Brussels, 9th August 2018
The Peru Europe Platform welcomes Commissioner Cecilia Malmström’s letter addressed to
the Peruvian Minister for Tourism and Foreign Trade, Rogers Valencia, in which she
expresses concern at the Peruvian government’s lack of clear progress in the
implementation of Title IX on Trade and Sustainable Development, part of the Trade
Agreement with the European Union. The letter asks Peru for an action plan that addresses
the areas of concern outlined, in particular, in the areas of labour and environmental
weaknesses.
The European Commission highlights Peru’s failure to comply with its labour and
environmental obligations, most of which were highlighted in a submission to the European
Commission in a formal complaint against Peru from the Peru Europe Platform and 27
Peruvian civil society organisations on 25 October 2017.
In her letter, Commissioner Malmström manifests her concern for the shortcomings in the
effective implementation of ILO Conventions 87 and 98, on freedom of association and
protection of union rights and collective bargaining, which have remained unaddressed
despite the recommendations of the ILO Committee of Experts. The letter also points out that
Peru has one of the highest levels of informality in the labour market and a high level of
persistent child labour. “All these issues have been at the heart of the discussions of the
Subcommittee of Trade and Sustainable Development during the last 5 years and more efforts
are needed to achieve substantial progress”, says Commissioner Cecilia Malmström.
In environmental matters, the Commissioner emphasized that the simplification of
environmental administrative procedures should not conduce to a weakening of
environmental rights protection.
In addition, Commissioner Malmström put emphasis on the lack of an adequate Peruvian civil
society participation mechanism, which is normally envisaged in the agreement, that
guarantees effective dialogue between the internal consultative groups of the State parties to
the Trade Agreement. As the PEP has pointed out on numerous occasions, the European
Commission warns that European civil society does not have a clear counterpart in Peru, which
weakens dialogue. Moreover, it urges Peru to strengthen its consultation mechanisms and
reassess the need to create a Domestic Advisory Group to discuss and monitor all aspects of
trade and sustainable development.
Commissioner Malmström urges Peru to elaborate a “well-defined and time-bound” action
plan to improve all areas of concerns. She also affirms that the action plan should be shared
with the European Commission ahead of the Subcommittee on Trade and Sustainable
