Protest Scrap TTIP at Dublin Castle - Dame St Entrance -Fri 27th Mar

dublin | worker & community struggles and protests | event notice Monday March 23, 2015 23:36 by peoples movement

Scrap the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership agreement. It's a corporate takeover of our liberty

Following Enda Kenny’s support for TTIP during his meeting with Obama on St Patrick's Day, and Minister Dara Murphy's spurious assertion in Brussels on Thursday that huge financial gains are possible for Ireland, it is important to demonstrate our opposition to the treaty.

***** Protest Scrap TTIP! *****

When: Friday, 27 March at 10 to 11 a.m. at Dublin Castle (Dame Street entrance) for the arrival of EU trade commissioner, Cecilia Malmström

and again at 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. for Commissioner Malmström's departure
Placards will be provided.

This event is organised by the People's Movement
http://www.people.ie

For background to TTIP here's the content of a press release from an previous protest on Feb 4th

Press statement - www.people.ie - 4 February 2015

People’s Movement Demonstration
“Scrap TTIP and CETA now!”
Wednesday February 4th at 1:00 pm
The European Parliament Offices, Molesworth St., Dublin 2.

Why today’s demonstration?

The main goal of Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is to remove regulatory ‘barriers’ which restrict the potential profits to be made by transnational corporations on both sides of the Atlantic. Yet these ‘barriers’ are in reality some of our most prized and hard-won social standards and environmental regulations, such as labour rights, food safety rules, regulations on the use of toxic chemicals, digital privacy laws and even new banking safeguards introduced by the EU to prevent a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis.

Neither TTIP nor CETA are traditional trade agreements to reduce tariffs on imports between trading partners and thereby stimulate trade and create jobs. These are al ready at minimal levels.

TTIP and CETA envisages granting foreign investors a new right to sue sovereign governments in front of ad hoc arbitration tribunals for loss of profits resulting from public policy decisions. TTIP and CETA would also tie us into rules on regulatory cooperation that pose a threat to democracy and the rule of law. They would also endanger employment, social, environmental, privacy and consumer standards and lay open public services and cultural assets to an agenda of deregulation.

In addition to this deregulation agenda, TTIP, in particular, also seeks to create new markets by opening up public services and government procurement contracts to competition from transnational corporations, threatening to introduce a further wave of privatisations in key sectors, such as health and education.

The eighth round of Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations between the EU and the US commenced in Brussels on February 2nd and will continue until February 6th. TTIP. Negotiations on CETA are concluded but the agreement is currently being held in cold storage because of fears that growing opposition to it will jeopardise negotiations on TTIP.