Alliance for Responsible Trade

REGARDING THE IV SUMMIT OF HEADS OF
STATE AND GOVERNMENT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

JOINT COMMUNICATION OF THE MEETINGS FROM THE
III EURO-LATIN AMERICAN-CARIBBEAN CIVIL SOCIETY FORUM AND
III EU-LATIN AMERICA-CARIBBEAN TRADE UNION SUMMIT

This Joint Communication represents numerous networks and social organizations, movements, NGOs and trade unions of both regions- EU and Latin America and the Caribbean to discuss EU-LAC relations, strengthen their links and actions and put forward the people's concerns regarding the official meeting.

Even though these two gatherings have undertaken their work from the particular focus of their participating organizations and therefore have produced separate declarations (which present in more detail their specific views), they have also recognized the existence of common positions in a number of issues. Through this Joint Communication we convey these common views with the purpose of reinforcing their relevance to the authorities and to create more awareness among public opinion about the appraisals and proposals we are putting forward.

1. We welcome the progressive changes which are taking place in various Latin American countries, that respond to popular concerns and needs with measures targeted at strengthening unity and integration in Latin America. These political changes together with social mobilizations have managed to stop the hegemonic FTAA project pushed by the US.
2. In Europe, social protection systems and labour rights are threatened by conservative and neo-liberal policies that consider them detrimental to European competitiveness. In Europe, social protection systems and labour rights are threatened by conservative and neo-liberal policies that consider them detrimental to European competitiveness. On the contrary, trade unions and other social organisations believe that it is necessary to strengthen and improve working conditions, fighting for full employment, against precarious labour, for equal treatment at work, for non-discrimination of migrant workers through regularisation and integration policies and rejecting racist and xenophobic attitudes. Massive mobilisations against the proposal of services Directive (known as Bolkenstein Directive) are an example to follow in the fight to safeguard social achievements.
3. We believe that it is imperative to modify the current focus of the EU-LAC biregional partnership to avoid aggravating the effects derived from a model of development and subordinated insertion of LAC countries into the international economy and politics, which generate a greater concentration of wealth, the expansion of social gaps, social exclusion and poverty. The fights against these problems should be centered on combating social inequity, the lack of decent work and ethnic, racial and gender discrimination.
4. To accomplish this, the establishment of a more fair and supportive partnership between the EU and LAC must define as its central objective the achievement of an inclusive, equitable and sustainable economic development that promotes affirmative actions in defence of and respect for Human Rights (economic, social, cultural, environmental, sexual and reproductive rights and food security) according to the international Declarations and Agreements which EU and LAC countries are signatories. We believe it is necessary that the negotiation of these agreements take into consideration the existing economic imbalances between our regions.
5. We stand against free trade agreements, such as those that the US is attempting to establish with various countries of LAC. Also the EU, despite including dimensions of cooperation and political dialogue in its agreements in force (Mexico and Chile) and in the proposals towards the negotiations with MERCOSUR, gives priority to trade-related issues in detriment of social contents and civil society participation. For the signatory organizations it is imperative that these agreements include chapters that refer to social, labour, environmental and human rights issues, monitoring, public control and social participation.
6. We believe it is necessary that the negotiation of these agreements take into consideration the existing economic imbalances between our regions. They must contain mechanisms to impede that an eventual signature of these agreements intensifies a dependent development. The signature of these agreements should rather promote a closing of the gap in economic and social indicators between the EU and ALC, so that ALC can overcome its more acute problems of social cohesion, poverty, indebtedness and migration.
7. The signatory organisations defend the need to strengthen democratic structures, which are plural and participatory, uprooting impunity and persecution of human rights defenders in all countries. We also advocate that both regions promote peace in the international community and commit to overcome conflicts, avoid war and oppose unjustified unilateral interventions.

Vienna, 12 May, 2006
www.alop.or.cr