadian values of democracy, justice and respect are trampled in the corporate rush to the sale table marked "Canada."

RMR: Rick's Rant - Experimental Lakes Area Cuts

STAY INFORMED:
Council of Canadians blogs on the campaign to save the Experimental Lakes Area
The Save ELA
The Boreal Forest Network

Contributor: Mary McCandless - Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter Chair

Stopping Harper Starts with Activism

Sat, 27 Oct 2012 04:50:00 +0000

A call went out across Canada for people to gather in every city, on September 17th, 2012, the opening day of Parliament - to stand up and voice our collective disapproval for the direction “the Harper government” is driving our Canada. We gathered, here in Winnipeg at the Provincial Legislature, wearing our “Stop Harper” t-shirts, printed with Occupy Winnipeg donations.

We walked, as we have walked many times, because we care, because we want to help wake people out of their slumber, because it’s what we know how to do, because we like to feel each other’s real presence and build our precious friendships. Now, most pressingly, we combine our efforts rising up to “Stop Harper.”

Some of us are thinking, wishing, hoping that Premier Selinger will become empowered, perhaps through our efforts, to “Stop” Harper. This time last year, a Selinger “Stop” to Bill C-10 would have distinctly marked Manitoba as a caring and just province, looking for social and not punitive solutions to crime. A Selinger “Stop” the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is still yet possible and could catapult Harper’s fragile house of international trading cards to a smoky wasteland. Except that now we're really sweating bullets, needing a "Sudden-Death Selinger Stop" for the Canada-China treaty.

Many of us are watching Québec - the empowerment of the students’ manifestations, the swift decision-making of Parti Québecois Pauline Marois toturn their ship around and the voice of Québec political activist and writer Yves Engler.

Premier Selinger would be wise to check out Yves Engler’s recent blog posting “Québec Proves Activism Works”. It contains quite an impressive list of provincial decisions brought about by the Marois Government. A Premier can make a difference in a short time, when party politics and public activism join hands to focus on results.

Yves Engler is stopping in Winnipeg October 28th on a pan-Canadian tour to launch his new book “The Ugly Canadian – Steven Harper’s Foreign Policy”. Words like those of Engler's, carry us away from our defunct city in chronic mayoral developer dis-ease, away from our socialist province trying to placate the corporate bosses and steer clear of the Harper axe, away from our nation aggressively driving in the fast lane of the worst crime against humanity: organized greed. But instead, Engler transports us across oceans and seas to the end of the petroleum-era playing itself out in a nasty war-game where there are no heroes, only senseless victims. Our collective inability to plan for the future is strikingly plain to see.

And in the face of a possible sudden and massive escalation of World War III... Never have we more needed unity of strategy and action by like-minded, careful folks like us - the Council of Canadians and every organization, group, club, individual with sympathetic aims to aid in the r-evolution of human-kindness. We can plan our r-evolution.

Contributor: Louise May - Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter Member

"The Ugly Canadian" Book Launch

Thu, 25 Oct 2012 02:00:00 +0000

For Immediate Release

Re: Canadian Political Critic Yves Engler Book Launch in Winnipeg - Sunday, October 28

Winnipeg, Manitoba - October 23, 2012

Political critic and acclaimed author Yves Engler will be in Winnipeg to launch his new book "The Ugly Canadian: Stephen Harper's Foreign Policy" published by Fernwood Press, Sunday, October 28th, 1pm, University of Winnipeg, Room 3C01.

"The Ugly Canadian" documents the Harper government's recent foreign policy record including such issues as destructive environmental policies, support of the current right-wing Israeli government and Canada's unprecedented military presence in Libya, Haiti and Afghanistan.

"Stephen Harper's government has fundamentally changed Canada's foreign policy in a way most Canadians do not understand. The notion of the Ugly Canadian may be hard to accept but it is true and I for one am deeply grateful to Yves Engler for this important book." - Maude Barlow, National Chairperson of The Council of Canadians

"Ugly Canadian is a well written, thoroughly researched, powerful indictment of the Harper government's radical shift to the right in foreign policy. Canada can no longer be considered a peace loving middle power." - Scott Taylor, Editor Esprit de Corps Magazine

Yves Engler is a Montréal writer and political activist. In addition to seven published books, many of Engler’s writings have appeared in the alternative press as well as in mainstream publications such as The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Ottawa Citizen and Ecologist. His The Black Book of Canadian Foreign Policy book was on short-listed for the Quebec Writers' Federation Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction.

This event is co-sponsored by Council of Canadians - Winnipeg Chapter, Peace Alliance Winnipeg, Winnipeg Haiti Solidarity Group, CKUW 95.9 FM, Rabble.ca, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East.

For more information and to arrange an interview with Yves Engler, contact Louise May, louisewillowmay@gmail.com

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Hold Hands Across the Land - Winnipeg

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 03:10:00 +0000

You may have read and heard about the arrest at the September 17th rally; about the police reaction and their statement accusing protesters, about the protesters' concerns over permits and police behaviour, about bystanders and drivers, down-town traffic and public safety - but have you read about the reason for the rally? Did you come across an article that discussed why so many people felt the need to walk with signs and banners along Portage Ave at rush hour?

I didn't.

On September 17th nearly one hundred people gathered in Winnipeg to join groups in 14 other cities across Canada uniting in solidarity to stop Harper's agenda and work together to create true democracy.

September 17th marked the opening of Canada's Parliament, venerable bastion of the democratic system, and - coincidentally - the one year anniversary of Occupy Wall St. It was an opportunity to address the deluge of undemocratic actions taken by the government of this parliament, and bring to light some of the immediate crises.

September 17th was 3 days before Kim Rivera, her husband and their four young children were deported from Canada to the united states. Kim was taken into custody, separated from her children (the youngest is only 18 months) and sent to military prison where she is expected to serve a sentence of five years.

Kim is an Iraq war resistor, a heroic soldier who chose to go on patrol in Iraq without a rifle because of the horrors she saw inflicted on everyday Iraqi families by the United States military. She made the courageous decision to walk away from the war and speak up about the abuses she saw in Iraq. She came to Canada, relying on our long time reputation as a country that respects and upholds international law and the rights of conscientious objectors.

The Harper government ignored those rights, disdained international law, and deported her - and most appallingly cheered when the announcement of her arrest was made. Yes - our elected representatives stood up and cheered in Parliament when they heard that they had successfully broken up a family and punished a good soldier.

September 17th saw the Conservatives put the opposition on notice that a second omnibus budget bill is on its way. Like Bill C-38, the budget bill whose passage now allows CIA and FBI agents to cross the border and arrest Canadians on Canadian soil, we can expect this new oversized bill to cover many, many things that have nothing to do with a budget. Even some of Harper's own MPs admit that they had no idea what was in the last omnibus bill. It was 400 pages long and hurtled its way through the required three readings as the government shut down debate and used their false majority to vote it in.

On September 17th the courts were slowly inching through the bureaucratic legal mess created by the Conservative Party as they attempted to prevent or obfuscate a trial on their election activities. In several ridings across Canada, citizens came forward to substantiate claims that the Conservative Party had attempted (often successfully) to misdirect voters to non-existent polls, and prevent votes for other candidates. Even while witnesses speak out and proof piles up that this government won several close run races through manipulation and dishonesty - that it does not and never did have the support of the people of Canada - even now, the Conservatives fight back without regard for the truth, and continue to make devastating decisions on our behalf.

These are the stories that should have been in the papers and on the morning news. These are the stories that really matter - and these are the reasons why so many people felt impelled to put themselves at risk that day on Portage Ave. Please - help spread the real news everywhere!

Contributor: Mary McCandless - Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter Chair

Occupy the Gallery

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 04:45:00 +0000

Activism and art go together. In this past year of increased civil unrest and economic instability, the call for change grew louder and the need to express intensified for artists and non-artists alike. As the messages of change reached farther and more deeply, drawing in many who had never protested or felt the need to protest, connections were made, friendships developed and communities formed - each one creating a small moment of change in the world.

On July 1st at St Norbert Arts Centre (SNAC), Council of Canadians - Winnipeg Chapter and the canoe armada band TWIN marked Canada Day (Stop Harper Day!) with a retrospective art exhibit of Occupy and social justice in Winnipeg and beyond. With commentary on environmental, social and trade justice (what is a CETA, anyway?) this exhibit told a story of Winnipeg - and Canada - that is finally being heard by more than the front line activists and slowly making its way into the mainstream.

Anchored by three photographs of Occupy Winnipeg and two message covered Occupy tents, the exhibit addressed tar sands, war, indigenous rights, the disproportionate suffering of children and women, and the Harper government attack on our democracy through the destruction of the CWB and promotion of "free" trade agreements.

TWIN is the ongoing music project of Absent Sound's David Fort. This incredibly unique singer songwriter has created many different incarnations of TWIN's signature Hypno-Folk sound featuring some of the most eclectic musicians around. With their Canoe Armada project, TWIN are also creating a river tour network across North America and beyond bringing people back to the water to celebrate and heal .

Many visitors to SNAC were initially shocked by the STOP HARPER sign at the entrance and a perceived disrespect towards what they imagined to be a benevolent family values old fashioned conservative government. After spending time and thought with the exhibit many came away with a better understanding of why Occupy happened, why protests continue around the world, why even scientists are driven to demonstrate on Parliament Hill, why "Stop Harper" is the message of the day - and why we care.

CKUW interview

Provincial Government Muzzled

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 21:40:00 +0000

On Monday June 11, representatives from the Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter, the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg and CCEDNet (Canadian Community Economic Development) Manitoba met with Peter Bjornson (the Minister for Entrepreneurship, Training and Trade), to discuss CETA. The Minister admitted to sleepless nights regarding his concerns about this trade deal. Despite his apprehension, he was unable to answer our questions.

Bjornson explained that Manitoba - along with every other province and territory - chose to be part of the negotiations, in an effort to protect our interests and fight for the best possible deal for Manitobans. To be permitted at the negotiating table, the province had to sign a confidentiality agreement with the federal government. This means that our elected representatives cannot tell us what they are negotiating on our behalf. If they chose to refuse a confidentiality agreement, Manitoba would have no presence and no say in what the federal government decided to do with our resources, public services and crown corporations.

Earlier this year, the Winnipeg chapter sent a letter to the Minister and to the Premier asking them to keep Manitoba out of CETA. That letter received a reply (link to PDF) from Minister Bjornson and we duly responded with very specific questions and a request for clarification. Shortly afterward, the Minister invited us to meet in person to discuss our concerns.

At the meeting, our questions were repeatedly met with the same frustrated response - that because of the confidentiality agreement, Minister Bjornson could not answer us. What kind of democracy is it that allows one level of government to muzzle another, and refuses to make public the terms of a deal that with effect us all?

This isn’t the Manitoba Govenment’s trade deal and they have expressed a lot of the same concerns that we have. The Minister and government are unable to do more than flag concerns, ask the federal government to respect Manitoba’s position, and try to ensure that there are provisions to protect our provincial governments’ ability to govern. They can’t risk saying or doing anything that might be seen as a breach of confidentiality. Manitoba is dependent on federal money in the form of transfer payments and most importantly right now, flood funding. Our provincial government can’t say that Manitoba is being held hostage. We can.

Please contact your MLA, talk to them about your concerns and tell our provincial government that you will support them pulling out of CETA.

ACTION ALERT: Stop Public Money for Private Water Park

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 03:50:00 +0000

We need your help.

Contact your City Councillor and tell them to vote "no" on public money for a private water park...

especially:
Devi Sharma 986-5264 dsharma@winnipeg.ca
and
Thomas Steen 986-5195 tsteen@winnipeg.ca

"Old Kildonan Coun. Devi Sharma appears to hold the deciding vote on Winnipeg’s water-park subsidy on Wednesday, as all 14 other councillors have come to a decision about their intentions.

Elmwood-East Kildonan Coun. Thomas Steen said today he’s leaning in favour of voting for a plan to sell Parcel Four, a city-owned surface lot at the southwest corner of Waterfront Drive and William Stephenson Way, for $6 million to Alberta hotel chain Canalta, which itends to build a 250-room hotel, 50,000-square-foot water park and 450-stall parkade on the site. The proposal calls for the city to offer Canalta a $7-million grant in exchange for $700,000 worth of admission credits every year for the next 25 years.

Up until today, Steen and Sharma were the only members of council who had yet to decide on the plan. Sharma said she remains undecided, but Steen said he’s leaning in favour of voting yes because water park’s location at The Forks will be convenient for children in his ward.

Only 15 members of council will vote on the plan because Mayor Sam Katz has recused himself from the vote. Katz is the majority owner of the Winnipeg Goldeyes, which play at Shaw Park, immediately north of Parcel Four.

Seven councillors now plan to vote in favour and against the Canalta proposal. None of them are bound by their intentions and may change their mind on Wednesday."

Winnipeg Free Press - By: Bartley Kives 04/23/2012

It's roundabout privatization: reduced hours in public pools, fewer pools, and huge increases in the fees over the last couple of years. Then talk about getting out of the business altogether. Now Sam Katz is trying to give public money for a private pool.

1. Public money should not be for private profits.
Another proposed water park is already planned for the "Seasons of Tuxedo" development. If another company can make this project without public money, why should the proposed one at the Forks use our public money?

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/epc-everyone-into-the-pool-148056525.html

If this proposed water park truly needs $7 million in public funds to design this facility, it is probably not profitable enough to attract investors. This means there's a good chance it will be asking for more public funds in the future, leaving the city on the hook once again.

2. Architecture
The location is to be next to the historic Forks Market buildings, the the Espanade Riel, and the Museum for Human Rights - three of Winnipeg's greatest architectural destinations. The hotel chain specializes in poor cookie-cutter architecture, which should not be built at the this location.

http://www.canaltahotels.com/locations

3. Size
This water park is far from world class. It will not be on the list of the top 30 largest water parks in North America.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/westview/world-class-water-park-sooner-or-later-148056295.html

4. Public Access Agreement
Details of the Access Agreement are not being revealed until after the vote. How low income individuals will have access to this site has never been publicly discussed in detail. Allowing social service agencies decide who gets a voucher and who does not will provide those low income individuals who use social services but exlude those who do not from receiving vouchers. This is one of the many possibly problems in the access agreement, which should be publicly debated before holding a vote.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/westview/world-class-water-park-sooner-or-later-148056295.html

Winnipeg's existing recreational services are being cut. These are the facilities built within existing communities. In the 2012 Operating Budget, operating expenses towards wading pools has a decrease of $871 thousand since 2011, and total Recreation operating expenses have decreased by $1.48 million. Reducing existing services and providing private centralized services reduces access to low income residents.

Operating Budget 2012 page 186

5. Conflict of Interest
While the mayor will recluse himself from this vote, the ethical concerns remain. The mayor's private business and restaurant (Goldeye's and Hu's on First) will likely increase in land value and business activity due to the adjacent recreational destination. The mayor was involved in promoting the $7 million grant for a water park, and his business partner Sandy Shindleman, as a director of the Goldeyes, has helped secure this deal. Although the mayor won't vote, he was heavily involved in making this deal come to light and will see a financial gain as a result.

Please act now.

Time is of the essence.

Please SHARE this message widely.

Thank you!

Citizen and Labour Groups Sign-on to Stop CETA

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 05:00:00 +0000

PRESS RELEASE:

For Immediate Release

Premier Selinger Gets the Message:
Over 100,000 Manitobans Don’t Want CETA!

March 2, 2012 – Winnipeg, Manitoba

Local Council of Canadians activists have increased pressure on Selinger’s Provincial Government to keep Manitoba out of CETA, the controversial economic and trade agreement currently under secretive negotiation with the European Union.

A letter signed by 19 citizen and labour groups, representing over 100,000 Manitobans has been delivered to the Premier after the federal-provincial-territorial trade ministers’ press conference held in Ottawa earlier this week. Please see letter attached.

This week, the City of Ottawa joined a growing number of municipalities across the country by passing a resolution to be exempted from CETA. In total, more than 30 cities (including Montreal, Toronto and Saskatoon), towns, school boards and municipal associations in eight provinces have passed resolutions against CETA.

“Provincial and territorial governments have been far too private about their intentions and support for ongoing Canada-EU free trade talks. The agreement on the table becomes more controversial with each quiet negotiating round and with each new municipal government asking to be excluded from proposed rules on public spending. From the effect of CETA on drug costs to environmental policy to public services like water, much more needs to be done at the provincial level to seek public input before any deal is signed with the EU,” says Stuart Trew, trade campaigner, Council of Canadians.

For more information or to arrange an interview with Mary McCandless, Council of Canadians Winnipeg Chapter Chair, please contact Louise May at 799-4076 or louisewillowmay@gmail.com.

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LETTER:

Take the Leap! Keep Manitoba out of CETA!

Dear Premier Selinger,

We, the Council of Canadians - Winnipeg Chapter, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Manitoba and the undersigned organizations representing over 100,000 Manitoba voters, implore you to act in the best interests of the people of Manitoba and pledge to keep Manitoba out of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) currently being negotiated between Canada and the European Union.

We believe that if CETA is signed it will have a significant negative impact on democracy and on public control over key services at all levels of government, from the federal to the municipal. If signed, CETA will:

open critical public services, including water and wastewater services, to bids by European multinationals, and lead to increased privatization

threaten local job creation and “buy-local” policies

cause Canadian prescription drug costs to skyrocket by at least $2.8 billion annually, including $79.8 million in Manitoba alone, as shown in a study commissioned by the Canadian Generic Pharmaceutical Association

open governments to challenges by European corporations over environmental and other regulations made in the public interest

We are especially concerned about the impact of CETA on local governments. If CETA is signed, municipalities will “… lose one of the few and perhaps the most important tool they now have for stimulating innovation, fostering community economic development, creating local employment and achieving other public policy goals from food security to social equity.” (Steven Shrybman – from a legal opinion on CETA prepared for the Centre for Civic Governance at the Columbia Institute)

Unlike the corporations, the people of Manitoba – and all Canadians – have been left entirely out of the CETA negotiating process. The offers made to the European Union by the federal and provincial governments have not been made public, and there has been no meaningful discussion with the people of Manitoba as to the balance of benefits and costs associated with CETA.

We have had no opportunity to see or influence what is being put on the table; and no participation in the decision about whether entering CETA is in the best interest of our province, its municipalities, and the people of Manitoba.

We need to know that our tax dollars are spent for the benefit of the people of Manitoba, and not for the benefit of European – or any other – corporations.

We need to know that when our municipal governments make purchasing decisions that support local economies and sustainability policies, they will not be risking lengthy and expensive litigation from corporations that were not selected for the contract.

We need to know that our public services will remain public, and not be turned over to private profit-driven interests.

We need to know that laws and regulations put in place by our elected representatives to protect our environment are safe from corporate interference.

We are the people of Manitoba. We elected you to represent us and to ensure a fair and equitable society that puts people before profit.

For these reasons, we and the over 100,000 members we represent, urge you to keep Manitoba out of CETA.

Thank you,

Council of Canadians – Winnipeg Chapter
CUPE-MB
CCPA
Boreal Forest Network
Peace Alliance Winnipeg
Project Peacemakers
Manitoba Federation of Labour
Winnipeg Labour Council
Green Party of Manitoba
Winnipeg Water Watch
Provincial Council of Women Manitoba
Growing Local Productions
UNPAC
CUPE Local 998
CUPE Local 3909
CUPE Local 2348
IATSE Local 63
Social Planning Council Winnipeg
CityWatch Winnipeg