Canadian mining company in London targeted in EU-Canada trade deal protest
Date: 29 November 2016
Who: Members of Global Justice Now, War on Want and trade justice campaigners
What: A protest against the EU-Canada trade deal CETA, specifically highlighting the threat of the controversial ‘corporate courts’ system as part of the trade deal
When: Tuesday 29 November, 6pm to 8pm
Where: The London headquarters of Gabriel Resources, a Canadian mining company that is currently suing the government of Romania for billions of dollars after a proposed gold mine was found to be in breach of environmental regulations. 25 Southampton Buildings London WC2A 1AL
The mine was planned for the region of Rosia Montana, a beautiful town in Transylvania and a proposed UNESCO world heritage site. Gabriel Resources are demanding a payment of €4 billion to compensate for their lost future profits. They are using a UK / Romanian investment treaty through their London and Jersey offices to take this case.
Protesters say that the legal action should send alarm bells ringing throughout the EU, and in the UK. In February 2017, the European parliament is voting CETA, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada. It will expose European governments to more similar cases if those governments decide at any time to prioritise the interests of people, their rights or the environment over and above the future profits of Canadian corporations or 40,000 US companies active in Canada. This will come into force in the UK if voted through regardless of the decision to leave the EU.
Activists at the protest will be using gold spray paint to cover over giant printed words such as democracy, environment and justice to symbolize the mining company behind the gold mine being able to challenge sovereign democracies in the secret corporate courts.
Three and half million people across Europe have signed a petition calling for CETA to be scrapped.
Read Global Justice Now’s briefing on CETA.
