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Letter to Lic. Oscar Berger, President of the Republic of Guatemala
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| 1. | Halt further work on the Marlin mine pending the full and informed participation of local communities in the formulation, implementation and evaluation of the plans and programmes for this open pit gold mine. |
| 2. | Change the Mining Law to include a prior and informed consent from the affected indigenous communities before issuing any mining exploration and exploitation permit. The Mining Law should also ban the use of cyanide, which has been prohibited in the state of Montana in the USA. In addition, the royalties should be increased to at least 12% and designated for investments in the affected communities. |
| 3. | Declare a moratorium on new mining permits until the Mining Law has been made congruent with all Guatemalan international commitments, especially Convention 169 of the ILO. |
We believe that the Frente has legitimate reasons to be concerned about open pit mining given the experience of people in other countries around the world.
- The process will use as much as 250,000 litres of water per hour (according to the company’s estimates) in a zone with limited water resources.
- Open pit mining is highly destructive of the environment, with contamination of the water with heavy metals, which has negative repercussions for the health of the people and animals, and contamination of the fruits and vegetables being irrigated, both in the immediate area and in communities downstream.
- It is almost inevitable that the cyanide used to leach the gold from the ore will leak into the environment.
- Metal mining in developing countries can create conflict, encourage corruption, and often, lead to violence.
- The number of jobs directly related to mining do not compensate for the loss of agricultural jobs and the environmental, cultural and, especially, social deterioration that affect communities where there are mining projects.
A recent study has shown the presence of arsenic above the accepted limits in a similar mine in Honduras. Moreover, mining companies rarely budget enough for clean up and restoration after the mine is finished. This has been observed in developing countries as well as industrialized ones like Canada.
We understand that the Government of Guatemala’s intention to attract mining companies is, among other things, to improve the economic situation of the poor. Unfortunately, this does not happen. According to the UN Conference on Trade and Development, poverty has deepened in mining-dependant countries in the last couple of decades. Not many jobs are created and they are short term, as in the case of the San Marcos’ project, where the company forecasts only a 10-year long activity, after which the indigenous communities will be left with the destruction and contamination of their environment.
Mr. President, we respect your commitment to “work, in a decisive and transparent way, for the benefit of all Guatemalans” . We therefore request your immediate intervention. We, members of the international community, support the demands of the “Frente por la Vida” and will continue to monitor the developments of this case of a flagrant violation of indigenous rights.
Signing Organizations:
- The Social Justice Committee (Canada)
- Organización Católica Canadiense para el Desarrollo y la Paz (Canadá)
- Canadian Auto Workers (CAW-Canada)
- Guatemala News and Information Bureau (GNIB) - Berkeley, CA, USA
- Network In Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA) - Washington DC, USA
- Agricultural Missions, Inc. - USA
- USWA Canada United Steelworkers Humanity Fund
- Red Marítimas-Guatemala "Rompiendo El Silencio" (Canadá)
- Rights Action / Derechos en Acción, USA / Canada
- Archdiocese of Montreal - Social Action Office / Archevêché de Montréal - l'Office de la pastorale sociale - Canada
- The Quixote Center / Quest for Peace, MD, USA
- Nicaragua Center for Community Action, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Resource Center of the Americas, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
- 50 Years Is Enough: U.S. Network for Global Economic Justice Washington, DC USA
- St. Paul Ciudad Romero Sister City group, St. Paul, MN USA
- MiningWatch Canada / Alerta Minera Canadá
- World Bank Boycott, Center for Economic Justice USA
- Guatemala Community Network, Toronto, Canada
- Ecumenical Task Force for Justice in the Americas, BC - Canada
- NY CISPES (Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador), USA
- Friends of the Earth / Les Ami(e)s de la Terre , Canada
- Guatemala Solidarity Committee of Eastern Ontario - Canada
- Jewish women's committee to end the occupation – Canada
- Coalition for a just peace in Palestine and Israel - Canada
- Ixim Uleu, Toronto, Canada
- Jim Hodgson, Caribbean-Latin America Secretary, United Church of Canada
- Katipunan Para sa Pagpapalaya ng Sambayanan (Movement for Filipino People's Freedom) KALAYAAN! - Filipinas
- Korean Federation for Environmental Movement (KFEM) – Korea
- Water for All Campaign, Public Citizen, USA
- Jubilee South
- Asia/Pacific Movement on Debt and Development
- Freedom from Debt Coalition – Philippines
- Interim National Co-Coordinator, Jubilee USA Network
- Patrick Bond, Professor, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and Director, Centre for Civil Society, Durban, South Africa
- Andrea Plöger, W E E D - World Economy, Ecology & Development, Berlin, Germany
- EPICA (Ecumenical Program On Central America & the Caribbean), USA
- Tom Griffiths, Forest Peoples Programme, UK
- Techa Beaumont, Mineral Policy Institute, Australia
- Aly Ercelawn, Creed Alliance, Karachi PAKISTAN
- BanglaPraxis, Dhaka, Bangladesh
- Jan Cappelle, Proyecto Gato (Belgium)
- Nicaragua Center for Community Action (NICCA) Berkeley, CA, USA
- Knud Voecking, Urgewald (Germany)
- Indigenous Peoples Links, London, UK
- Yayasan Duta Awam (YDA) Solo, Indonesia
- Urban Poor Consortium (Jakarta, Indonesia)
- D&P Letter Writing Group, Catholic Diocese of Victoria, Vancouver Island, Canada
- Guatemala Solidarity Committee of Ottawa (GUASCO) - Canada
- Confederación Nacional de Comunidades del Perú Afectadas por la Minería - CONACAMI PERU
- World Centric, Palo Alto, CA, USA
- Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement (Montreal), Canada
- NGO Working Group on Export Development Canada, A Working Group of the Halifax Initiative Coalition, (Canada)
- Cumberland Countians for Peace & Justice, USA
- Obed Watershed Association, USA,
- Network for Environmental & Economic Responsibility, United Church of Christ, USA
- Both ENDS, The Netherlands
- Campagna per la riforma della banca Mondiale, Italia
- Center for Agrarian Reform Empowerment and Transformation Inc. (Philippines)
- Halifax Initiative Coalition, Canada
- Jubilee USA Network, USA
- Canadian Society for International Health, Canada
- Conférence religieuse canadienne / Canadian Religious Conference , Canada
- Rural Reconstruction Nepal
- A SEED Europe
- CoDevelopment Canada
- KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives, Canada
- Derechos y Democracia, Canadá
- Ken Georgetti, President of the Canadian Labour Congress - Canada
- Alternatives Espaces Citoyens du Niger
- The Development GAP, USA
- Michael Dougherty for the Social Justice Committee in Whitehorse, Canada
- Action for a Clean Environment, GA, USA
- INKOTA, red ecuménica, Berlin (Alemania)
- Acción por la Diversidad, Argentina.
- AMSALA, España
- Grupo solidario con Guatemala de la Iglesia Católica y Luterana de Nuremberg (Alemania)
Signing Individuals:
- Louise H. Clark, CA, USA
- Alisha Watts (Law Student), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Sarah Levison, South Hadley, MA, USA
- Sister Ann Carol Kaufenberg, SSND, St. Paul MN USA
- Simon Helweg-Larsen, Unionville, Ontario, Canada
- Rev. Faye Wakeling of the United Church of Canada
- The Rev. Wes Maultsaid, Anglican Priest, Canada
- Ira R. Rabinovitch, staff at the Toronto District School Board; Canada
- Melanie Robitaille, staff at the Trinity/Spadina Early Years Centre, Canada
- Paul Beaulieu, Montreal, Canadá
- William Friley, Montreal, Canadá
- Jaclyn Hagner, Montreal, Canadá
- Linda Paetow, Montreal, Canadá
- Steven Kaal, Montreal, Canadá
- Enrique Madrid, Montreal, Canadá
- Loiuse Constantin, Montreal, Canadá
- Jessica Marshall, Montreal, Canadá
- Ann Trépanier, Montreal, Canadá
- Padmani Deodath, Montreal, Canadá
- Kathryn Myler, Montreal, Canadá
- Sarah Godefroy, Montreal, Canadá
- Sandra DeBlois, Montreal, Canadá
- Meghan Traynor, Montreal, Canadá
- Noah Stewart-Ornstein, Montreal, Canadá
- Monika Plank, Montreal, Canadá
- Kyle Folsom, Montreal, Canadá
- Sabrina Morin, Montreal, Canadá
- Angela Jones, Montreal, Canadá
- Benoit Alain, Montreal, Canadá
- Crystal James, Montreal, Canadá
- Marie-Eve Boucher, Montreal, Canadá
- Adam Hope, Montreal, Canadá
- Kathryn Schilligalies, Montreal, Canadá
- Jason Nephin, Montreal, Canadá
- Nathalie Cortez, Montreal, Canadá
- Courtney Dutchak, Montreal, Canadá
- Jeanine Laver, Montreal, Canadá
- Jay Brotherton, Montreal, Canadá
- Shukri Isse, Montreal, Canadá
- Dess Richardson, Montreal, Canadá
- Ilana Nixon, Montreal, Canadá
- Julie Donjon, Montreal, Canadá
- David Dupere, Montreal, Canadá
- Lisa Bentivoqlio, Montreal, Canadá
- Tara Pouyat, Montreal, Canadá
- Lukacs Kinga Maha, Montreal, Canadá
- Shea Mayer, Montreal, Canadá
- Sara Farag, Montreal, Canadá
- Michael Sokoligh, Montreal, Canadá
- Carolyn Brown, Montreal, Canadá
- Shelly Horn, Montreal, Canadá
- Patrick Bachase, Montreal, Canadá
- Melissa McDevitt, Montreal, Canadá
- Veronique Boudages, Montreal, Canadá
- Ingrid Elgueta, Montreal, Canadá
- Nassim Tabri, Montreal, Canadá
- Jenny Rachel Harvey, Montreal, Canadá
- Kay Hannahan, Montreal, Canadá
- Daniel Mackay, Montreal, Canadá
- Kelly Derich, Montreal, Canadá
- Theodor Hilgers, Member of International Police Association IPA, Atenas Costa Rica
- Laetitita Oberholzer, Las Mariposas Oekotourismus, Atenas Costa Rica
- Daniel Vogt.
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