Our Trade Justice Activities

The Trade Justice group, which is part of the Keswick and District Fair Trade Campaign, meets monthly. Our number one aim is to address the problems which developing countries face in their trading relationships with the rest of the world, especially with the rich countries of the G8¹. But we also look at other issues connected to world finance and their effects on developing countries.

To do this we obviously need to take a close interest in the way the rules and regulations for both trade and finance, which are largely drawn up by the rich countries, affect poorer countries. And when we find anything which has a really serious adverse impact we decide what action, if any, we can take.

Currently we are focusing on the progress towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals², poor countries' debt repayment, 'Vulture Funds' (see below), Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs)³ and the Doha Round of talks through the World Trade Organisation, as well as corporate tax evasion.

Clearly we don't achieve quick results: progress is measured usually in small steps, and we don't do it alone. Any successes always come from working with others - with other groups like ours and with NGOs like Oxfam and Christian Aid who are all part of the Trade Justice Movement.

An example of a current campaign with some signs of response by the Government is that targeted on 'Vulture Funds'. As the name implies they are highly 'predatory', aiming to make vast profits by buying up the debts of heavily indebted poor countries at a cheap price, then subsequently trying to recover the full amount from them. They often do this by suing countries through the courts. Vulture fund companies are quite secretive, and are often based in tax havens.

Through lobbying we have been able to get the Companies Bill tightened up so that private companies have to provide a higher level of accountability and transparency. The Companies Bill will now require some companies to report on their environmental and social impacts and on employee and supplier issues. In addition, company directors will have a duty, not only to maximise profit, but also to consider the impacts of their business on people and the environment.

So how do we lobby? We write letters to ministers, MPs and MEPs, and sometimes to companies. We also take part in public protests at local and national level to bring the problems of developing countries to the attention of the press and to those who can influence negotiations.

Fairtrade brings tangible and invaluable benefits to producers all over the South. However, only a small percentage of the total number of farmers, craftspeople and workers who are dependent on trade receive those benefits because the Fairtrade market, although growing, is small. Most producers operate within a system of trade which is far from fair in that they cannot make a decent living from the price they obtain for their products.

Our meetings are always lively, and we always learn from them, both about the issues themselves and about what we can do to address them effectively. Why not join us? We are always looking for new members to join us. If you're interested please contact the group.

1. The Group of Eight (G8, and formerly the G6 or Group of Six) is a forum, created by France in 1975, for governments of eight nations of the northern hemisphere: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States; in addition, the European Union is represented within the G8, but cannot host or chair.

2. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight international development goals that 192 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015. They include reducing extreme poverty, reducing child mortality rates, fighting disease epidemics such as AIDS, and developing a global partnership for development. See UN website for more.

3. Economic Partnership Agreements, or EPAs, are arrangements between the EU and the group of 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. The need for such agreements arose from the challenge made in the WTO to long established agreements between the EU and the ACP which has offered a degree of protection for the exports - such as bananas and sugar - from the ACP countries, most of which were former European colonies. In December 2007, 35 ACP countries bilaterally or sub-regionally signed agreements, although only a group of Caribbean countries (CARIFORUM) signed a full agreement. The agreements require trade liberalisation - the removal of tariffs - in return for continued entry for ACP goods into EU markets. There has been much criticism of the way these agreements have been pushed through under threat of the total removal of protection and diminishing levels of aid. This approach has resulted in rushed deals, removing the opportunity for appropriate expert or public scrutiny as well as debate of the content either in ACP countries or Europe.