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Take Action! Stop the EU helping itself to developing countries' raw materials!

Many developing countries are rich in raw materials, such as copper, gold, and diamonds. For years they have exported these raw materials unprocessed, making very little money. The extraction of these raw materials by multinational companies has also resulted in significant environmental damage and the depletion of these resources. Now, many developing countries want to do it differently.

But the EU’s new trade policy on raw materials is undermining the effort of the world’s poorest countries to develop their economies, eradicate poverty, and protect the environment. This policy will prevent developing countries from sustainably managing their natural resources, and from ensuring they get a fair price for their raw materials. In September our MEPs will vote on a newly proposed EU strategy on raw materials.

We need your help to remind our MEPs to stand up for the interests of the poor and the environment, and to keep the promises they made to us in 2009. MEPs should ensure that Europe’s trade policy allows developing countries to make their own economic choices for the benefit of their people and the planet. We believe that Europe’s trade policy should support developing countries to trade their way out of poverty, rather than enslaving them to European corporate interests.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What can you do?

1.    Sign our postcard. Request one or more postcards by email (fleachta@comhlamh.org ), or download them by clicking here. Sign and detach the first part and send it to your MEP by by Monday 5th September 2011. Then send back the second part to us to let us know.  You can find out who your MEPs are by visiting www.europarl.ie/view/en/irish_meps.html . To learn more about our campaign, please go to www.comhlamh.org/campaigns.html . Let us know by email or post (Ballast House, Aston Quay, Dublin 2) any response you receive, or if you would like more postcards to be sent to you for your friends and family.

 

2.    Take our e-action (http://www.comhlamh.org/eu-eaction-august-2011.html). The European Commission is drafting a new policy on trade and development, and has launched a public consultation on the issue. Many business groups will lobby hard to ensure this policy benefits them, so that they can continue to profit from developing countries’ raw materials. It’s vital the Commission hears from lots of concerned citizens like you, that developing countries must have the right to get the full value of their raw materials through trade. The consultation closes on Sunday 21st August, so take this action now and together let’s tell the European Commission to stop the EU’s new resource grab!


3.    Tweet & Facebook your friends & family. Join our online campaign on facebook and twitter, by following us at facebook.com/comhlamh and twitter.com/comhlamh and by sharing and retweeting our posts and tweets. Join in the conversation on twitter using #resourcegrab.

Join Campaigners across Europe and take action now!