Glamis Gold

A report by Rights Action: The nexus of mining companies, the mainstream media, the Canadian government, International Finance Institutions and bought off NGOs work hard to keep the reality of large-scale, open pit mines out of picture, keep community resistance marginalized, and no matter what, to keep talking about “development.” This report is about bringing hard facts and community perspectives together to help North Americans become more informed about the nature of the mining industry.

By: Shin Imai, Ladan Mehranvar, and Jennifer Sander. Reproduced from the Indigenous Law Journal, Volume 6, Issue 1, 2007 with permission from the authors. This is a case study of a small Indigenous community in Guatemala that defied a powerful Canadian mining company by holding a community vote on whether to allow mining on its territory. The result of the vote—to stop mining activity on its territory—has not been honoured by the Canadian mining company.

Peoples’ right to be consulted about industrial mega-projects is legally established by international agreements, built into national legislation and constitutions, and thrown about in the discourse of resource extraction companies the world over. But when consultation takes place in a way that empowers communities, those same organizations and companies that purport to promote “consultation” too often react by charging that such processes are unconstitutional, manipulative and undemocratic.

The Canadian mining map was produced by the Halifax Initiative during the National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility and the Canadian Extractive Industry in Developing Countries. The Roundtables, which took place between June and November of 2006, fulfilled one of the recommendations made in the groundbreaking report, Mining in Developing Countries and Corporate Social Responsibility, tabled by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade (SCFAIT) in June 2005.

By Albert Koehl. What do poor farmers (campesinos) in Guatemala’s western highlands have in common with the former CEO of a multi-billion dollar Canadian gold mining company? Quite a bit, actually, when the former CEO is Rob McEwen and the issue is a battle against cavalier corporate decision-making. And then again, not much at all when it comes to the doting attention the Canadian media gave McEwen while ignoring the farmers, even though their battle involves their livelihoods -- and lives -- and the same gold.

MiningWatch Canada is sponsoring two films at this years’ Planet in Focus environmental film festival in Toronto.

MiningWatch Canada is sponsoring two films at this years’ Planet in Focus environmental film festival in Toronto. Jenny Sharman, director of "The Curse of Copper", will be present to discuss the film, and Andy Altilia, a member of the Hamilton-based Guatemala solidarity group Compañer@s North-South, will be present to discuss "Sipakapa No Se Vende". Obviously we are encouraging people to attend these films, but please check out the exciting program for the entire festival.

On Thursday, August 17th, the Siria Valley Environmental Committee held a press conference in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, to present the alarming results of the latest investigations into the ongoing health crisis in the communities affected by Glamis Gold’s San Martin gold mine in the Siria Valley.

This past Thursday, August 10, 2006, 1000 people demonstrated in favour of mining in a march in the historic centre of Guatemala City. This activity, organized by the Guild of Mines, Quarries and Processors, had as its objective to emphasize the great benefits that mining will supposedly bring for thousands of Guatemalans. The marchers were mainly from the communities of Izabal and Alta Verapaz, places where preparations are being made for mining various metals, as well as workers of the Marlin mine of San Miguel Ixtahuacán.