With deep concern, we share the following statement from the Ecumenical Human Rights Commission of Ecuador (CEDHU its initials in Spanish) denouncing the arrest of a Shuar Indigenous leader in southeastern Ecuador. This is part of an ongoing campaign of militarization, criminalization and forced...
Prosperity Mine – A Precautionary Tale: The Importance of Environmental Assessments
Ecojustice and MiningWatch Canada head to court this week to defend Fish Lake ("Teztan Biny" in Tŝilhqot’in) from a risky mining project.
Mining projects often put communities and the environment in great peril – we only need to look to the Mount Polley tailings spill to see an example of the...
Canada Needs a Human Rights Ombudsperson for the International Mining, Oil and Gas Sectors
Human rights abuses at Canadian-owned mining sites around the world are widespread and well-documented. Victims of such abuse have nowhere to turn to seek justice.
MiningWatch has joined with the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (CNCA) to urge Canada to create an effective...
In Memoriam: Arthur Manuel
The staff and Directors of MiningWatch Canada are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Arthur Manuel. We extend our most sincere condolences to his family, and to his extended circles of friends and comrades. It was our honour to work with him and learn from him. He was a great thinker...
"Blood of Extraction" – Ottawa Book Launch with Authors Todd Gordon and Jeffrey R. Webber
Join us for the upcoming Ottawa book launch of Blood of Extraction: Canadian Imperialism in Latin America with authors Todd Gordon and Jeffrey R. Webber that we are co-sponsoring with Octopus Books and Fernwood Publishing.
Wednesday, January 11th at 7pm
Life of Pie Bakery & Café
1134 Bank St...
Dozens of International Organizations and Networks Call for End to State of Emergency and Militarization in Ecuador's Southern Amazon
Today, nearly fifty international organizations and networks sent the following letter to Ecuadorian authorities urging an immediate end to the militarization and the State of Emergency that was declared in the southeastern Amazonian province of Morona Santiago last week. Instead of force, they...
Canada’s Hollow Human Rights Commitment on Honduras and Human Rights Defenders
The Liberal government is much more, well, liberal with their use of the words “human rights” that the previous Conservative government. In practice, however, this means little more than business as usual, particularly where big business is involved.
This was evident in the Minister of Foreign...
Video Message from Porgera Women to UN Forum on Business and Human Rights
Tired of waiting for fair compensation from mining giant Barrick Gold for gross sexual violence, 119 indigenous women from Papua New Guinea call for United Nations intervention. They sent this video message to the 5th annual UN Forum on Business and Human Rights taking place this week in Geneva.
Communities from the District of Chamaca Strike at HudBay Minerals’ Constancia Mine in Cusco, Peru
Sources: Peruvian Observatory of Mining Conflicts, Human Rights Without Borders – Cusco
Since Monday, about 1,000 community members from the district of Chamaca in the province of Chumbivilcas, in the southern region of Cusco, have been occupying the installation of HudBay Minerals’ Constancia...
Community members protest damage to homes near Tahoe Resources' mine, fear violent reprisal
In February 2016, houses in the village of La Cuchilla in the municipality of San Rafael Las Flores, began to crack and on April 19th, the houses began to fall down. The community is located less than 3 kilometers from Tahoe Resources’ Escobal mine, which has been operating an underground silver...
More than a few bad apples: "Militarized neoliberalism" and the Canadian state in Latin America
Stories of bloody, degrading violence associated with Canadian mining operations abroad sporadically land on Canadian news pages. HudBay Minerals, Goldcorp, Barrick Gold, Nevsun and Tahoe Resources are some of the bigger corporate names associated with this activity. Sometimes our attention is...
The Uphill Battle for Justice over Violence at Tahoe Resources’ Escobal Mine in Guatemala
On April 27, 2013, Adolfo García was one of seven men shot and wounded as he tried to escape the advance of Tahoe Resources’ private security guards just outside the gates of the company’s Escobal silver mine where they had been peacefully protesting. This week, Mr. García was in Vancouver, along...
Background: MiningWatch Canada Charges Against B.C. Government and Mount Polley Mine
MiningWatch Canada is filing a private prosecution to lay charges against the BC Government and Mount Polley Mine Corporation for violations of the Canadian Fisheries Act in connection with the 2014 tailings pond disaster.
Summary
On October 18, 2016, MiningWatch Canada filed a private...
Take Action: Honduran Authorities Should Not Feel Canada's Trust
Join the call for #Justice4Berta/#JusticiaParaBerta, sign and share our petition here.
Seven months have passed since the brutal murder of Indigenous activist Berta Cáceres in Honduras and the attempted murder of Mexican activist Gustavo Castro, and we are still a long way from justice. While...
North Mara, Tanzania – Unanswered questions for Acacia Mining and Barrick Gold
Acacia’s Response to Globe and Mail Article raises more questions than it answers about human rights violations at the North Mara mine in Tanzania. RAID and MiningWatch Canada note that Barrick has also responded to the newspaper article 'Police killed 65, injured 270 at Barrick mine in Tanzania...
International Solidarity with Women in the Fight for Land and the Environment in Latin America
Over eighty organizations from Canada, the US, Europe and Guatemala, and 650 individuals, have signed onto a statement to express international solidarity with women defenders throughout Latin America and with all people who are defending their water, land, life and territory. These individuals...