Despite Promises, Colombia FTA Does Little to End Abuse of Labor Activists

Common Dreams - Despite repeated assurances from both the US and Colombian governments, labor leaders say that two months after the implementation of a bi-lateral trade deal between the two countries few meaningful protections for unionists have been implemented.

"We ask President (Barack) Obama to push for more guarantees for Colombian workers," Miguel Conde, with Sintrainagro, a union representing workers on palm-oil plantations, said at at press event held at AFL-CIO headquarters in Washington. "In Colombia, it is easier to form an armed group than a trade union… because we still have no guarantees from the government."  Read more.