Anti-TTIP Activists Urge EU to Reject US Trade Deal Investment Arbitration

Campaigners called on the European Union Wednesday to vote down the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS), which they say will favor foreign investors, as part of the proposed EU-US free trade deal known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The plea came as EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malstroem proposed a set of reforms to overhaul investment arbitration, including a long-term goal of creating a permanent international investment court.

"The European Parliament must categorically reject ISDS when it votes on the TTIP resolution in early June. ISDS is and will remain a threat to the rule of law and democracy – no cosmetic surgery can change this," Michael Efler of the self-organized Stop TTIP initiative, said in a statement.

According to the Stop TTIP campaigners, reforms would only "cover up" problems, not solve them as the ISDS system would remain "one-sided."

"The reformed ISDS system still favors foreign investors and still allows for independent courts to be circumvented by using private arbitration instead," Efler said.

Anti-TTIP activists have repeatedly complained that the deal, negotiated without due government or expert oversight, would benefit big corporations while undermining environment and labor standards.

More than 1.7 million people in Europe have signed a petition against the proposed TTIP agreement, as well as against ratifying a similar deal with Canada, known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement