Eighty per cent of metal mining in Guatemala is Canadian, and that's nothing to boast about
Last March 25 at about 11:45 p.m. in Tablón, in the San Marcos region of western Guatemala, villagers alerted police to a burning vehicle. It belonged to the Fundación Maya, a local indigenous rights group, and was driven by staff member Carlos Humberto Guarquez. Near the burning hulk lay five written death threats directed at Guarquez, stating, "The same will happen to you Mr. Carlos Humberto for interfering in these stupid social issues… Every pig eventually gets slaughtered."
The "stupid social issues" in question are otherwise known as the defence of human rights in the face of formidable economic power exerted by mining companies in Guatemala.
Guarquez is among five indigenous people (including local mayor Dominqa Vasquez) thought to have organized a January 11, 2005, protest against the Vancouver-based mining company Glamis Gold which turned violent.
"In January, villagers grouped together to block an access road that was being used to transport a large piece of equipment needed to extract [ore] from the mines," explains Nathalie Brière, co-ordinator for Projet Accompagnement Québec-Guatemala (PAQG), a Montreal organization that defends Guatemalan human rights. "During that protest one of the men was shot dead by the police forces and the army, which were deployed by the government to break up what was a pacifist protest."
This event – also resulting in two-dozen wounded – is significant for Guatemala, which is no stranger to bloody protest. Nearly 30 years ago, on May 29, 1978, in what has since become known as the Panzós Massacre, hundreds of Quechuan villagers gathered before the town of Panzós’s mayoral office to protest governmental wrongdoing in matters of land distribution and the effects of mining by the Canadian company that was then the country’s largest excavator, Inco. (Inco has been associated with military regimes in Guatemala since the early 1970s – the inauguration of their first factory in 1977 was attended by General Kjell Eugenio Laugerud Garcia.) The military intercepted that protest too, and showered the crowd with bullets.
"The government admitted to 34 deaths on the day of the massacre, and then a day later another person died, so the total was 35," says Marc Drouin, project manager for PAQG. "Those 35 were buried in a common grave. But then there are people who drowned in the river as they tried to escape the scene… the conclusion by the Commission for Truth [headed by the United Nations] was that 53 people were executed extrajudicially by the Guatemalan army, while there was an attempt to extrajudicially execute 47 others who were wounded."
The 35 bodies were exhumed and buried ceremonially in their village in 1997, when a committee of widows brought a complaint to Guatemalan judicial authorities. The massacre has since been deleted from official records. This burial process was recorded by the artist and photographer Marlon García Arriaga, whose work, Panzós, 25 ans plus tard, will be exhibited in Montreal from May 18 to 29. He will speak to the public on May 19.
Canadian business still dirty
Though Inco halted use of its 400-square-kilometre nickel mine in Guatemala in 1982 due to high production costs and low profits, the mine has been kept on "care and maintenance" status ever since, retaining a staff of 30 in charge of an annual budget of $400,000. One might question the motives behind this expenditure, but Drouin thinks he can explain it: "They had a contract with the government in 1971 [stating] their obligation, among other things, to rehabilitating the land once the mine was closed, through reforesting, so that the economic development of the area would be equal or superior to what it was before the mine."
Rather than close the mine and own up, Inco maintained it until they sold it to another Canadian company last December, Skye Resources (whose vice-president, Colin McKenzie, is an ex-Inco man). With nickel prices now at considerably higher levels than in the 1980s, Skye is preparing to resurrect the enterprise and produce a yearly 45 million pounds of nickel, reported the Globe and Mail’s Report on Business, March 8. "Skye is in the midst of finagling a process using chlorine, a process that’s never before been used in industrial proportions," warns Drouin. "They also use phenomenal quantities of water in the cooling process." This water comes out contaminated and is then dumped in local rivers.
It is understandable, then, that indigenous communities, who live off the land, are protesting. In the face of widespread popular opposition – led in many instances by activist Catholic Church officials like Bishop Alvaro Ramazzini and Cardinal Rodolfo Quezada Toruño – the Guatemalan government promised in February to freeze issuance of any new mining permits. This doesn’t help in the case of Skye, which resurrected Inco’s old permits, or Glamis Gold, already well entrenched and "committed to its project in Guatemala," according to the Globe. These remain the two biggest mining projects in the country.
"Eighty per cent of all metal mining in Guatemala is in Canadian hands," says Drouin. "Gold, silver, nickel, cobalt. The majority of the land surrounding the village of Panzós is owned by Canadian businesses."
Meanwhile, since the beginning of 2005, 44 defenders of human rights in Guatemala have received death threats in an attempt to discourage them from their work, while in the month of March alone, 587 cases of human rights violations were recorded.
Panzós, 25 ans plus tard
At the Belgo building (372 Ste-Catherine W., suite 306), May 18-29
Artist’s talk May 19, 5:30 p.m.
13 comments
So I’ve heard many stories like this associated with US based companies, but nearly none when it comes to Canadian companies. I’m surprised that the canadian government has nothing to say in response to this since they work so hard at maintaining their image of a peace keeping “ethical” country. I guess they are to busy with the sponsorship scandal. At the end of the day no matter where you’re from it all boils down to money. It makes the world go round and rots it from the inside out.
You would think that anything owned by canadians would be on canadian land. Canada is making a profit of a something they technically shouldn’t own.
While Canada for many years was considered one of the best places to live on the planet, we or our industries were busy destroying Guatemalan lives and land. I was in the country for a very short time, and as Canadians who are blessed with green mountains and fresh water and fight for these rights, we should recognize that the Guatemalans live in just as vibrant a land if not more. Like many if not most of the central american countries they are ruled by the needs of first world countries. If we need something, we go dig it up, with out regard to the consequences of our actions. I guess the profit made by a few people is worth more than the lives of those that were destroyed in order to get it. I wonder how the Inco execs would feel if we dug a giant pit outside their front door and filled it with contaminated water, probably not good, but were a more rational people than that, to bad we can’t say that about canada’s industry.
Because of our insatiable demand for big cars that require lots of steel and other metals the mining industry is tempted to cut corners to satisfy this growing demand. Because of stricter environmental controls in Canada, our mining companies find better opportunities in the third world where labour is cheap and regulations lax. With more recycling in Canada there would be less of a demand to open costly mines that would be difficult to clean up later on. If we all drove mini cars we could be more self-sufficient in raw materials. Anyway agriculture is a better industry for the third world and much more sustainable in the long run. When I realize that deadly cyanide is used in gold mining I cringe when I look at lovely gold jewellery. Canadians have to get more involved.
Watching Hotel Rwanda the other day I was ashamed by the fact that the UK (along with other European nations) did nothing to help the people being massacred there. The fact that Canada sent peacekeepers was a great display of belief in human rights issues, of protecting people against hatred, greed and evil.
Although Skye and Glamis Gold are not run by the government of Canada, their tax dollars still help to line the government purse. Ventures like these should be criminalized and the company leaders taken to International court in the Hague. This type of exploitation in fact makes me sick and at a loss for words.
O Canada help keep all lands glorious and free…
This isn’t just happening in Guatemala. It is happening all over the world and even in our back yards. Corporation’s rape and pillage and the government stands by and either lends a hand or does nothing. Use Enron as an example, Enron raped and pillaged not only its stockholders but also its employees and its customers. Enron performed creative accounting to hide the fact it was loosing money which is no different in my opinion than a corporation maintaining a mining site in order to keep from spending money on something they cannot reap a profit from. There are many ways to rape and pillage and there are no boundaries defining the demographics. We have all heard of reports of corporations within the United States doing the same atrocities as those in Guatemala.
Human rights groups have been under attack since the day they were conceived. And yet I have heard stories of human rights groups giving the same dirt as that received in Guatemala.
Before anyone can know their enemy they must first know themselves. But then maybe that is the problem, human rights groups and corporations are not about knowing thyself. Corporations are created to make money and most loose focus. A corporation is a living entity and thus should be honored as such but in stead some of them are used as weapons and some would prefer a dishonorable death to an honorable one if it means creating just one dollar more.
We all have a choice we can either continue to spend our money in ways which support the raping and pillaging by corporations or we can choose to spend our money wisely and support businesses which honor their employees, stockholders, customers and the general public at large. It is time to take the power into our own hands and realize it is the consumer who has the power not the corporations or the government.
Mining Engineering is one of the fields of high pay, scholarships but still few students. Wonder why? Most of it has to do with that you’ll be living your life far away from people. The other probably has to do with the very disturbing way mining companies do business. It cost a lot of money to find precious metals in this vast land. Once they find it there are two main ways of extracting it: 1) Dig a tunnel and strip the ore core, which is expensive but safe for the environment, 2) Strip Mining, which is basically digging one big hole. Most companies take strip mining as there choice because it is cheap and gives a pretty good yield for the cost. What they don’t take into account is that strip mining destroys EVERYTHING. It’s like the drift nets of the land.
You displace soil that took thousands of years to form through decomposition. You pollute the environment by dumping chemicals in the water. And you do it all in the name of “progress”. Unlike most engineers I’d probably shoot myself if I knew this was the life I was living, but for sure someone would do it with no scruples.
These resources are usually found in poor countries which hasn’t mined their ores to exhaustion or the workers are paid low enough to make the process viable. But in the cutthroat business everyone cares about making money, so if the cheapest way of extracting ore is to dig a big hole, then so be it. If they don’t do it an American, French, British, any other country would do it.
And because the mining company actually extracts and cleans the ore for usage they earn more money then the pennies they give the workers. It shames me to see companies do that as their job. The only thing I can do is tell them I refuse to work for them, but that will only hurt me not them. But Hydro-Quebec does the same thing and so does Alcan… so where does that leave the common man who wants to do what’s right? Demand change, and stand up for what you believe in, at some point someone will listen.
Where is the corroboration for this story? Tying this ¨incident¨ (remember that it is uncorroborated) to events of almost thirty years ago is absurd. I live in Guatemala, have visited both mines sites mentioned on numerous occasions, have reported extensively on the issues raised and can assure you that the involved mining companies, Skye and Glamis, are poster companies for responsible development. If any would like to correspond with me on this subject, I would be happy to so so at gmg977@emisorasuindas.com
This is just on more sickening story of how the haves exploit the have nots.It’s not new and it happens in all types of societies.Greed rearing it’s despicable and discracful face once again.
Here’s a precedent the courts may consider setting: “You’ve been convicted of not ‘doing unto others as you would have done unto you’”.It’s a shame at how often this law is broken.Real simple….you haul in anyone who had authority in these abusive situations,you verify they were aware of the abuses,then you ask them if they would like to have these things done in their back yards,or to their families.If they say they wouldn’t,then you find them GUILTY.Simple.The sentence:you recover ALL monies earned by the guilty party/ies as restitution to the damaged communities.A good start.Another part of the punishment could have them forced to live in the areas they damaged for a length of time.
It embarasses me as a Canadian, a North American and a human being that we knowingly let these types of shameful business practices continue.The historical road to north AMERICA’s economic success is paved with human rights and environmental violations.Why should we wait for a fragile,desperate or corrupt foreign gov’t to monitor and police these wrongs.The greased palms on both sides will usually inhibit any chance of this.How about some gov’t policies for our businesses abroad that are EQUAL to the standards we set for our own country.Let’s put an end to the hypocrisy.
We are supposed to be a sophisticated,educated,evolved society,let’s be consistent.We can operate our businesses in ours and foreign countries ethically and proudly.If you can’t afford to run your business with care and respect for the surrounding community,then you can’t afford to run your business at all.
Canada is a country that is known for many positive things that we’ve done in the world (e.g. sending peacekeepers to Africa and Afghanistan, sending humanitarian aid to those countries affected by the tsunamis that hit there about 6 months ago, etc…), but this article show that our reputation is tarnished. Yes, our government (and thereby including the Canadian people) are not responsible for what’s going on in Guatemala but the Canadian companies that are there (i.e. Inco and Glamis Gold) have soiled our country’s worldwide reputation. Hopefully, the Canadian government will soon be able to punish those companies that are mining in Guatemala and do not respect the people nor their natural environment by passing laws that will make it difficult for Cdn. companies to operate in any third world nation. It’s time to stop profiting at the expense of poor nations.
I am appalled to see people say they suddenly feel ashamed about Canadian mining companies being involved in shady politics in developing countries. The fact that these companies are in the hands of Canadian individuals doesn’t mean they are beyond suspicion.
As far as I know, there are just as many crooks in Canada as there are in any other country. And if you look in past stories, you’ll realize that the history of the mining industry is filled with stories of fraud or dubious practices. And since the mining industry is one of the strongest industry in Canad, we are far from being immune to such horror stories.
For instance, you’ll probably remember the Bre-X multi-billion dollar fraud where this Canadian company claimed to have found the largest gold mine in the Indonesian jungle about 10 years ago. It was soon found out that samples taken from the site had been tampered with by sprinkling gold dust. Most of the major crooks in this scandal were Canadians, are still at large, living the good life in South America or in Mediterranean countries.
Another example : I came by a copy of Western
Canada Standard, a paper closely associated with the Conservatives. In every issue, you find infomercials about Canadian entrepreneurs looking for investors in order to reopen Mexican silver mines that were shut down a few years back. If these mines were shut because they weren’t profitable anymore, I don’t see how they could suddenly yield a profit unless you “cut corners” on environmental or occupational regulations. Or if the whole thing is a sham.
In the end, it all comes down to one thing : enforcing existing regulations, catching the crooks who give the mining industry a bad name by using every decisional forum available.
I would like to know how many people voicing their opinion on this site have ever been to Guatemala , visited a mine here, or ever visited a mine anywhere… Also, how many drive a car, live in a house, and enjoy daily conveniences we all take for granted…but, oh my, the poor people in these countries being exploited…Gro Up!! I guess we should all live in a tree, eat berries, and fart clean air…
This is the real world, and you would be the first to complain if your car prices went up 100%, or your daily liife was effected by the rediculous claims you have written here with no knowledge of what you are saying, but it makes you feel good speaking out!!! Well, I suggest you take a trip here, visit a mine, see how it is operated, and get some facts before embarassing yourself. I am not saying corporations are sweet and law abiding, corruption exists everywhere in our life, and yes, in mining companies , board rooms..etc, but you like to see your stocks rise in your portfolio, use the products these “devils” are producing, so get off your hypocritical tree hugging asses and get some true facts before spreading your shit for all to see as if you are experts….
Go to the sites of Mining Watch Canada or Rights Action or Protest Barrick.net to get more information. The Canadian government is complicit in murder because it allows Canadian mining corporations operating abroad to violate human rights and environmental standards – even here in Canada. Look up the story of the KI Six and Bob Lovelace (Ardoch Algonquin) to see how the province of Ontario is complicit in allowing mining on native land. Mining kills and destroys the environment. There is no such thing as sustainable or responsible open-pit industrial mining. We are holding protests outside the Barrick Gold and Goldcorp AGMs in Toronto on May 6 and May 20. Email pyork_2002@hotmail.com for more information.