Nikko Dizon, VERA Files

Posted at Apr 02 2019 11:13 PM (First of two parts)

BOAC, Marinduque—The people of this island province have endured the brunt of the worst mining disaster in the country, but the bigger heartbreak in their two-decade-long quest for justice might just be the wait for redress that is not sure to come. 

On March 24th, the peoples of the southern Ecuador canton of Girón voted overwhelmingly in favour of water and life, and against metal mining in their territories. Canadian company INV Metals (majority shareholder IAMGOLD) and the Ecuadorian government are being sent a strong message, “No to mining, Yes to life”.

AUTHOR: NIKKO DIZON 
PHOTOS BY ERIK DE CASTRO

(Last of two parts)

Heavy metal runs through Racquel Logatoc’s veins. The 52-year-old village chief of Bocboc, Marinduque suffers from skin irritation, fatigue and body pains. Tests done in 2013 and 2017 detected the harmful substance in her blood. In February, she was back at the Batangas Medical Center for further monitoring.

(Ottawa) Following this morning’s alarming findings from the Commissioner on Environment and Sustainable Development, MiningWatch Canada urges Environment Minister Catherine McKenna to take immediate actions to beef up inspections and enforcement of the Fisheries Act for the thousands of active and abandoned mine sites across the country.

(Ottawa) On Monday, family members of Mariano Abarca – a Mexican community leader who was murdered for speaking out about the negative impacts of Blackfire Exploration’s barite mine in Chicomuselo, Chiapas, almost ten years ago – attended a hearing in the Federal Court of Canada. The Abarca family seeks a full and impartial investigation into the acts and omissions of the Canadian Embassy in Mexico while it lobbied in favour of Blackfire in the lead-up to Abarca’s assassination, which the family believes heightened the danger he faced.

By Jennifer Wells, Business Columnist

The assassination of Mexican activist Mariano Abarca stands little chance of gaining the spotlight in Ottawa given all the tumult in the nation’s capital. But Monday’s judicial review before Federal Court Justice Keith Boswell deserves attention, reminding us of the tragic events of a decade ago and the present day oversight, or lack thereof, of Canadian mining companies operating abroad.

…

[This article was originally published in The Hill Times.]

(Ottawa) On March 13^th, Vicente Ribadeneira, the judge of the Judicial Unit of Protective Measures and Dismissals in Quito ordered the National Electoral Council (CNE) to suspend the ongoing Giron referendum vote.  The judge accepted an injunction that had been filed by the pro-mining group “United for the Development of the Cantons of Giron and San Fernando”, who are arguing the referendum goes against their constitu

(London – Ottawa) On 11 March 2019, Nautilus Minerals Inc. took the next step in its bankruptcy proceedings, seeking court protection from creditors under the Canadian Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). Having conducted a pre-filing on 21 February, that protection was extended to 28 June at the court ‘Comeback Hearing’.  

The undersigned organizations request that the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Drinking Water and Sanitation, prepare a report on the case, visit the site and mediate for the Colombian State to take the necessary actions to protect the ecosystem, an important source of water for millions of people, from the dangers of mining.