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05/12/2016

• 1. With CETA being approved in Parliament within 10 days, will foreign ships with low wage flag of convenience crews be able to deliver Canadian originated cargo to ports within Canada in competition with Canadian ships with Canadian crews?

Empty containers, Montreal, Halifax…    

• 2. An S.I.U. Delegation was recently sent to do workshops in the Philippines. Why was no S.I.U. Delegation sent to Brussels where chances were best to stop CETA and not only the membership of the S.I.U. Is in peril but the whole Canadian seafaring community?

Very good representation over in Europe…   

• 3. The Conference on Foreign Relations is a very  powerful and influential body in favour of CETA. The Union is affiliated to the American Federation of Labour and through them to the C.F.R. Can the Union leadership of the Union fulfil its’ obligations to the membership and entertain a relationship with the C.F.R.?

Make friends with anybody that might help ( including Council of Canadians!).  

• 4. With Bill C-30  about to be approved by Parliament within 10 days, what will the S.I.U. Be doing to stop CETA?

Although no debate on Bill C-30 ( CETA) was scheduled in the ” Schedule of Government Business”” on Tuesdays’ 22/11/16 posting in the Hansard, which records the business of Parliament, the Government ordered an emergency debate in the House of Commons on Bill C-30  on Wednesday 23/11/16 that was scheduled to last from 3:00 pm to 5:30pm.

As a result, the Bill is expected to pass, clearing the way for Parliament to ratify C.E.T.A. not by early 2017, but by Christmas… which is very early indeed.

What action  will the S.I.U. of Canada be taking as the Liberal Government once more flouts its’ contempt for democracy, the Electorate and the will of Canadians in general?

The Huffington Post ( Canada) business page has encapsulated in a few lines what has been going on close to the surface in Canada for months.

If only we’d acted sooner and with greater strength and purpose, who knows what we might have changed as well as saving ourselves, our brother and sister seafarers outside the Union besides Canada’s’ ships?

The Prime Minister and his Trolls are going to accomplish with a few strokes of a pen what Hitler couldn’t do in six years of unlimited warfare with the  U-Boat Wolf Packs and the might of the Luftwaffe, the complete destruction of the Canadian Merchant Marine.

They can also congratulate themselves for the further debasement to the Sovereignty of the Nations of Europe and putting them, as well as us (through N.A.F.T.A.), further under the heel of foreign interests.

I suppose we can hope that others, as the Walloons did, save us or at least wake us up, and other, now mostly foreign, institutions intervene to give us another unearned reprieve. I think sailors may find Prayer a fine complement to action, but unworthy of us used alone as a means.

Once C.E.T.A. crossed the Atlantic, I think we all knew it was all done but the cryin’.

But what will we do now, in the meantime?

Fraternally,

              Marc de Villers.
              D-1289

Thank you for replying to my e-mail yesterday.

It is important to recall that efforts to ratify CETA are occurring in the aftermath of BREXIT and now the U.S. Presidential Election.

The result of BREXIT was unexpected and certainly unwelcome to those who have much influence in British and North American affairs, as has the U.S. Election, amongst which is the disappearance of public acceptance for such things as the ” Free Trade” agreements like N.A.F.T.A., the North American Free Trade Agreement,  which is the model for C.E.T.A., T.T.I.P. and the others.

These are ” Free Trade” agreements only the way a  ” protection racket” provides additional protection to private enterprise in addition to police. The loss of jobs which have been the result of more than 30 years experience to the public of this type of agreement is now coming to the surface and it no longer accepts the assurances of its’ proponents.

The President-Elect of the U.S. has stated that he will terminate the T.T.P., a free trade agreement on the model of N.A.F.T.A. and C.E.T.A., on his first day in office; T.T.I.P., the similar Free-Trade agreement projected between the United States and Europe is similarly afflicted, though the proponents of this and similar agreements  T.I.S.A.) have helped these treaties ” play possum” before.

C.E.T.A. Is very important to its’ supporters because, while not attracting the attention of more important agreements like T.T.I.P., it will additionally provide the many U.S. Companies present in Canada the same advantages as its’ larger cousin.

Important and influential organisations such as the Conference on Foreign Relations support C.E.T.A., making it difficult for elected officials to say no.

One can practically hear the wheels of this type of agreement jamming up as far away as Lima, Peru, this week-end at the meeting of  the Worlds’ Heads of State with the World Trade Organisation.

The only reason the Walloon Parliament and others had to speak up against CETA, besides its’ gross unfairness, was that countries such as Germany and France, which should have spoken up about it, were silent.

Both these countries will shortly be having National Elections:

• Germany, which is ruled by a minority government, would not have approved CETA except that the minority party, which is Marxist in outlook, sought the favour of big German business in order to make it’s leader Chancellor next year and approved it 2 weeks before the meeting of the European Commission. The German Social Democratic Party will be thrown out of the Reichstag by its’ betrayed supporters and be relegated to the History books.

• When Frances’ Prime Minister came to Canada to support CETA last October, he was officiating in his governments’ last acts, as those of President Francois Hollande ( Possibly the most unpopular President in Frances’ History) because of their actions in destroying Libya and Syria, causing Europes’ refugee crisis.

Although we’ve missed irrecoverable opportunities to stop CETA, legal challenges and the surfacing of public resistance  will cumulatively make politicians reconsider their support for them and  stop these iniquitous agreements from becoming a reality.

Continued resistance and opposition to CETA could bear fruit in short order.

Fraternally,

         Marc de Villers.
         D-1289.

Thanks for this Marc. I would point out that the SIU did not ³miss
irrecoverable opportunities to stop CETA². Don¹t mistake being unable to change political will in favour of CETA, to missing opportunities to stop it. In order to stop something there must be a willingness of those in favour to actually listen to the opposition.

Jim Given

Dear Mr. President:

As this is written, Bill C-30, a Bill to implement CETA is being debated in the House of Commons. The schedule for government business is being given only 2 days ahead rather than a week ahead as of 10 days ago.

Implementing legislation to modify Canadian Laws to conform with CETA is intended to be complete by Christmas ( the end of the Fall Session of Parliament on December 16th.)

Since there is nothing scheduled on the S.I.U. of Canada’s Facebook page, it would be interesting to know what the Union plans to do to stop CETA.

The time for action is passing swiftly.

Marc de Villers.
D-1289.

Marc:

Thank you for this email, and the others sent to my attention.

The CLC appeared before the Committee and was armed with a brief from the SIU that was presented at that time. The changes proposed in Bill C30 are being challenged by the SIU, and although they are limited, we see it as opening the door which we want to remain closed.

As for CETA:

The SIU continue our work in  conjunction with the International Transport Workers Federation and the European Transport Workers Federation. We still see the best option of defeating CETA to rest in the EU. With the Liberals controlling Canadian Parliament passage of things they want is all but certain, especially CETA as the Conservatives will never vote against their own deal. In Europe we have very close ties to all of the Transport Unions, and others, and we are continuing do all we can to support their efforts. As you are aware we Chair the Cabotage Task Force for the ITF and as such CETA is on the forefront on our efforts there. As a SIU member you may not always see the work we do, as it is not as flashy as a demonstration, but it goes on every day. Patrice and I just returned from Manila where we attended a meeting of the ITF Fair Practice Committee, a world body of transport unions who decide policy for the industry and CETA is top of the agenda there also. TISA etc are also very much an issue. We spent much of the meetings educating labor supply countries that they must work with us in Canada to make sure our Cabotage remains strong.On the Canadian front we continue to meet with members of Parliament and Senators in order to educate them on the importance of a strong merchant marine. This is a long process as frankly the people before us did not do a very good job. We are making progress but it is an uphill struggle.

Members of the Transport Committee who are looking at the Coasting Trade Act are regular on our list and this will continue. We are also working closely with the Canadian Shipowners who have given us the lead role in strengthening Cabotage in Canada, they know we are the most educated and in the best position to make gains.Trade is a very complicated issue for our Industry. We live and die on
trade but it must be fair, transparent and protect our industry without
being ³protectionist². We recognize that without trade we would have no industry, but bad trade will have the same result.

In a nut shell we may not be able to report on everything we are doing to fight for the Canadian Industry but we will post more of our letters and meeting outcomes on Facebook for all to see. Not a single day passes that we are not dealing with CETA or the Coasting Trade, from all angles. We are covering all the bases such as if CETA passes how do we ensure Canadian Seafarers get the jobs on the foreign vessels at Canadian conditions? Well this is an immigration and Employment issue with those Ministers as it deals with Temp Foreign Workers, so we are dealing with them. Dredging can also be a Tax issue as Tax dollars pay for dredging so we are dealing with Finance. Many many fires at once.

I will point out the only other Union really involved with these issues is
the ILWU on the West Coast. They are supporting and also lobbying with us.

No other Maritime Union, or other Union at all, are fighting as hard as we are. Not the Guild that¹s for sure, we have heard nothing from them at all. Even Canada¹s ³big² unions like the CLC and Unifor etc are relatively quiet.If you have specific questions please send them to me and I will do my best to answer them, in the meantime we will post more updates on your unions activities with CETA, TISA and the Coasting Trade Act.

In Solidarity,

Jim Given

On this Remembrance Day Sunday, it is salutary to reflect not only on the wars and battles of years past but also on those to come.

I still anxiously await your news on what measures the Union, with its’ memberships’ help, will be taking to stop CETA in the coming days, weeks and months. When I’ve mentioned your intended reply to fellow Brothers and Sisters, there is an immediate brightening in their faces.

In its’ campaign to impose the Comprehensive Economic & Trade Agreement ( CETA) on Canada and Europe, thereby eliminating the Canadian Merchant Marine and drive the 4000 or so jobs of those who serve it offshore, not only will the governing Liberals have CETA , now called Bill C-30 in the House, ratified by early 2017 ( and thus able to begin eliminating Canadian Seafarers jobs immediately, before the Seaway opens and the beginning of the Canadian Navigation Season) but hope to have 50% of their dirty work done by the end of the Fall Session of Parliament on 16th of December 2016. Merry Christmas,  ye Seafarers!

As you told us at the S.I.U. of Canada 2015 Fall meeting in Montreal, the Canada Europe Comprehensive Economic & Trade Agreement ( CETA)  was thought by you and others to be  ” dead in the water”.

It was pronounced dead 3 more times by those who should know in the 2 weeks prior to being approved by the Prime Minister of Canada on Devils’ night, 30th of October, 2016.

Within a day, on All Hallows’ Eve, the text of the agreement was rushed to Ottawa and the House of Commons to immediately table implementing legislation, in direct violation of procedure introduced by the Liberals themselves ( that there should be a wait of at least 21 days between a treaty being signed and tabled.), to modify those Canadian Laws at odds with CETA. I’m sure that a Witches’ Sabbath must have followed.

Truly the Liberals, like those who enacted the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) as well as the previous government, who did the same  for CETA, acted  with secrecy and indecent haste, just as was done twice before, in hope of hiding their betrayal before it is discovered by the rest of Canada.

The Fall Session of Parliament will last for 5 weeks, from Monday 14/11/16 to Friday 16/12/16, during which the Liberals will butcher such Laws, among others,  as protect Canadian Coastal Cabotage in favour of the perceived advantage of cheap foreign crews.

So far, there are no plans to debate these changes while the House sits in the 1st week, 14/11/16 to 19/11/16. Therefore, measures to gut legislation which protects Canadians may only begin by Monday 21/11/16.

Crucial to the Liberals’ plans are speed  and secrecy. It is therefore incumbent upon us to, among other things, tear away such veils of secrecy as exist shrouding their activities in Parliament ,which will be: Introduction of amending legislation for Bill C-30; Presentation of  reports on CETA, designed to be innocent of any critical testimony, by the Standing Committee of International Trade; Such debates as there may be as well as votes for truncations of those Laws made in the interest of Canadians; in the days and weeks to come.

The schedule of government business is published only a week in advance while permits for demonstrations on Parliament Hill must be applied for at least 10 days before at $35 a day. It may be wise to obtain permits for every sitting day remaining in the Fall Session ( about $700).

The Minister of International Trade, who apparently knows all professors in that field of her alma mater by their first names, will probably be rewarded with a full professorship at Harvard for her efforts at the cost of thousands of Canadian  seafaring jobs and at that of the rest of Canada and Europe after she goes on to saddle India and China with similar arrangements.

Those who have been  seeking fortune from the discomfiture of our loved ones and that of whole societies besides must have the parts they tear from the body politic turn to sand and dust in their jaws.

When we abandoned the Europeans to fight CETA by themselves only to permit the agreement to be ratified by the Prime Minister on Devils’ Night,  we lost not only the chance of stopping CETA completely but gave the deals’ powerful allies all they would ever need or want to achieve their ends and destroyed any and all leverage that we could have had on our part, except perhaps pleading  for mercy(!).

Instead of having a significant chance of stopping CETA in Europe and possibly continuing the fight on our shores, we now have the beast at our door and desperate odds that will be measured day to day.

Now that the time has come to negotiate with Canada’s’ 2 most powerful employers, C.S.L. and Algoma, the Union has no leverage at all in resisting,  now and in the future, their insistence for ever increasing cuts to wages and benefits due to our not doing all that we could have to deny foreign flag ships entry into the market and shortly thereafter drive Canadian ships to foreign colours and Canadian crews from the seas.

As in Myth, the Unions’ leaders and officers, like the sheriffs and deputies of old, are not held to defend the town alone, but are wont to be joined by whomever would come attempt drive out the Beast,  whatever the result.

Among other things, the Union can:

• Picket Parliament on those days and others when Bill C-30  ( to enact CETA) is on the list of government business in the House, in order to warn the public of the governments’ intent.

• Encourage picketers to wear work clothes and gear used aboard ship to show that the soon to be dismissed sailors really do perform a service and truly exist.  ( Youth protest is one thing to the public, who is less impressed by it and somewhat expects it; Protest by adults, particularly ” Hard-hats”, is another, due to its’ rarity,and is the death-knell of governments when they occur, as the Nixon presidential resignation of ’75 and Municipal Forced Fusions in Quebec proved.).

The sooner the Union challenges CETAs’ enablers in Parliament,  the sooner the Liberals’ shielding veil of Ignorance and Secrecy will be ripped off to expose the full implications of their actions and the longer the public will have to see the true colours of those who were elected to fix the damage the previous  government, whether either will admit it or not, inflicted on Canada’s’ Sovereignty and Reputation.

Fraternally,

Marc de Villers,
D-1289.

Dear Mr. President:

This morning  ” The Tyee” published an article by Craig Scott, a  professor at  Osgoode Hall Law  School. describing a measure used by the Canadian Government to ram CETA through the House of Commons.

On 01/11/16, the Standing Committee on International Trade of the House of Commons opted to begin a study of CETA which will be rolled into Bill C-30,  ” An Act to implement CETA” upon its’ second reading in the House.

Normally, Parliamentary committees interested in full and fair treatment of an issue will invite written submissions from individuals and organizations not fortunate enough to be invited to testify in person before a committee. In CETAs’ case, the Committee on International Trade will consider only testimony from those invited to appear before it.

Considering that some of the Committees’ 9 members are made up of 6 Liberals and 2 Conservatives, one can see that the evidence heard will be a deeply skewed whitewash of CETAs’ effects on Canadians and Europeans in general but Canadian seafarers and our Merchant Marine in particular.

A written submission to the Committee by some such as yourself would bring a sobering dose of truth to the Committees’ Report of the Real Effects of CETA.

Should the Committee refuse to accept written testimony, or better yet, personal appearances from you & others before it in session, will the Seafarers’ International Union of Canada and its’ allies perhaps,demonstrate on Parliament Hill in protest or exercise some other form of action to demand redress?

The government intends to truncate and neuter Canadian laws intended to protect them and Canada’s Shipping Industry from just such iniquities as those forced upon the public by CETA.

What measures will the Union and the  Canadian Maritime Transport  Chain Alliance take in the coming days, weeks and months leading up to CETAs’ intended Imposition by early 2017?

As Winter and the Seaways’ seasonal closure approaches, the Members of the S.I.U. of Canada,  their Brothers and Sisters from different Unions and others besides, will  begin trickling back home and to family from their ships for a well deserved respite from their responsibilities. What will they think when they realize that the reward of their constant efforts will be Treachery sheathed in Ingratitude by many of their countries’ Law makers?

Since we permitted Canada’s’ government  to approve CETA  without our opposition to it in Europe, and left it’s many opponents there  unaided by our absence there  where it could have been most easily stopped, CETA has now sprung up at us from across the Ocean to shortly begin permanently idling our ships as well as our sailors because we’ve allowed Stephen Harpers’ successors the unearned advantage of granting CETA approval,  through our absence; All they needed to force us to our knees with what are effectively resulting pleas for quarter in exchange for  our silence in public.

We still have many ways of stopping CETAs’ unwarranted thirst to destroy Canada’s Maritime Trade, let alone permitting it’s shameless reduction of Our Nations’ Sovereignty , that of the Europeans and the disposal of the publics’ goods to foreign private interests.

Mr. President, what is the way forward? Seafarers will never lay down for this.

Fraternally,

Marc de Villers,
Wheelsman,
” Camilla Desgagnes”.
D-1289.

Brother:

Thank you for your emails regarding CETA and other important matters for the Canadian Maritime Industry.

I will draft you a full and detailed response in the coming days but feel
it is important to make sure you are fully aware of our efforts in a brief
format.

SIU has been working very closely with the European Transport Workers Federation, the International Transport Workers Federation and all Union within Europe. Although we did not have physical presence at their rallies etc you can rest assured our concerns were heard with the EU and the various Governments within it. In fact the SIU was one of the first Unions in Canada to contact the Government of Walloon and lend them our support. Our involvement in CETA reverts back over two years.

We have met with all members of the Transport Committee in Ottawa at least twice (and Senators) and we have submitted written recommendations for CETA and the Emerson report. We were the only Union invited to sit with the Minister during his round table sessions. We have met with the Chief negotiators for CETA and TISA Maritime on several occasions, no other transport Union has. We have also submitted briefs and met with all members of HUMA regarding TFW¹s in Canadian Maritime.

Rest assured the SIU has done, and is doing, all it can on both sides of
the pond. No other Maritime Union has done one tenth of what the SIU has and we will continue to represent our membership in these battles.

Fraternally,

James Given

The Spectre of CETA haunts Union members and their families, as well as the non unionized, officers and cadets, Captains to cabin boys. It threatens  the Liberty & Quality of life of all Canadians, not to mention Europeans as well.

On All Hallows’ Eve, Canada’s’ International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland introduced implementing legislation for CETA to Canada’s’ House of Commons with the intent of altering those laws with which it conflicts. This includes the Cabotage Act which has helped maintain a Canadian Merchant Fleet suitable for our needs for the past 60 years.

In a manner that befits thieves in the night, the Prime Minister & his minions, assisted by the remainders of the former government, are rushing to gut any legislation that stands in the way of CETA by Christmas in order to impose it on Canada early in the New year.

Daily checks of Hansard may reveal which
Sittings the Government will try to slip these butcherings of our laws quickly and quietly,out of view of the public.

It will be interesting to see whether our strategy to stop CETA  includes stopping  such Government steps as they transpire this Fall.

After we left others do our share of the work while the menace was still abroad in Europe ( where it was more vulnerable to being stopped outright), the Walloons faced dire threats as well as immense pressure to drop their objections to the secret tribunals, among others.

In so doing, they did the work of large nations. We have, through no merit of our own, gained an unearned reprieve.

Further, again thanks to others, we may escape CETAs’ blows through the saving graces of a German Court.

No one would have reproached a charismatic Union President, assisted by able lieutenants & perhaps accompanied by a few members ( There at their own expense! Who knows? One might have found some!) to help an informed & impassioned European opposition stop CETA before it was at Canada’s’ throat.

CETA is now breaking down our doors as we face a hard, unpredictable struggle with the paid minions of a long planned & powerful conspiracy.

Should we risk our careers  &  the future of our children based on such assurances as those provided by Jean Charest,Pierre-Marc Johnson or Brian Mulroney?

In the Western World, Governments and Courts respond to written laws, not the second hand utterings of corporate and political eunuchs skulking in the shadows of their darkened offices when the staff have gone home.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel crowed that CETA, as signed by the European Council on 29/10/16, was the same version initially rejected, with not a comma changed, agreeing with many legal commentators that the added clauses, negotiated by the Walloon and other dissident Parliaments, hadn’t the legal standing of the contested treaty.:

On 15/10/16, the Canada European Roundtable for Business sent a bluntly worded letter to Paul Magnette, Minister-President for the Walloon Parliament, that the House’s’ refusal to approve CETA would harm the EU’s relationship with Canada. This letter was circulated among the Canadian media by the Trudeau government.

Business Roundtables such as this are at the center of a web of influence that includes the Council on Foreign Relations (C.F.R.), the Canadian Council of Chief Executives ( C.C.C.E.),, as well as other powerful organizations.

The C.F.R. is  known in some circles as the Shadow Government: The reason why successive U.S. Governments have the same policies, regardless of which party is in power, is because each one has been liberally sprinkled with Fellows from within this powerful group.

The conference picketed by the S.I.U., at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel on 21/10/16, was sponsored by the Montreal branch of the Council on Foreign Relations, at which guests such as Christine Saint-Pierre, Pierre-Marc Johnson, Jean Charest et al.,  spoke in favour of CETA.

Needless to say, so does the C.F.R.

The S.I.U. has long been a part of the A.F.L.-C.I.O. ( American Federation of Labour/ Congress of Industrial Organizations.). In turn, the A.F.L./C.I.O. has been affiliated with the C.F.R. since shortly after the end of the Second World War.

While the Union continues to protest CETA, the group it is affiliated with, the C.F.R., forcefully supports it!

Faced with the difficulties of opposing a trade deal backed by  powerful forces, the Union may have to decide to defend members’ jobs by coming to an accord with the Government.

Perhaps, in return for the Government not enforcing some part(s)  of the Maritime Transport section of the agreement, the Union might cease trying to stop CETA being implemented.

Of course, any attempt by the Union to stop the deal at the outset ( Such as in Europe, for example) would probably be regarded as a deal breaker.

As is apparent now, the time to stop CETA was before our Prime-Minister signed it. Once that had happened, its’ passage in Parliament was guaranteed by the Liberal majority and their allies. They now have little need  to bargain except to reduce public displays of opposition.

Had they really wished to ease the passage of the treaty, negotiators would have asked only for such things as the transport of empty containers by foreign ships between Montreal & Halifax or topping up rights for bulk carriers at deeper water ports, which is all the European parties claim to want. Such a lesser request would have been easier for them to negotiate.

Instead, they’ve asked for and received rights to bid on contracts to transport cargo on flag of convenience ships anywhere in Canada.

Media coverage confirms that the Maritime Transport section is an important part of the reason CETA was enacted and won’t be traded away easily, if at all. Imagine the savings of 40 to 50 ships with flag of convenience crews!

The mention, at various Union meetings, of having Canadian crew members sail on foreign flag vessels now makes more sense.

Beyond training, which can be had on Canadian vessels and ashore, full application of CETA could cause a need for trained wheelsmen to accompany pilots and steer ships unaccustomed to the Seaways’ constricted waters, with perhaps additional seamen to ” swing” ashore.

This would leave our cooks, Mechanical-Assistants, Tunnel men, General purpose seafarers & others, high & dry.

We’d rather keep all our brethren, rather than just those few who might be kept on until authorities thought they could get away without risking groundings or collisions that might block the Seaway, or accidents and delays that would prevent the efficient delivery of cargo elsewhere.

It would be better to stop CETA  once & for all, as originally proposed in September 2014.

Given the opportunity for close examination, CETA and it’s’ siblings ( T.T.I.P., T.T.P., T.I.S.A. etc.) each uglier than the last,  aren’t really free-trade deals but  exist more to cause loss of sovereignty to Canada and the countries of Europe, as well as poisoning the existence of their inhabitants.

Getting rid of CETA benefits all in targeted countries, whereas whatever survival  Canadian seafarers would  achieve within it is diminished by the reduced circumstances  ( $500-$1000  per person per year) that everyone will endure as well as every countries’ inability to rule in favour of it’s citizens, due to the additional power of large, foreign corporations.

Major elections are coming  up  next year in Europe which will affect CETA:

The German Social Democrats, whose support for Angela Merkel’s’ Christian Democrats permitted the formation of a minority government and only weeks ago made Germanys’ government pro-CETA,  will be ejected  by their own voters ( recent support only 6%) for betraying their political principles ( namely, supporting big German business instead of people in order to enhance their leaders’ chances of becoming Chancellor).

The President of France and his Prime Minister ( Manuel Valls, who recently travelled to Canada to push CETA on to Canadians), are hurriedly carrying out their last acts before being thrown out for interfering in Libya & Syria and triggering Europes’ refugee crisis.

Germany & France would have been much more critical of CETA except for their current, tottering leaders.

Major changes are occurring daily in the United States which have already turned public opinion against the fake ” free trade” deals which are actually treasonable betrayals of the Sovereignty of the countries therein involved and a state approved drain on their citizens’ resources and health.

If we can actually stop CETA, it will be much easier for others to stop T.T.I.P., T.T.P. and the other commercial travesties which blight what passes as discourse on International Trade.

We are now emmeshed in President Jack Kennedys’ “long  Twilight struggle”, though knowing that by working together, we can pull through.

The forces we face are having to act hurriedly because their window of opportunity is closing fast: They haven’t seen this degree of  public outrage in 50 years.

Should CETA be stopped, it will probably be because of what the Walloons, the German Court and many others have already done. Hopefully we will do what remains to end this threat to Europe and Canada.

As seafarers, we know that it isn’t a case of getting ourselves to safety,  but  rather that we get the  passengers there too.

I’ll drop by the office, either once my responsibilities here are over or as soon as time permits.

Fraternally,

Marc de Villers.
D-1289.

A secret clause of CETA reveals that if the Council of European Ministers gets unanimous approval of the 28 member states, the accord is then considered ” provisionally” approved.

Subsequently, the treaty requires the approval of only 15 states for 95% of CETA to come into effect immediately, probably including the Marine Transportation section.

In such a case, no parliament need ever vote for the main part of the accord to be binding. Therefore, approval of the greater part of the treaty need never come to a vote in the European Parliament, any of the European National Parliaments or apparently, the Parliament of Canada. Ever.

With only Belgiums’ approval lacking due to the Walloon Parliaments’ refusal to sign, this may mean the effective end of the negotiating process as far as anyone is concerned, including any bargaining leading up to a possible debate in the Canadian Parliament, should Wallonia decide to sign off.

The article did not stipulate whether the Canadian Prime Minister need sign off in order for CETA to mostly come into effect, though I assume he would do so if the European Council achieved unanimity.

According to  a CNBC headline posted a few hours ago ( without any elaborating text), the time for the Walloons to sign the agreement has been extended to late Monday, Brussels time.

A member of the German Ministry of economics acknowledged the existence of the clause in March, 2016.

A brief synopsis of the meaning of the clause appears at “https//stop-ttip.org/blog/good-bye-democracy-hello-ceta“.

The article turned up while searching ” ceta news” this morning on Google & showed up then at page 10 for a posted article of ” the Ecologist” magazine on 15/04/16. The headline from CNBC turned up then on page 9.

Sorry for not calling the duty person for urgent messages as I wasn’t able to find the phone number on short notice.  Regardless, at this time our ship is at sea & the phone transmits but does not receive.

Fraternally,

Marc de Villers,
Wheelsman,
” Camilla Desgagnes”
D-1289.
514-404-6008.

Vos commentaires, intérêt et appui à nos (vos) efforts contre cette entente sont forts appréciés.  Nous essayons de garder nos membres au courant autant que possible dans nos démarches et les avancements ou reculs via la page FB du syndicat. Je vous invite à vous abonner à la page et aux mises à jour.

Si nous sommes en mesure de vous aviser d’avance de nos démarches, manifs ou autres, je le ferai.

Fraternellement,

Micheline Morin

Vice-présidente, St-Laurent et Côte Est  | Vice-President, St. Lawrence and East Coast
Syndicat International des Marins Canadiens | Seafarers’ International Union of Canada

 

Bonjour, Madame Morin.

Merci de votre reponse prompte a l’egard de mes questions sur l’aide que pourraient apporter les membres individuels du Syndicat pour aider a contrecarrer l’acceptation du CETA. Notre service Wifi en region eloigne est quelque peu episodique et rend difficile rester en communication et demeurer informe.

J’attrais votre attention sur l’article de Nick Dearden de l’ Ontario Federation of Labour dans la section Affaires de l’edition Canadienne du Huffington Post de ce matin dans laquelle il critique la manque de sensibilisation des syndicats Canadiens et du C. L.C. aupres de leurs membres a l’egard des effets nefastes du CETA sur la societe ( et sur nos emplois )en comparaison aux organismes equivalentes en Europe.

Comme vous l’avez recommande, j’ai verifie les actions prises et contemples par l’Union a l’egard de CETA sur la page Facebook du Syndicat et, a part d’une apparente distribution de pamphlets a Montreal le 9/10/16, n’ai rien trouvé.

Considerant les evenements fatidiques qui se trament ces derniers jours a Bruxelles, ou parmi d’autres considerations serieuses, pendent les emplois de milliers de marins Canadiens, et qui dependent, parait il, de la seule resistance de la Wallonie et de quelques autres petits pays et regions appauvris de l’Europe: le Syndicat ou autres membres de l’Alliance Canadienne des Metiers Maritimes y sont ils au moins representes?

Le moment strategique pour prevenir les pertes d’emploi au Canada n’est pas APRES que l’entente soit signe par le Premier Ministre Canadien ( qui avec sa majorite parlementaire pourra l’accepter dans son entierite avec toutes ses consequences pour nous), mais AVANT, quand les dangers qui pesent sur nous, le Canada et l’Europe pourraient  etre elimines d’un coup.

C’est pourquoi j’ai demande si des individus du Syndicat pouvaient aider en allant en Europe, en payant de leur proper poche, pour aider notre Alliance et les Europeens a vaincre le CETA.

Le Syndicat a t’il une entente sous-entendue avec le Gouvernement pour mitiger les effets du traite?

Aiderait t’il au Syndicat si des membres interesses se rendent a Bruxelles par leurs propres moyens pour assister sinon participer aux evenements?

Notre avenir pourrait se decider a Bruxelles dans les prochains jours et il n’en tient qu’a un fil. La laisseront nous s’echapper de nos mains?

  Fraternellement,

  Marc de Villers
  Timonier,
  ” Camilla Desgagnes”.

Bonjour Marc,

Merci de ton courriel ci-bas. Je vais faire suivre ton courriel à Patrice Caron, qui lui, par son implication directe au niveau des relations gouvernementales est mieux placé pour répondre à tes questions.

Je veux cependant t’aviser que nous avons été invités et participons à une autre manifestation ce vendredi, le 21 octobre à Montréal- voici le lien: https://www.facebook.com/events/982818161847262/

Je mettrai le lien sur ma propre page FB.

Fraternellement,

Micheline Morin

Vice-présidente, St-Laurent et Côte Est | Vice-President, St. Lawrence and East Coast
Syndicat International des Marins Canadiens | Seafarers’ International Union of Canada