In the afternoon, the social groups met for three hours to discuss the results of this edition of the Permanent Peoples´ Tribunal. Then, they met with several governmental representatives from some ALBA countries (Bolivarian Alternative for Peoples of the Americas). Almost all Latin American Presidents are in Madrid for the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the European Union- Latin America and the Caribbean. However, Evo Morales didn´t attend the meeting between movements and governments and Hugo Chavez didn´t travel to Madrid to the official summit.

The ruling of the Permanent Peoples Tribunal was presented at a public event carried out in Madrid. “The cases analyzed in this session can be considered an example of the behavior of European transnational corporations and their human rights violations. This tribunal found that, despite recommendations of the Tribunal in 2008, these companies continue violating fundamental rights in Latin American countries”, states the ruling.

The document also highlights that “it is possible to identify in the cases a regime of generalized permissiveness, illegality and impunity of these European transnational corporations operating in Latin America”.

The Tribunal stated that this regime is promoted by the policies of institutions such as the Inter American Development Bank, the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, and other financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.

Photo: Radio Mundo Real