Words like prosperity and harmonization sound nice, but aren‘t when they apply to the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP), protesters said Saturday in Kelowna.
“Harmonization sounds like everyone‘s being co-operative, and who‘s against prosperity,” said protester Grant Baudais.
“But when it‘s in relation to the Security and Prosperity Partnership between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, it‘s something to fear.”
The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America website (www.spp.gov/index.asp) says it was launched in March of 2005 as a trilateral effort to increase security and enhance prosperity among the United States, Canada and Mexico through greater co-operation and information sharing.
However, Baudais, who will be a Canadian Action Party candidate in the next federal election, said the partnership would lead to a “lowest common denominator” scenario in which Canada would lower safety, food and health standards to those in Mexico.
“The only ones who will benefit from this arrangement is big American industry,” said protester Gerry Bohemier, a Kelowna chiropractor.
“The losers will be the working and middle classes in Canada,” said Bohemier.
Across the country Saturday, similar protests were staged in 20 communities, with a total of 10,000 people expected to participate.
Kelowna‘s crowd was small at about 100, but it was double the size of another Security and Prosperity Partnership protest in the city last August.
“People are starting to hear about the SPP and are worried,” said organizer Dan Merchant, a carpenter. “They want to bring down the SPP, and protests like this are a good way to let government know we want the process stopped.”
Baudais said 10 big corporations from Canada, the United States and Mexico are driving the process, so the mandate is corporate profits, not looking out for the average citizen.
He fears when the partnership comes up with final recommendations, the federal government will simply rubber-stamp them.
Baudais also said the partnership could include a 16-lane superhighway from south Mexico to Winnipeg.
The highway would not only see people and goods come and go freely, but there would be water, oil and gas pipelines for Canada‘s resources to flow out of the country, he said.
“All the manufacturing would be done in Mexico because of the cheap labour, and all of Canada‘s resources would be used,” said Bohemier.
“It would be American business that benefits.”
The Kelowna protest began at noon with the crowd assembling in the parking lot of the Coast Capri Hotel to hear short speeches by organizers.
The protesters then spent 45 minutes at the nearby busy intersection of Highway 97 and Gordon Drive, waving placards at passing motorists.
The crowd then marched downtown to the Sails sculpture, carrying their placards.
Some of the messages on the signs included Save Our Country, the SPP is Giving Away Our Resources, Freedom Not Fascism, I Didn‘t Vote for SPP, Democracy Not SPP and Canada Strong and Free. Top of Page
