Newsletter 15: Winter 2003-2004

President Alvaro Uribe Vélez moved to liquidate the State Mining Company of Colombia, Minercol Ltda., through Decree 254 of January 28, 2004 - at the same wiping out its employees' union Sintraminercol and clearing the way for the wholesale turnover of the exploration, exploitation and administration of mineral, energy, and public resources to multinational corporations.

The "War on Terrorism" actually started long before September 2001. A xenophobic and racist backlash against refugees and immigrants has been feeding an open attack on civil liberties as governments all over the world seize the opportunity to shift attention from failed domestic policies.

In January, MiningWatch had the privilege of visiting with inspirational people from three mining communities across Canada. Mel Quevillon, Canadian Program Coordinator, visited Labrador West (Labrador City and Wabush) in Labrador and Thompson and Flin Flon in Manitoba to meet with community members and scope out the interest in applying to be a pilot community for a project on women's health called "Overburdened: Understanding the Impacts of Mineral Extraction on Women's Health in Mining Communities".