<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div style="margin: 0in;" class=""><span style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" class=""><b class="">FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
</b> <wbr class=""> <wbr class=""> Contact: Thomas Gould,</span></div>
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<b class="">July 23, 2024</b> <wbr class=""> <wbr class=""> <wbr class=""> <a href="mailto:thomas@maryknollogc.org" target="_blank" class="">thomas@maryknollogc.org</a></div>
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<font face="Calibri-Bold" size="5" class=""><span style="font-style: normal;" class=""><b class="">Faith Organizations Call on APEP Countries to<br class="">
Eliminate ISDS from the Americas</b></span></font></div>
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<i class="">Groups Say APEP Can End “Investor-State Dispute Settlement’s” Ongoing Harms<br class="">
to Human Rights, the Environment and Democratic Sovereignty</i></div>
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Washington, D.C. — Faith organizations across the United States and the
Americas submitted comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade
Representative (USTR) today urging the Americas Partnership for Economic
Prosperity (APEP) dialogues to create a working group
tasked with eliminating Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) from
the Western Hemisphere.</div>
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Linking ISDS with “economic inequality and environmental destruction,”
the 35-group submission explains that ISDS “empowers those investing
across borders to challenge nations’ laws, regulations, permitting
decisions and even court decisions as alleged violations
of trade and investment rules via complaints the circumvent domestic
judicial systems and are instead heard in binding international
arbitration.”</div>
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“The special rights granted to corporations and millionaires within ISDS
extend far beyond the rights held by citizens and residents to
challenge national policies with which they disagree,” the submission
says.</div>
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The submission points on that, “ISDS tribunals have already awarded
corporations over USD 33 billion in suits against Latin American and
Caribbean countries involving mining pollution, water quality, toxics
controls, consumer safety and other public interest
policies. And, today, a staggering USD 1.5 trillion in ISDS claims are
currently pending in the region.”</div>
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APEP is a 12-nation body including the United States, Barbados, Canada,
Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico,
Panama, Peru and Uruguay, and according to USTR, APEP’s trade track
seeks to “develop sustainable and inclusive approaches
to trade and investment” in the Western Hemisphere.</div>
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The faith organizations’ comments opposing ISDS were submitted as part
of USTR’s open public comment period on APEP’s trade track and ahead of
an APEP trade ministerial reportedly scheduled to take place in Ecuador
on August 1 and 2.</div>
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“We call on APEP countries and other governments to defend against
attacks on their democratic sovereignty by working together to eliminate
ISDS from all existing pacts,” the submission says. “Doing so would
also help to safeguard the budgets of developing
countries — some of whom have faced single ISDS claims that represent a
significant percentage of their entire gross domestic products.
Crucially, ISDS elimination would also better enable the locally-enacted
development programs, environmental improvement
measures, and human rights policies that are needed to help uplift
communities everywhere.”</div>
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A PDF of the letter is available at: <a href="https://mogc.info/ISDS" id="m_-5035578134296469175LPlnk837869" title="https://mogc.info/ISDS" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://mogc.info/ISDS&source=gmail&ust=1721853094260000&usg=AOvVaw37Y1vyUUkDFS8xuyLEWa4E" class="">
https://mogc.info/ISDS</a></div>
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The comments submitted were signed by:</div>
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Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns</div>
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NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice</div>
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Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team</div>
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The United Methodist Church — General Board of Church and Society</div>
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Presbyterian Church (USA) Office of Public Witness</div>
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Franciscan Action Network</div>
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Interfaith Power & Light</div>
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United Church of Christ</div>
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Pax Christi International</div>
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Pax Christi USA</div>
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Pax Christi Metro DC-Baltimore</div>
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Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Western Province Leadership</div>
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Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Congregational Leadership</div>
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Dominican Sisters of Peace</div>
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Mennonite Central Committee US</div>
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Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community</div>
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St. Vincent de Paul</div>
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Benedictines for Peace</div>
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Passionist Solidarity Network</div>
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Ohio Sisters Justice Network</div>
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Medical Mission Sisters, Justice Office</div>
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US Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph</div>
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Dominican Sisters — Grand Rapids</div>
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School Sisters of Notre Dame Collective Investment Fund</div>
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Hope Border Institute</div>
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Franciscan Peace Center, Clinton, Iowa</div>
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Roman Union Ursulines of the USA</div>
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Dominican Sisters of Houston</div>
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Sisters of Sint Francis Rochester Minnesota</div>
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School Sisters of Notre Dame, CP Shalom Office</div>
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Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange</div>
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Wheaton Franciscan Sisters JPIC Office</div>
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Religious Sisters of Charity</div>
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Sisters of St. Francis, Clinton, Iowa</div>
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InterReligious Task Force on Central America</div>
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