July 28, 2005

RELIGIOUS COALTION LAMENTS PASSAGE OF CAFTA; SAYS ORDINARY PEOPLE IN THE U.S. AND CENTRAL AMERICA WILL SUFFER

The Interfaith Working Group on Trade and Investment (IWGTI) deeply laments the passage of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) in the U.S. House of Representatives. We deplore the unconscionable pressure placed on members of Congress to vote in opposition to the well-being of their own constituents as well as that of the struggling people of Central America .

CAFTA will further harm the already impoverished and vulnerable people of Central America by:

• destroying the livelihoods of rural farmers in the Dominican Republic and Central America , as NAFTA has done to Mexican farmers;
• making it difficult if not impossible for Central Americans to obtain affordable generic medicines;
• perpetuating and increasing the exploitation of workers, and
• preventing governments from regulating foreign investment in ways that contribute to broad-based development goals.

Many religious organizations took positions against the CAFTA such as the Presbyterian Church USA, American Friends Service Committee, American Jewish World Service, Lutheran World Relief, Church World Service and Central American religious leaders.

Passage of CAFTA was a serious blow to hopes of ordinary people in both the United States and Central America . But it is not the end of the struggle to ensure that trade agreements are consistent with the moral values of fairness, justice and the common good.

The Interfaith Working Group on Trade and Investment will continue to work with Congress and all people of good will to develop these kinds of trade agreements.

Please read our statement of moral principles by which we believe any potential trade agreement should be evaluated.

###