KARLSRUHE, Germany: Germany’s top court on Wednesday heard complaints from some 200,000 citizens and campaigners who want to stop a planned EU-Canada free trade agreement set to be signed later this month.
They are asking the Constitutional Court to prevent the government from endorsing the so-called CETA accord at a gathering of EU ministers next week, arguing that the deal violates democratic principles.
In an usually fast turnaround, the court in the southwestern city of Karlsruhe is to announce its decision on Thursday.
Activist Roman Huber of the Mehr Demokratie (More Democracy) organisation said that “not a single parliament elected by me — neither the Bundestag nor the European Parliament — was given a mandate to negotiate for CETA”.
His organisation is among an alliance of pressure groups and leftist politicians that have campaigned against CETA and presented the court with a suit on behalf of over 125,000 citizens.
Another complaint was brought by music teacher Marianne Grimmenstein-Balas, whose online petition attracted over 68,000 co-plaintiffs.
Speaking to reporters before the start of the hearing, she said she wanted the deal to be put on hold to allow time “to make reasonable improvements for the good of the general public”.
CETA negotiations were formally concluded in 2014 but the deal has since faced fierce opposition across Europe, delaying implementation.
Opponents argue it would hand too much power to multinational companies and undermine consumer and environmental protection standards.
Activists also charge that it will set a dangerous precedent and open the way for a similar but far more ambitious agreement with the United States known as TTIP.
EU ministers are scheduled to approve CETA on October 18, paving the way for the deal to be signed with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at an EU-Canada summit in Brussels on October 27.
