Be part of the Global Week of Action on Trade and call your members of Congress to encourage them to vote against CAFTA

Call 1-888-355-3588, the AFL-CIO-sponsored toll-free number to the Capitol switchboard, only available on April 13th

The Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)—which includes Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic—is the biggest free trade agreement Congress has considered in more than 10 years. Unless we can turn this flawed approach to trade around, agreements like CAFTA will put more workers out of jobs, jeopardize rural farmers, threaten the environment, reduce access to life-saving medicines and stifle democracy.

The Bush Administration is sending a strong message that they are ready to test whether they have enough votes in Congress to pass CAFTA. This will be done through formal hearings in the Senate Finance Committee (April 13th) and House Ways and Means Committee (April 21st). Because of "fast track," if either committee decides to send the trade pact to the floor, then there will be a yes or no vote within 15 days.

TAKE ACTION -- CALL CONGRESS ON APRIL 13 AND SAY NO TO CAFTA

CALL: 1-888-355-3588 (a toll free number available only on April 13)

On Wednesday, April 13, please call your Congress member and urge her/him to vote NO on CAFTA. IF you need help figuring out who is your Representative, go to www.house.gov and enter your zip code.

We also urge you to call your Senators if they are on the Senate Finance Committee, which begins CAFTA hearings on April 13. Though the campaign against CAFTA has thus far focused on the House of Representatives, it is important to target Senators now as they begin the process of presenting CAFTA legislation. If one of your Senators is listed below, then call her or him and use the Call-in Day script to demand a "No" vote on CAFTA. Let the committee know that we won't let CAFTA go to the floor without a fight!

Republicans CHARLES GRASSLEY, IA ORRIN G. HATCH, UT TRENT LOTT, MS OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, ME JON KYL, AZ CRAIG THOMAS, WY RICK SANTORUM, PA BILL FRIST, TN GORDON SMITH, OR JIM BUNNING, KY MIKE CRAPO, ID

Democrats MAX BAUCUS, MT JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, WV KENT CONRAD, ND JAMES M. JEFFORDS, VT JEFF BINGAMAN, NM JOHN F. KERRY, MA BLANCHE L. LINCOLN, AR RON WYDEN, OR CHARLES E. SCHUMER, NY

SCRIPT FOR CONGRESSIONAL CALL-IN DAY ON CAFTA

When you call:

*Ask to speak to the trade staffer, chief of staff or legislative director

*Tell them you are a constituent and want to know your Rep's position on CAFTA (unless you already know)

*If the Rep is opposed to the agreement and will vote against it, thank him/her. Ask him/her to make that opposition public, and for a letter stating his/her position.

*If the Rep is undecided, say that you oppose CAFTA based on the talking points below (you can offer to email these talking points) and urge them to vote no.

*If the Rep is for CAFTA, urge them to reconsider. Inform the office that you intend to spread the word that the Rep is voting against the public interest.

Script/talking points:

Hello, my name is _______ and I live in _______. I'm calling to ask Representative _______ to vote against the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA); I am deeply concerned about CAFTA and believe that the agreement will have terrible consequences for Central America, the Dominican Republic and our own country.

*If passed CAFTA will threaten the livelihoods of millions of small farmers in Central America and the DR, while increasing domination by agricultural monopolies and hurting U.S. family farmers

*It threatens to prevent access to affordable life saving medicines in a region where half the population live in poverty.

*It will prohibit governments in the region from ensuring that foreign investment serves national development goals, and has a provision like NAFTA?s Chapter 11 that would allow foreign corporations to sue governments that pass strong labor, public health or environmental laws.

*It does NOT include adequate enforcement for violations of internationally recognized labor and environmental standards..

*It includes rules that promote privatization and deregulation of services including education, health care, postal service, construction, transportation and water supply. Such policies have proved particularly devastating for families living in poverty.

*CAFTA will pave the way for more trade agreements such as the Andean Free Trade Agreement and the Free Trade Area of the Americas which would extend this flawed model to the whole Western Hemisphere.

*After 10 years of NAFTA, we know firsthand the devastating effects of this economic model. Expanding it in CAFTA ultimately threatens workers, farmers, women, the environment, and democratic institutions in the U.S. and the region. I strongly urge Representative_________ to stand up for trade justice by voting NO to CAFTA in Congress and sending the message to the Administration that U.S. trade policies must promote fair trade and sustainable development policies designed to reduce poverty in the U.S. and the region.

Further background info:

Hundreds of civil society groups representing labor, environmental organizations, family farmers, consumers, Latin American solidarity, and immigrants' rights organizations have already expressed their opposition to CAFTA, and many Congressional Reps have taken this to heart. Though CAFTA has been ratified in 3 Central American countries—despite huge protests and police violence—this strong cross-border opposition to the agreement has prevented the Bush Administration from submitting it to Congress up until now. However, the clock is ticking and with the beginning of Senate and House hearings on April 13, it is clear that CAFTA supporters are pushing for a vote by Memorial Day. The vote on CAFTA is effectively a referendum on NAFTA; if it is defeated, it will be mark a huge step towards stopping other such free trade agreements and open the way for an alternative trade model that truly addresses issues of poverty and inequality. A coalition of progressive organizations in the US is celebrating an April Week of Action for Global Justice by focusing on CAFTA. For more information, see http://www.stopcafta.org or http://www.april2005.org.