[IPSM] mining in Guatemala, Romero commemoration - Thursday, January 27th

[Dan ngh!]

The Social Justice Committee would like to invite you, on *Thursday January 
27 at 6:30 pm* at the SJC, *1857 Maisonneve West*, to a working session on 
two Central America human rights issues:

*1.- Gold open pit mining vs indigenous rights in Guatemala* - our response
*2.- 25th Anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero, in El 
Salvador - What is the message for today's world? * our participation

*1.- Gold open pit mining vs indigenous rights in Guatemala
*The mining company, _Glamis Gold Ltd., is a transnational corporation based 
in Canada_. The company started its operations without a previous and 
informed consent of all the communities that will be affected by the mining 
activities. The indigenous communities have tried to stop the excavations, 
at least until they can get all the necessary information to have an 
informed debate. They have not been successful despite the fact that they 
have the right to be part of the decision making process according to 
Guatemalan international commitments (namely the Convention on Indigenous 
Peoples of the International Labour Organization (ILO) also known as 
Convention 169). The _Guatemalan government_ has been actively inviting 
international investments in the mining area and their mining law does not 
require a consent from the affected communities (obviously at odds with 
Convention 169 of the ILO).
Another social actor on this conflict is the World Bank through its 
_International Financial Corporation_. The IFC approved a loan to Glamis 
Gold Ltd. despite a request from the indigenous people to postpone the 
approval of the loan until the IFC would hear their concerns . The 
indigenous communities are concerned not only because their right to decide 
their own path of development as been trespassed, they are also concerned 
with the environmental, health, and socio-economic negative consequences 
that open pit mining could have on their communities. They have seen these 
problems in a similar mine in Honduras, run by the same company.
Last but not least, the _Canadian government_. Its responsibility is 
outlined in the OECD Guidelines for International Enterprises. The OECD is 
the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a group of 
industrialized countries where Canada is a member. These Guidelines state: 
“Governments adhering to the Guidelines are committed to continual 
improvement of both domestic and international policies with a view to 
improving the welfare and living standards of all people. ” In its General 
Policies the Guidelines maintain that enterprises should “respect the human 
rights of those affected by their activities consistent with the host 
government’s international obligations and commitments” .

A coalition of Guatemalan indigenous groups and grass-roots organizations, 
the Frente por la Vida, asked the SJC to help them to defend their rights. 
We sent an open letter to the President of Guatemala, that was signed by 
more than seventy organizations from all over the world. The letter stated 
our support for the demands of the Frente por la Vida, and was brought to 
Guatemala by Ernie Schibli. Now we would like to direct our attention to the 
other social actors, starting with the Canadian government. We would like 
you to be part of this project.

*2.- 25th Anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero, in El 
Salvador - What is the message for today's world?

*Archbishop Oscar Romero was assassinated because he spoke openly in favour 
of the poor and the oppressed in El Salvador. He did it knowing that he was 
risking his life; his legacy continues to bring courage and hope to people 
all over the world.
The commemorations of this 25th Anniversary (March 24) have already started 
in other countries and we would like be part of this world-wide event.
The SJC is part of a coalition of Montreal groups, the Romero Coalition. 
This Coalition is planning several events throughout the year. These events 
include a photo exhibit in March, a film festival in May, a conference 
including the participation of Salvadoran Bishop Gregorio Rosa-Chavez in 
June, etc. As you can see, we will need lots of help.

Hope to see you on *Thursday the 27 at 6:30 pm, at the SJC*:
*1857 Maisonneuve West (corner of St Marc).* Metro station Guy, exit St 
Mathew, is just one block east of our office.

*Please feel free to invite friends, classmates, colleagues.

*If you would like to be taken out of this list, please let me know: 
_gloria at s-j-c.net_. Thanks!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gloria Pereira-Papenburg
The Social Justice Committee (Canada)
1857 Maisonneuve West, Montreal, Canada - H3H 1J9
phone: (514) 933 9517 or (514) 933 6797
toll free: 1 877 933 6797
fax: (514) 933 9517
general SJC e-mail address: <sjc at web.ca>
personal e-mail address: <gloria at s-j-c.net>
web-site: <www.s-j-c.net <http://www.s-j-c.net/>>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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