Eleven Zapotec communities in Mexico win injunction against Canadian mining company, say court order should be respected and the mine closed
Photo: The No to Mining Front for a Future of All media conference; April 3, 2024.
An injunction/court order granted by a Mexican judge should protect eleven Zapotec communities in the Ocotlán Valley of Oaxaca state from Vancouver-based Fortuna Silver and its subsidiary the Cuzcatlán mining company.
A statement from the communities says: “Faced with the negligence and omission of the federal government, we decided to appeal to the justice system through an amparo on December 5, 2023, to request the cancellation of the mining concessions granted in our territories without our consent.”
La Jornada further explains: “Judge Emmanuel Hernández Alba, head of the First District Court in the state of Oaxaca, granted 11 communities an injunction by which it is ordered ‘to refrain from depriving totally or partially, temporarily or permanently, of the ownership and possession of the lands of the agrarian regime, the populations of merit,’ that is, that they are prohibited from applying any project. including the miners, which is an achievement of these communities.”
Fortuna/Cuzcatlán has been extracting gold and silver concentrates in San José del Progreso since 2011 through mining concessions granted by the federal government without prior consultation with its residents.
El Universal adds: “In a press conference [on April 3], [the communities] reported that they achieved the suspension of mining concessions in their territories, affected by the ‘San José’ mining project of Fortuna Silver Mines (FSM) in San José del Progreso. They added that since 2011, in the community assemblies, they decided not to allow the territorial expansion of the ‘San José’ mining company, a decision for which they sought the support of the municipal and state orders; however, they say, governments promoted mining activities in their territories, instead of supporting the communities’ decision.”
And Pagina 3 notes: “The No to Mining Front demanded that the federal and state governments respect and abide by the suspension and establish measures for the definitive closure of the mining project and the operation of the mining company in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca.” As for the length of the suspension, the article notes that “this suspension would last for the duration of the legal process.”
For more on this and a video of the media conference by the communities, please go to the Educa Oaxaca post: Communities of the Oaxaca Valley Seek Protection Against Mining Concessions (April 3, 2024).
Additional coverage can also be found in Estado 20, Zona Roja Oaxaca, Chiapas Paralello, ONEA Mexico, Municipios Digitales and Desinformémonos
PBI-Mexico’s relationship with Educa Oaxaca dates back to 2001. Formal accompaniment began in May 2013.
We continue to follow this from Canada.
PBI-Mexico accompanies Educa Oaxaca and the “Mision Civil de Observacion Justicia para San Jose del Progreso”; November 2012.
0 Comments