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Complied and annotated by Derek Yap for the BCLA Information Policy Commitee
May 1998
MAI-not Project
The MAI-not! Project mounted at Carlton University is one of the most
important resources for information on the Multilateral Agreement on Investment.
The site contains regular updates about the status of the MAI and the protest
that is being mounted against it in Canada. Some features of the site include
a MP survey, texts of the agreement from the OECD, links to organizations
that are in opposition to the agreement, and links to an online library
site. Outside of this main topic, the site also provides an excellent tutorial
of advocacy towards government and politicians for a particular cause.
A list of "pro" and "con" web sites is available at
http://mai.flora.org/osites.htm.
Globalization and MAI Information Center
http://www.islandnet.com/~ncfs/maisite/
This site is tilted towards opposing the MAI, providing an overview
of information available about the MAI, including letters, articles, and
news releases supporting and opposing this agreement. Of interest is a
complete address list of politicians in Canada and the United States. People
who want access to primary documents can find a list of campaign letters
and websites for and against the MAI, in which there are links to a fundraising
letter to CEOs and to a letter calling for action by a trade union group.
Government departments and International agencies
OECD
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development or OECD is the source from which the main impetus for the development of the MAI has come.
http://www.oecd.org/daf/cmis/mai/maindex.htm
This is the official OECD site with new links to pages explaining the MAI in relation to labor regulations and environment, apparently in response to grassroots negative reaction to the agreement. There are also links to the actual text and a commentary that goes with it. Unfortunately, many texts on this site are readable only through Adobe Acrobat. In the Policy briefs section, there is a question and answer list, and there is a bibliography of further references and contacts available at www.oecd.org/publications/Pol_brief/9702_pol.htm#11
Canada
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/english/trade/backgr-e.htm
This is the official website of the government’s position on the MAI:
why we need it, how it’s good for us, and how it will not take away Canadian
sovereignty and control in any way. This site allows for keyword searching
of the documents on its site, and provides press releases and an answer
sheet for questions being asked about the MAI.
Associations
Council of Canadians
http://www.canadians.org/
The Council of Canadians website is one unabashedly dedicated to fighting
the MAI, with links to its campaign material and letters to government.
Examples of media releases, joint NGO letters to the OECD, and a list of
OECD countries’ reservations to the MAI is used to buttress their case.
Following this is a link that leads people to various legal, environmental,
and citizens’ groups that are also against the MAI.
Appleton and Associates MAI page
http://www.appletonlaw.com/MAI/home.html
This is a website developed by an international law firm that delves
into the legal language of the MAI. The firm translates it, using case
law and precedent, to illustrate the ramifications of the MAI for governments,
namely, that they would be directly responsible to investors through action
in an international tribunal, with the MAI taking precedence over national
laws, regulations, and policies.
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/newst.html
This source provides four analyses of the impact the MAI may have on Canadian provincial and federal legislation, including an essay by Tony Clarke.
All of these analyses focus on the MAI as a codification of investor
and multinational corporate rights superseding the rights of government
to govern their countries.
Canadian Labour Congress
http://www.clc-ctc.ca/eng-index.html
This website is a collection of briefs and summaries, and includes a
downloadable poster. The documents on this site describe the MAI as a threat
to environmental and labor legislation in Canada, and encourages visitors
to explore the OECD site to look at the MAI and all of the exemptions pending
against it.
Online Library
"MAI? No thanks...!" On-Line Library
http://www.geocities.com/athens/3565/
This is a website maintained by Hendrik Zimmerman which includes some texts of the MAI, many articles indexed by author and keyword, and a list archive. Subscription information to the mailing list is included. From here, there is a links page that directs people to organizations that oppose and support the MAI, and following there are links to websites that cover economics issues.
Videos
CBC
http://www.tv.cbc.ca/national/pgminfo/freetrade/index.html
The CBC has developed an excellent site that has put material on the
US-Canada FTA, NAFTA, and MAI all in one place and includes video clips
of John Turner and Brian Mulroney – in debate, and in reflection ten years
later. There are links here to a discussion forum, the text of the MAI,
and to various organizations, from the OECD to the Ralph Nader’s Global
Trade Watch that have information on or about the MAI. Full-text transcripts
of The National that have covered the MAI are also accessible through
an Excite search engine here at this site.
The MAI-not! Project Kit
http://mai.flora.org/mai-info/
This is an online kit that includes an overview of the agreement, some
background and analysis articles, tips on creating and sending information
and letters to politicians in North America, and quotes, reference, and
a flyer that can be downloaded and printed for use.
Annotated Web Bibliography
MAI Websites Worldwide
http://news.flora.org/flora.mai-not/3264
"An Annotated listing:Prepared by Janet M. Eaton [[email protected]] For the Nova Scotia Network for Creative Change Website and for the general use of Citizens and Groups everywhere."
This is a large collection of websites prepared by citizens’, cultural,
labour, environmental, and governmental groups, most of which oppose the
MAI. This is a great resource for anyone who wants to strengthen their
arsenal of information to oppose any or all aspects of the MAI.
Conclusion
The Multilateral Agreement on Investment is a topic that has only fairly
recently received any coverage; as a result, the Internet and current affairs
resources are the most important ones for the moment. More detailed analyses
in articles and books are now starting to appear and it is predicted many
more will come out in the near future.