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<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Dear CTC List Activists,
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>The news coming out of <st1:country-region
w:st="on">Colombia</st1:country-region> is that President Obama will be
announcing that the conditions of the Labor Action Plan have been met and that
the <st1:country-region w:st="on">US</st1:country-region> will move forward
with the FTA at next week’s <st1:City w:st="on">Summit</st1:City> of the <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Americas</st1:place></st1:country-region>. We
are <b><span style='font-weight:bold'>extremely concerned</span></b> about this
and have been taking actions with <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">U.S.</st1:place></st1:country-region> policymakers and others for
the past week. We strongly urge you all to do the same. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><i><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-style:italic'>Please
help us send the message to the Obama Administration that it’s premature
to declare a victory on the Labor Action Plan and that the labor rights
situation for all workers and Afrodescendants in particular is far from better.
Declaring a victory on the LAP right now would be throwing away all political
leverage for change in these critical situations in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Colombia</st1:place></st1:country-region> at this time. <o:p></o:p></span></font></i></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><i><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-style:italic'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></i></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Urgent actions, blogs,
tweet campaigns, letters, announcements, articles and everything that can
generate a buzz against this are encouraged!<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><u><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>For your reference I am
attaching the following documents that we translated into English:<o:p></o:p></span></font></u></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>-Statement by the Port
Workers Union calling on trade unions and hr organizations to delay
implementation of the FTA. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>-Letter to Presidents
Obama and <st1:City w:st="on">Santos</st1:City> by 12 trade unions and labor
movements in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Colombia</st1:place></st1:country-region>
stating that the Labor Action Plan’s promises have not been met<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>-Report by Senator
Alexander Lopez Maya, Vice President of the Colombian Senate and member of the
Senate Comision that is following the labor action plan that explains in detail
the lack of compliance on the part of Colombia regarding the Labor Action Plan
(i.e. ILO recommendations not abided to by Colombia, status of cooperatives,
lack of true mediation by the Ministry of Labor on various labor conflicts and
situation in multiple hard hit sectors including labor and sugar that are
predominantly Afro-Colombian). <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>-Letter from Port
Workers Union regarding the firing of over 70 workers (over 95% Afro-Colombian)
since October 2011 for attempting to form a labor union. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>-Our most recent letter
to the Congressional Monitoring Group on Labor Rights with the SEIU concerning
Sinaltrainal. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>We appreciate any and
all actions that can be taken.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Thanks,<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>Gimena<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"'>WOLA<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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