Wedded to Big Business

On 28th October 2008, campaigners of the Seattle to Brussels network called on Trade Commissioner Baroness Ashton to end the unholy alliance between DG Trade and business lobby group BusinessEurope with a mock wedding celebration outside BusinessEurope's Going Global conference event.

The ceremony took place outside the Charlemagne Building, the official home of DG Trade and the venue for BusinessEurope's "Going Global" conference on the Global Europe Strategy of international trade. According to the Seattle to Brussels network, the conference reflects the close working relationship established between DG Trade and BusinessEurope over the Global Europe trade strategy, which has seen business interests prioritised over the needs of the world's poor and the environment. This has been documented by a recent report from Corporate Europe Observatory (Global Europe: An Open Door Policy For Big Business Lobbyists At DG Trade).

Read the photo love story of the action (text is displayed on mouse overs)...