How CEOs get away with murder

Details: Published on Monday, 05 September 2016 05:30; Written by editor

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In these secret courts corporations can sue governments for making laws that protect people and the environment but hurt their profits.

Tell world leaders to ditch these dangerous courts for good!

Sign the petition

What if corporations were allowed to sue governments because its laws protect people and the environment but hurt corporate profits?

What if there was a tribunal where corporate executives were able to literally get away with murder?

A major Buzzfeed News report just exposed the inner workings of secret international courts that corporations use to sue governments for the most ludicrous things like failing to protect an oil well during war or for making a national park instead of a mine. Some countries can't afford the process so the mere threat of a lawsuit forces them to fold and dish out millions to corporations without even going to court.

These courts are already attacking our democracies - and new trade deals like TPP could make them even more powerful. It’s up to our politicians whether we cooperate with these dubious secret courts, and even, whether we sign up to them in the first place.

Tell our leaders to end their use of these secret corporate courts - and we'll take the message to governments around the world.

These courts have existed for years, to “protect” corporations from governments making laws that protect people, the environment and hold up working standards but might hurt corporate profits. But many governments are chosen by their citizens. No one votes for the CEOs of big corporations or the lawyers making these decisions - so why should they get to jeopardise people’s lives and public funds, just to make more profit?

Buzzfeed reports confirm the complete lack of transparency, corruption and absence of accountability in these courts. The very same people who judge these cases are the lawyers getting corporations millions of dollars for suing a struggling economy.

SumOfUs members have made a habit of standing up against the worst parts of global trade deals for three years. We’ve delivered petitions to world leaders in places as far apart as Hawaii and Berlin. We’ve confronted politicians in Brussels, Sydney, and everywhere in between to put a stop to dangerous trade deals. We’ve paid for polls to prove to our leaders that most people don’t support huge global trade deals without proper democracy checks on their power.

Now we need to turn up the pressure again. Help to stop our leaders giving these dangerous courts more power.

Thanks for all that you do,

Paul, Ledys and the team at SumOfUs

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More information:

The Secret Justice System that Lets Executives Escape their Crimes, Buzzfeed News, August 29th 2016

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