This report by Above Ground and Justiça Global documents human rights abuse tied to the expansion of the Morro do Ouro mine in Brazil by a subsidiary of Kinross Gold, a Canadian company financed by the government of Canada.
This joint letter, signed by eighty organizations from Canada, the US, Europe and Guatemala, expresses solidarity with Angélica Choc and all others being attacked, threatened, killed or persecuted in Latin America for defending their land and communities.
Above Ground has joined fifty Canadian organizations in calling on the Canadian government to put pressure on Honduran authorities and review Canadian foreign policy, after another member of Berta Cáceres’ organization was murdered in Honduras this week.
The El Algarrobo Assembly in Argentina seeks our solidarity in its struggle to block the development of Agua Rica, a Canadian mine.
In February, the inhabitants of Andalgalá set up camp outside the Supreme Court of Argentina in Buenos Aires, where they remain despite record-breaking temperatures. They demand that the court respond to a petition they filed three years ago to halt the Agua Rica project of Canadian company Yamana Gold.
Above Ground and fellow members of the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (CNCA) recently joined with the Polaris Institute in calling for business and human rights to be included in the mandate of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’ new Special Rapporteur on economic, social and cultural rights.
Last November’s massive mine spill in the state of Minas Gerais was Brazil’s worst environmental disaster. Export Development Canada provided one of the mine’s joint venture owners, Brazilian multinational Vale, with hundreds of millions of dollars in financing for its global operations.
Canadians shouldn’t bankroll the next foreign mine disaster, argues Above Ground’s director in an opinion piece published today in Embassy.
Canadian company Pacific Exploration & Production was recently granted a concession to oil block 192 in the Peruvian Amazon. Residents in the region of Loreto have since staged a series of protests including a two-day regional strike. While many in Loreto, including the regional government, are angry that the state oil company was excluded from the concession, indigenous people affected by the oil block raise other concerns.
Canadian company Belo Sun wants to mine for gold in the Brazilian Amazon, next to the massive Belo Monte dam, which is currently under construction. The mine would affect several indigenous nations, including those who live in voluntary isolation. While the Brazilian Public Prosecutor challenges the mine licensing process in court, affected indigenous people demand that they be consulted by the company.
Above Ground works to ensure that companies based in Canada or supported by the Canadian state respect human rights and the environment worldwide. It is a project of MakeWay, a national charity that builds partnerships and solutions to help nature and communities thrive together.
Above Ground c/o MakeWay
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Vancouver, BC V6B 1H5
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