'Final report of International Mission to #StopISDS recommends Colombia’s withdrawal from system of corporate abuse and impunity by way of a Citizens Audit', 15 August 2023

Today, August 15, the International Mission to #StopISDS launched its final report (in English and Spanish), rejecting how transnational corporations are suing Colombia for billions of dollars and calling on Gustavo Petro’s administration to withdraw from this unfair system of foreign investment protection. The Mission, which includes representatives from social and environmental organizations from eight countries in Europe and the Americas, visited Colombia between 22 May and 1 June 2023, to share experiences of action against the Investor-State Dispute Settlement System (ISDS). The ISDS system allows transnational corporations to sue sovereign countries in secretive supranational arbitration tribunals.

In recent years, Colombia has been the target of attacks by transnational corporations, especially in opposition to recent victories in the defense of life and territories against  extractivist projects, including judicial decisions in favor of local communities’ human rights, water and health. This foreign investor protection system is entrenched in the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) that Colombia has signed. The most often used tribunal is the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), part of the World Bank....