International Citizen’s Petition to the World Bank
In January 2000, just months after it took over control of the water system of Bolivia’s third largest city, Cochabamba, a Bechtel Corporation subsidiary hit water users with enormous price increases.
Text of the international petition delivered to the World Bank and ICSID
August 29, 2002
James D. Wolfensohn, President, World Bank
Ko-Yung Tung, Secretary-General, ICSID
David D. Caron, tribunal president
Henri C. Alvarez, tribunal memberJosé Luis Alberro-Semerena, tribunal member
ICSID Dispute Resolution Panel
c/o International Centre for the Resolution of Investment DisputesWorld Bank1818 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20433
RE: Demand for public participation
Aguas del Tunari S.A. (Bechtel) v. Republic of Bolivia (Case No. ARB/02/3)
Dear Sirs:
The signers of this letter represent more than 300 civil society organizations and public leaders across five continents. We are writing to you out of our shared commitment to the right of people to participate in the public matters that affect their communities and nations. With this letter we respectfully request that you guarantee public participation in the arbitration between Aguas del Tunari/Bechtel Enterprises and the Republic of Bolivia, a case that directly implicates one of the most fundamental human needs – access to water. This case is one of the most visible and important cases that has come before a World Bank/ICSID tribunal – Aguas del Tunari/Bechtel Enterprises vs. Bolivia.
Background
The history of this case is well-known worldwide. Under direct pressure from the World Bank, the Bolivian government put up for private lease the water system of its third largest city, Cochabamba. In 1999, following a process with just one bidder, a 40-year concession was granted to Aguas del Tunari, a majority-owned subsidiary of Bechtel Enterprises of California set up for that sole purpose. Within weeks of taking over control of the water system, the company raised water rates by an average of more than 50% and in some cases far higher. Families living on a minimum wage of $60 per month (and often less) were ordered by the company to pay as much as 25% of their income just to maintain their water service.
The people of Cochabamba, unable to pay the bills presented them by the company and unable to get any satisfactory relief from the Bolivian government, were forced into massive and widespread public protests. To protect the company’s contract the Bolivian government took extraordinary measures against its people, including a declaration of a state of emergency, the suspension of constitutional rights, and the violent repression of the protests, resulting in more than 100 injuries and the death of one 17 year old boy, Victor Hugo Daza. In April 2000, with the government unable to stop the protests, the company abandoned its management of the water system and left the country.
The basis of our demand for participation
To be clear, in our view the World Bank/ICSID should not be handling this case to begin with. The World Bank/ICSID system is one of what the New York Times recently called “secret trade courts” (“A Fairer Trade Bill” New York Times editorial, July 25, 2002), in which urgent public matters are decided behind a shroud of secrecy, without full information and without any of the opportunities for public vigilance and participation that are the basis for public legitimacy. Such public involvement is essential to the legitimate resolution of disputes, like this one, that directly affect issues of fundamental public concern.
Moreover, the World Bank/ICSID handling of this case is even more unjustified for two specific reasons unique to this case:
First, the World Bank is by no means a neutral party in this matter. It is well-documented that it was the World Bank itself which directly forced the government of Bolivia to privatize the water system of Cochabamba, making that privatization a condition for both debt relief and funds for water system expansion and thereby setting the events of this case in motion. Additionally, during the water revolt in Bolivia in April 2000, World Bank president James Wolfensohn personally made public comments about the case, justifying water price increases. Further, despite the Bank’s role in the history of this case, Mr. Wolfensohn violated one of the most important principles of objectivity when he directly appointed the President of the arbitration tribunal that will decide the case. These facts have created strong and well-justified public doubt that ICSID can resolve this dispute fairly.
Second, Bechtel/Aguas del Tunari’s claim of ICSID jurisdiction rests entirely on a bogus claim of being a Dutch corporation (and therefore benefiting from Holland’s bilateral investment treaty with Bolivia which invokes ICSID as arbitrator of any trade disputes between the two countries). Bechtel/Aguas del Tunari moved its registration to Holland only after it signed its water contract with Bolivia, in a forum-shopping exercise already repudiated by the Dutch government.
Given, however, that the World Bank/ICSID has acceded to Bechtel/Aguas del Tunari’s request to take this case, this makes it all the more imperative that the process be opened to public participation and scrutiny, as laid out in this letter.
We would also note that Bechtel/Aguas del Tunari has already made plain their willingness to advance fraudulent information about the case. In response to widespread public and press attention to the company’s rate hikes, a Bechtel Enterprises spokeswoman, Ms. Gail Apps, widely distributed the following statement to members of the public and the media inquiring abut the rate increases it imposed, “For the poorest people in Cochabamba rates went up little, barely 10 percent.” Data drawn directly from the water company’s computers make clear that the rate increase in question averaged more than 50%.
If Bechtel/Aguas del Tunari is willing to assert clearly fraudulent information such as this on the public record, one can only imagine what misinformation the company will be willing to provide to the tribunal behind closed doors and away from public scrutiny. For this reason as well, civil society groups directly knowledgeable about the facts at hand must be able to participate actively in the case, to assure that the tribunal receives a complete and accurate rendering of those facts.
The methods of participation proposed
For all these reasons, we propose that the Tribunal adopt the following procedures:
1) Grant the Petition of Affected Individuals and Organizations to Participate in the Case
We call on the Tribunal to grant the petition to participate made by key Bolivian leaders, including Oscar Olivera of The Coalition for Water and Life; Father Luis Sánchez, a member of Cochabamba’s public water company board of directors (SEMAPA); Omar Fernández of the Cochabamba Federation of Irrigators; and Congressman Jorge Alvarado, President of the Cochabamba delegation of the Bolivian Congress. These leaders, represented by able and experienced Bolivian and U.S. counsel, represent tens of thousands of people with a direct stake in the case. Their participation is essential to legitimate resolution of this dispute.
2) Publicly Disclose all Documents Filed with the Tribunal
In order to provide for adequate public scrutiny of the claims made by the two parties, especially given the record of misinformation, we call on the Tribunal to place into the public record all documents filed with the Tribunal.
3) That the Tribunal Members Travel to Bolivia to Receive Public Testimony
It is clearly within the purview of the tribunal to come directly to Cochabamba, Bolivia and receive testimony from the people directly affected by the case and who have important information to share with the tribunal:
“…the Tribunal may, if it deems it necessary at any stage of the proceedings…visit the scene connected with the dispute, and conduct such inquiries there as it may deem appropriate. [Convention On The Settlement of Investment Disputes Between States and Nationals of Other States: Powers And Functions Of The Tribunal, Section 3, Article 43].
We call on the panel to invoke that power in this case and to travel to Cochabamba to receive appropriate public testimony relevant to the case.
4) That the tribunal hearings be made completely open to the public.
All tribunal hearings should be open to the public, including making all transcripts of the testimony public, as well as all tribunal decisions and awards.
Conclusion
No ICSID case has ever drawn the public attention that this case has and will continue to, and for good reason. The actions of Aguas del Tunari/Bechtel in Bolivia left a city of more than 600,000 people in turmoil for four months. They left hundreds injured and one young boy dead, and jeopardized thousands of peoples’ access to the most fundamental element of life. This case is about far more than the calm transfer of assets from one economic institution to another. It is a matter of deep importance to far more than the two parties who now have formal access to the process. We hope the Tribunal will grant our requests and the petition to participate, and will honor the legitimate right of civil society to also have an active and constructive role in this case.
Sincerely,
Argentina
Enrique Arceo, Instituo de Estudios sobre Estado y participación, Central de los Trabajadores Argentinos
Australia
Dr. Patricia Ranald, Convenor, Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network
Neville Spencer, Coordinator, Committees In Solidarity with Latin America and the Caribbean John Hermann, Economic Reform
Australia
Terrie Templeton, Community Information Association
Tony Beck, National Secretary, Finance Sector Union
Margo Beilby, Co-Convenor, Greens WA
Toshi Knell, Director, Ratifiers for Democracy
Brian Jenkins, Honorary Secretary, Stop MAI Coalition
Austria
Matthias Reichl, Center for Encounters and Active Non-Violence
Bangladesh
Dr. Qasem Chowdhury, Coordinator, People’s Health Movement Secretariat
Belgium
Gebrand Nootens, Presidente, Boliviacentrum Antwerpen
Wim Melis, Programas Internacionales – Bolivia y Perú, Broederlijk Delen
Eric Toussaint, President, Committee for the Cancellation of the Third World Debt (CADTM)
Rudy De Meyer, Diensthoofd Studie en Publicaties Koepel van de Vlaamse Noord-Zuidbeweging
Janice Goodson-Foerde, General and Advocacy Focal Point for International Gender and Trade Network-Europe (IGTN-E)
Janice Goodson-Foerde, International Coalition for Development and Action (ICDA)
Leida Rijnhout, Coordinadora, Organisatie Vlaams Overleg Duurzame Ontwikkeling
Xavier Declercq, Mobilization manager, Oxfam-Solidarity
Bolivia
Rose Marie de Achá, Representante, Acción Andina
Luis Sanchez Gomez, President, Asamblea Permanente de los Derechos Humanos de Cochabamba (APDH-C)
Gabriel Herbas, Bolivian Forum on the Environment
Luis Perez Alanoca, Coordinator, Bolivian Joining Hands for Life Network/Red Boliviania Uniendo Manos por la Vida (UMANIDA)
Tom Kruse, Center for Agriculture and Labor Development Studies (CEDLA)
Arturo Reynoso Bolanos, Director, Centro Cuarto Intermedio (CCI)
Miguel A. Miranda Hernandez, Director, Centro de Asesoramiento
Maria Lohman, Directora, Centro de Documentación e Información (CEDIB)
Marcela Olivera, Coaltion for the Defense of Water and Life (La Coordinadora)
Omar Fernandez, Cochabamba Federation of Irrigators
Oscar Olivera, Federation of Factory Workers and Coalition for the Defense of Water and Life (La Coordinadora)
Pablo Solon, Director, Fundacion Solon
Elizabeth Peredo, Responsable de Mujer, Identidad y Trabajo, Fundacion Solon
Integral de la Mujer “Pro – Futuro”
Lee Cridland, Director, Jakaña
Mary Aulson and Judith Esmenda, Global Concerns Commision, Maryknoll Congregation
Ruben Martinez Flores, Coordinador Nacional De Pastoral Universitaria
Jorge Alvarado, President of the Cochabamba delegation of the Bolivian Congress
Father Luis Sanchez, member, board of directors, SEMAPA (public water company)
Anna Malavisi, Directora Oficina en Bolivia, Servicio Internacional Britanico
Nidia Bustillos Rodriguez, Stichting Ayni
Jim Shultz, executive director, The Democracy Center
Andy and Andrea Baker, Bolivia Field Directors, World Made Flesh
Brazil
Dr. Carlos Walter Porto Gonçalves, Associação dos Geógrafos
Dieter Wartchow, Companhia Riograndense de Saneamento (CORSAN)
Tiago Pariz Lorenzoni, Director, Human Before Profit
Canada
Jack Thornburgh, Chair, Alberni Social Justice Group
Aimee Van Drimmelen, Chairperson, Canadian Federation of Students, Quebec
Kenneth V. Georgetti, President, Canadian Labour Congress
Judy Darcy, National President, Canadian Union of Public Employees
Sheryle Carlson, Director at Large, Citizens for Peaceful Communities
Brian Payne, President, Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP)
Consumers’ Association of Canada
Maude Barlow, Council of Canadians, Canada
David Diamond, Headlines Theatre
Fred Muzin, President, Hospital Employees’ Union (CUPE)
Lynn Foster, Executive Secretary, International Society for Peace and Human Rights
Mark Achbar, President, Invisible Hand Productions Inc.
Marie-Paule Brisson and Sebastien De Marre, West Kootenay Latin American Support Group
David McDonald, Municipal Services Project
Don Warthe, Social Justice Chair, Nelson and District Teachers’ Association
Naomi Klein, author, “No Logo”
Tony Clarke, Director, Polaris Institute
Joan Frances Tuck, President, Social Justice Committee
Jamie Dunn, Blue Planet Project Campaigner, The Council of Canadians
Jean Philippe Sapinski, Graduate Students Association of the Department of Anthropology, University of Montreal
C.D. Muldrew, President, Veterans against Nuclear Arms- Manitoba Branch
Colombia
Comite de Movilizacion del Foros Social Mundial en Colombia
Costa Rica
Isaac Rojas, COECO Ceiba-Amigos de la Tierra
Croatia
Drazen Simlesa, Professor, Green Network of Alternative Groups
Ecuador
Carlos Zorrilla, President, Defensa y Conservacion Ecologica de Intag
El Salvador
Angel Ibarra, Unidad Ecologica Salvadorena, UNES
France
Nicolas Guihard, Campaign Coordinator, Agir Ici
Martine Le Bec-Cabon, Présidente, Association H2O
Jean-Luc Touly, Trésorier, Association pour un Contrat Mondial de l’Eau (ACME)
Biens publics à l’échelle mondiale
Sébastien Godinot, IFI reform campaign, Friends of the Earth, France
Hans Engelberts, General Secretary, Public Services International
Franck Poupeau, Sociologist, Raisons d’agir
Germany
Carol Bergin, founding member, Initiative Colibri
Rev. Ulrich Duchrow, Kairos Europa
Moira Schmidt, Co-Founder, Reclaiming Earth Activists (REA) Network in Europe
Ghana
Patrick Apoya, Community Partnerships For Health and Development, Ghana
Rudolf Amenga-Etego, Integrated Social Development Centre, Ghana
Charles Abugre, Integrated Social Development Centre, Ghana
Mr. Mawuli Dake, Jubilee 2000 Afrika Campaign
Denis Chirawurah, Peoples’s Actions For Community Transformation, Ghana
Holland
Frank van Scahik, A Seed Europe
Willem Verhaak, Researcher, Academic Institute of the Green Left Party
Wiert Wiertsema, Policy Director, Both ENDS
Comité tegen de Straffeloosheid in Chili
Berrie Jurg, Friends of the Earth, Netherlands
Johan Frijns, Coordinator International Financial Institutions Programme, Friends of the Earth International
H.I.J.O.S. Nederland
Maja Haanskorf, Editor in Chief, La Chispa
Edith van Overveld, Latin America Centre
Organisatie Latijns Amerika Activiteiten
OSA-Ontwikkelingseducatie Stedenbanden Amsterdam
Marianne Koeman, Voorzitter (Presidente), SNKP-Bolivia
Harry van Bommel, Socialistische Partij (Socialist Party)
Stichting Promolat/Noticias
Stichting Stedenband Amsterdam-Managua
Annelies Borsboom, Acting Director, Transnational Institute
Saul Landau, Fellow, Transnational Institute
Daniel Chavez, Transnational Institute
Vrouweninformatiepunt Nicaragua, Holland
Kees Hudig, Stafmember, Xminus Y Solidarity Fund
Hong Kong
Kevin Li, Globalisation Monitor
India
S.M.Prithiviraj, Executive Director, Community Awareness Research Education
Maya Jani, Director, Diverse Women for Diversity
K T Suresh, Coordinator, Equations
D.Albert, Coordinator, Human Rights & Legal Services Unit, Indian Social Institute
Dr. Vineeta Gupta, General Secretary, Insaaf International
Afsar H.Jafri, Deputy Director, NAVDANYA
Martin Macwan, Director, Navsarjan
Dr. Vandana Shiva, Director, Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology
Indonesia
Bagus Muhammad, General Secretary, Association for Civil Society Empowerment
Irma Yanny, Chairperson, Federation of Indonesian Peasant Union (FSPI)
Binny Buchori, Executive Secretary, Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID)
Ireland
Jean Somers, Coordinator, Debt and Development Coalition
Suzanne Ryder, Mercy International Justice Network
Italy
Pia Valota, ACU international relations, ACU Associazione Consumatori Utenti ONLUS
Elvira Dizon, JPIC Coordinator, Franciscan Missionaries of Mary
Riccardo Petrella, International Committee for the Global Water Contract
Japan
Consumers Union of Japan
Kyoko Ishida, Program Coordinator, Japan Center for a Sustainable Society
Toshiyuki Doi, Wekong Watch
Malaysia
Rosli Omar, Committe member SOS
Petaling Jaya, Selangor and Federal Territory Consumer’ Associations
Mexico
María Eugenia Romero, Executive Director, Equidad de Género: Ciudadanía, Trabajo y Famila
Antonio Valenzuela, Director, Indigenas Sin Fronteras
Dr. Alejandro Villamar, Directorate Member, Red Mexicana de Accion Frenteal Libre Comercio (RMALC)
Ana Esther Ceceña, Directora, Revista Chiapas
Dr. Enrique de la Garza Toledo, Director of Graduate Studies, Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana
New Zealand
Susie Lees, President, GE Free New Zealand in Food and Environment
Rod Donald, MP; Jeanette Fitzsimons, MP, Co-Leaders, Green Party Of Aotearoa
Paul Bruce, Coordinator, Latin America Solidarity Committee of Aotearoa
Dr Meriel Watts, Co-coordinator, Pesticide Action Network
Alison White, Co-convenor, Safe Food Campaign
Adrienne Ross, The Peace Foundation, New Zealand
Penny Bright, Media Spokesperson, Water Pressure Group
Norway
Helene Bank, Vice President, Friends of the Earth, Norway
Pakistan
A. Ercelawn and M. Nauman, Creed Alliance
Naeem Iqbal, Pakistan Network of Rivers Dams and People
Khawar Mumtaz, Coordinator, Shirkat Gah
Peru
Rev. Stephen T. De Mott, Coordinator, Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers
Philippines
Josua Mata, Secretary General, Alliance of Progressive Labor
Portugal
José Manuel Pureza, Coordinador, Núcleo de Estudios para la Paz, Universidad de Coimbra
Sierra Leone
Kissinor T.Sengu, National Co-ordinator, Generating Group Empowerment Through Learning
South Africa
Dr. Dale T. McKinley, Anti-Privatisation Forum, Johannesburg
Trevor Ngwane, Secretary, Anti-Privatisation Forum
Patrick Bond, Co-director, Municipal Services Project, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
Sri Lanka
Sarath Fernando, Co-Secretary, Movement for National Land and Agricultural Reform
Father Paul Caspersz, sj; Founder and First Coordinator, Satyodaya Centre for Social Research and Encounter
Sweden
Hans Nolén Cargo, Coordinador, Cooperación Tecnica Sueca
Mats Ehn Cargo, Profesor, Instituto de educación popular de Farnebo
Switzerland
Action Populaire Contra la Mondialisation, Geneve
Marianne Hochuli, Berne Declaration Switzerland
Madeleine Bolliger, Swiss Coalition of Development Organizations
Tanzania
Dr. Brian Cooksey, Director, Tanzania Development Research Group
Thailand
Nicolla Bullard, Focus on the Global South
United Kingdom
Alex Wilks, Coordinator, Bretton Woods Project
Aubrey Meyer, Director, Global Commons Institute
Ian Shearer Fylde, Real World Group
Dougie Kinnear, Kirkcaldy and District Trades Union Council
Mary Keynes, Hon Secretary, Leeds Central World Development Movement
G. Abbott, Communications Officer, Newcastle Association of University Teachers
Bob Welch, Convener, North Staffordshire World Development Action Group
John Tilley, National Executive Member, RMT
John Wilkinson, Policy and Learning Officer, Save the Children
Kate O’Connell, Chairman, The Gaia Trust
Janine Booth, Political Officer, London Transport Regional Council, Union of Rail Maritime and Transport Workers
Paul Hampton, Workers’ Liberty Britain
United States
Wendy Schaetzel Lesko, Executive Director, Activism 2000 Project
John Iverson, President, ACT UP/East Bay
Stephen Bartlett, Latin American Liason, Agricultural Missions, Inc. (AMI)
Jim Jontz, Executive Director, Alliance for Sustainable Jobs and the Environment (ASJE)
Derrick Hindery, Amazon Watch
Martin Garate, Associate General Secretary for International Programs, American Friends Service Committee
Jason Tockman, Director of International Trade Program, American Lands Alliance
Carla Eliana Godoy, President, Art For Change
ADBwatch, Asia-Pacific Island Alert
Dr. David Ozonoff, Chair, Organization Department of Environmental Health, Boston University School of Public Health
Severina Rivera, Director, Campaign for Labor Rights
Michael Berg, Board Member, Carolina Peace Resource Center
Peter Galvin, California and Pacific Director, Center for Biological Diversity
Meredith A. Hartwell, Executive Assistant, Center for Biological Diversity
Beverly Bell, Director, Center for Economic Justice
Joanne M. Sanders, President, Central Indiana Chapter/Coalition of Labor Union Women
Nancy C. Alexander, Citizens’ Network on Essential Services
Gwendolyn Debrow, Green Party State Committee, Central Queens Green Party
Cristopher Lofstrom, Program Associate, Community Greens
Elizabeth Broad, Connecticut Fair Trade Campaign
Marge VanCleef, Coodinator, Connecticut Peace Coalition/New Haven
James A. Guest, President, Consumers Union of the United States, Inc.
Adam Mendelson, Research Associate, Council on Hemispheric Affairs
Rev. Walter Stark, Cumberland Countians for Peace and Justice
Shirley Novak, 2nd Vice President, Doctors for Global Health
Diana Robertson, Earth Dancer
Sasha McInnes Founder, Fair Trade Travel
Philip McManus, Chair, Fellowship of Reconciliation Task Force on Latin America and the Caribbean
Njoki Njoroge Njehu, Director, 50 Years Is Enough Network
Teresa Mcgill, President, Friends Of Bolivia Inc.
Brent Blackwelder, President, Friends of the Earth
David Amdur and Catherine Benedict, Co-coordinators, FTAA Task Force of the Boston Global Action Network
Kevin Danaher, Co-Founder, Global Exchange
Carleen Pickard, FTAA Campaign Coordinator, Global Exchange
Martin Cibulka, Schuyler D. Erle, Susan Lamont and R. Miles Mendenhall, Member Organizers, Global Justice/Direct Action Network of Sonoma County
Aaron Lehmer, Director, Grassroots Globalization Network
Paula Palmer, Executive Director, Global Response
Clem Wittman, President, Greater Kansas City Fair Trade Coalition
Mary Pjerrou, Co-chair, Greenwood Watershed Association in Elk, California
Todd Jailer, Publications Director, Hesperian Foundation
Robert Pedersen, Trade and Labor Coordinator, Indiana Alliance for Democracy
Mark Ritchie, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
Cam Duncan, Inter-American Regional Secretary, Public Services International
Jerry Mander, President, International Forum on Globalization
Kay Lawson, Co-Editor, International Political Science Review
Brian Stefan Szittai, Coordinator, InterReligious Task Force on Central America (IRTF)
Patrick McCully, Campaigns Director, International Rivers Network
Tom Lewis, Coordinator, Latin American Relations, International Socialist Organization
Sarah Anderson, Director, Global Economy Project, Institute for Policy Studies
Sharon Whytal, Kindness Without Borders
Leigh Rosenberg, Madison Fair Trade Action Alliance
Gabriel Camacho, President, Massachusetts Chapter, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, AFL-CIO
Ellen Taylor, Lost Coast League
Joydip Kundu, President, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Chapter of Amnesty International
Jerold Hubbard, Chairman, Morton County Citizens for Responsible Government
Dale Sorensen, Director, Marin Interfaith Task Force on Central America
Marie Dennis, Director, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Gihan Perera, Miami Workers Center
Larry Weiss, Coalition Coordinator, Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition
Seamus P. Finn, Justice/Peace and Integrity of Creation Office, Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
Jean Norris, Chair, Global Concerns Committee, Montclair Presbyterian Church
Charles Fields, Social Action and Policy Coordinator, National Community Building Network
Amy Leach, Founder, Neighbors At Risk
Sarah C. Aird, Executive Director, Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA)
Roy Morrison, Director of Cooperative Development, New Hampshire Consumers Utility Cooperative
Michael Berg, Co-Director, New Haven Community Center
Diana Bohn, Co-coordinator, Nicaragua Center for Community Action
Katherine Hoyt, Ph.D., National Co-Coordinator, Nicaragua Network
Pat Logan, New York Committee In Solidarity With The People Of El Salvador
Rita A. Clark, Director, Nicaragua-United States Friendship Office
Rev. Charles Lord, Obed Watershed Association
Frances Cunningham, Director, Office for World Mission at the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Rosemary Huddleston, International Mission Coordinator, Office for World Mission at the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Vivian Stockman, Outreach Coordinator, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition
Ravi Khanna, Director, 1World Communication
Robert Waldrop, Founder, Oscar Romero Catholic Worker House
Christopher Mackin, President, Ownership Associates, Inc.
Raymond C. Offenheiser, President, Oxfam America
David Davis, Director, Pella Productions
Leon Oboler, State Organizer, Pennsylvania Fair Trade Coalition
Jessica Hamburger, Program Coordinator, Pesticide Action Network North America
Conrad Miller M.D., Founder, Physicians For Life
Elizabeth Keifer, Vice President, Post-secondary Education Assistance Corporation
Sara Grusky, International Water Working Group, Public Citizen
Lori Wallach, Director, Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch
Frank Vardeman, Resource Center of the Americas
Rick Rowden, Researcher, RESULTS Educational Fund
Heather Fenney, Policy Coordinator, Rural Coalition/Coalicion Rural
Dr. D. K. Cinquemani, Chair, Safe Earth Alliance
Diana Bohn, Treasurer, San Francisco Debt Cancellation Coalition
Andy Sekara, Outreach Coordinator, San Francisco Bay Area Progressive Challenge
Peggy Rose, General Manager, San Francisco Mime Troupe
Coordinating Team, Joining Hands against Hunger Project, San Francisco Presbytery
Hope Fauna Bohanec, Outreach Coordinator, Santa Rosa Community Market
Mary Bull, Coordinator, Save the Redwoods/Boycott the Gap
Joan May, director, Sheep Mountain Alliance
Sisters Tina Geiger, RSM; Marilee Howard, RSM; Susan Severin, RSM, Institute Justice Office, Sisters of Mercy of the Americas
Sister Nadine Flott, CPPS, Leadership Team, Sisters of the Most Precious Blood
Tom Stickel, Stickel Christian Foundation
Catherine Austin Fitts, President, Solari, Inc.
Amanda Martin, President, South Carolina Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
Milton Fisk, South Central Indiana Jobs with Justice
Anthony Arnove, Editor, South End Press
James Ricker, Club President, Students Against Sweatshops, San Diego State University
Jane Kilmer, Students for Economic Justice at Michigan State University
Dante Strobino, Founder, North Carolina State University Chapter, Student Peace Action Network (SPAN)
George Elfie Ballis, Executive Director, SunMt
Andrew Kang Bartlett, Sustainable Agriculture of Louisville
Daphne Wysham, Sustainable Energy and Economy Network
Eric Rubin, Executive Director, Tampa Bay Action Group
Elizabeth Barclay, The Asia Pacific Environmental Exchange
Rev. Bob Matthews, Executive Director, The Center for the Urban Spirit
Karen Hansen-Kuhn, Trade Program Coordinator, The Development GAP
Beth Burrows, President/Director, The Edmonds Institute
Mitchell Cohen, Elizabeth Eytchison and Barb Chicherio, Coordinating Committee, The Greens/Green Party USA
Al Giordano, Publisher, The Narco News Bulletin
Nettie Hoge, Executive Director, The Utility Reform Network
Erin Quies, Program Director, Tierra Learning Center
Gena Kruger, Convenor, Toledo Area Committee on Central America
Steve Lippman, Senior Social Research Analyst, Trillium Asset Management Corporation
Donald B. Clark, United Church of Christ Network for Environmental and Economic Responsibility
Rev. Douglas B. Hunt, Washington Office Director, United Church of Christ Network for Environmental and Economic Responsibility
Jonathan Kissam, Secretary-Treasurer, District 2, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE)
Bruce J. Klipple, Secretary Treasurer, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE)
Mike Prokosch, Coordinator, Global Economy Program, United for a Fair Economy
Trudy Manderfeld, United Steelworkers, Local 12273
Joseph Paul Muriana, President, University Neighborhood Housing Program, Inc.
Taleigh Smith, Coordinator, Upper West Side-Tipitapa Sister City Project
George Neckel, Utah Jobs with Justice
Steve Watrous, Coordinator, Wisconsin Fair Trade Campaign
Steven Bennett, Executive Director, Witness for Peace/Accion Permanente por la Paz
Swaneagle Harijan, Coordinator, Women in Black Sterns County
Nathan Hall, Student Organizer, Youth Against Sweatshops
Zambia
Muyunda Ililonga, Executive Secretary, Zambia Consumers Association
cc: Alejandro Escobar, ICSID general counsel
Claudia Frutos-Peterson, ICSID counsel