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PBI-Guatemala accompanied Q’eqchi fisherman opposed to now suspended Fenix nickel mine

By
Brent Patterson
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On May 7, the Peace Brigades International-Guatemala Project reported in this article that it had accompanied the case of Eduardo Bin Poou, a Q’eqchi human rights defender and vice president of the Fishermen’s Association of El Estor, Izabal, who had been unfairly criminalized by being charged with the crime of trespassing on protected areas.

Human rights defenders in the department of Izabal oppose the open-pit Fenix nickel mine in the municipality of El Estor because it is causing serious environmental damage and irreparable harm to Lake Izabal, Guatemala’s largest freshwater lake.

The mine was first developed by Toronto-based Inco, then owned by Toronto-based Hudbay and Vancouver-based Skye Resources, and is now operated by the Russian-owned Solway Group that is based in Zug, Switzerland.

PBI-Guatemala accompanies Bufete Jurídico de Derechos Humanos (the Human Rights Law Firm) that represented Eduardo in court.

Eduardo was first acquitted on May 3 of the charge of usurpation of land.

The Guatemala Human Rights Commission USA provides the context of this charge against Eduardo: “A ‘protected area’ was created inside an indigenous community and they ended up being thrown out. Eduardo once visited the community to check on their conditions and as a result was charged with illegally occupying the area.”

Eduardo was not freed after that acquittal because of other charges against him.

The GHRC-USA notes, “All the charges [illegal detention, threats and instigation to commit a crime] are related to a protest on May 3-4, 2017 that was organized after representatives of Guatemala’s Natural Resources Ministry did not show up for a meeting scheduled to review contamination charges the fishermen had levied against the CGN nickel mine.”

CGN refers to Compañía Guatemalteca de Níquel, the Guatemala-based subsidiary of the Russian-owned Solway Group that owns the Fenix mine.

Jackie McVicar comments, “He had been arrested, there were trumped up charges against him, stemming from him denouncing contamination of the lake that was impacting his ability to meekly provide for his family through fishing. He has been in jail ever since.”

On June 15, PBI-Guatemala posted, “Yesterday we accompanied the BDH in the review hearing of the measure of coercion of Eduardo Bin Poou, Vice President of the fishermen’s guild of Izabal. The court of criminal judgment of Izabal decreed substitute measure in favour of the lake defender, granting house arrest and payment of a bail.”

As such, Eduardo was freed from jail!

Now, The Guardian reports, “Guatemala’s constitutional court has upheld a request from indigenous campaigners to suspend operations at one of the largest nickel mines in Central America, in a battle over the facility’s environmental impact.”

“The court found in favour of an appeal brought by campaigners who claim the ministry of energy and mines failed to carry out a full consultation with local people when it decided, in 2016, to extend the licence for the Fenix mine.”

That news report adds, “Solway is appealing against the ruling that it should consult the community. A hearing on the issue is scheduled for 25 July.”

#PBIAcompaña

PBI-Mexico accompanies Indigenous Zapotec group opposed to industrial wind power megaprojects on their territory

By
Brent Patterson
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On July 19, the Peace Brigades International-Mexico Project posted on Facebook that it accompanied Los Comuneros Zapotecas de Unión Hidalgo at their event celebrating the 55th anniversary of the Presidential Resolution of Communal Property.

A recent headline in El Universal (in Spanish) explains that it was in 1964, by presidential order, that the Indigenous Zapotec peoples of the municipality of Union Hidalgo in the state of Oaxaca, were recognized as possessors of the land and were given 20,000 hectares that today they defend against megaprojects.

That article notes, “The agrarian community of Union Hidalgo defends its right to land, territory and natural assets before the wind industry that is settling in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec [in the state of Oaxaca] without respecting the communal character of the land, nor the human rights of the Indigenous peoples.”

The PBI-Mexico social media post adds the details that, “They have a history of resistance against the arrival of five wind megaprojects and other miners in their territory. There are approximately 300 wind towers that are intended to be installed in areas with a large presence of trees and natural reserves.”

In May of this year, Mexico News Daily reported that the Energía Eólica del Sur wind farm was built by the Japanese transnational Mitsubishi corporation.

The newspaper article further highlights, “It is the newest of 28 farms in the state, all of which are located in the windy Isthmus of Tehuantepec region, which generates 62 per cent of Mexico’s wind energy.”

That article also notes, “One group of indigenous Zapotecs sued Energía Eólica del Sur, arguing that their right to prior consultation under international law had been violated because the consultation took place after construction had already started.”

The Mexico City-based Project on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, AC (ProDESC) has previously explained that the Zapotec indigenous community of Unión Hidalgo opposed the Piedra Larga wind project.

Desarrollos Eólicos Mexicanos (DEMEX), a subsidiary of the Spanish company Renovalia Energy, along with the private U.S. investment firm First Reserve, developed the controversial Piedra Larga wind farm projects despite community opposition. Piedra Larga I, which is comprised of 145 wind turbines, has been in operation since October 2012. Piedra Larga II, which consists of 69 wind turbines, was constructed in 2014.

In February of this year, the Istmopress News Agency also noted these projects being developed in this territory:

1- the Gunna Sicarú wind farm to be built by Eólica de Francia (EDF);

2- a wind farm that is still unknown but belongs to the company Eólica Unión Hidalgo;

3- the Palmita 1 and 2 wind farm to be built by the German company Siemens and Gamesa;

4- a wind farm to be built by the U.S. company Ecowin.

That article also listed:

5- a mine being developed by Minaurum Gold in the community of La Cristalina in the municipality of San Miguel Chimalapa;

6- a stone material mining companies such as the Cruz Azul cement factory that intends to excavate an area in a small mountain range.

In 2013, a representative of PRoDESC stated in this IPS newspaper article, “There is a pattern of human rights violations in the communities. Wind energy companies advertise themselves well, offering money and jobs, but the jobs are temporary. The companies’ actions are not transparent, nor do they meet established standards.”

This PBI-Mexico briefing paper has also previously noted, “Throughout 2013, PBI observed with concern an increase in the level of violence in the context of wind farms, particularly against HRDs [human rights defenders] and community leaders whose work involves the defence of those affected by these developments.”

It adds, “PBI believes that HRDs are essential actors in promoting environmental and social justice, highlighting the importance of respecting human rights norms in the context of large scale economic projects.”

ProDESC is a member of the Focal Group of Civil Society on Business and Human Rights (Focal Group) that PBI-Mexico has accompanied since 2015.

PBI-Honduras visits COPINH community after their collective crops damaged

By
Brent Patterson
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On July 19, the Peace Brigades International-Honduras Project posted on Facebook, “This week, we visited Río Blanco, Intibucá, a community affiliated with Copinh Intibucá, to see the damage caused to the community’s collective crops.”

Peoples Dispatch explains, “Members of the Lenca community in Río Blanco in the northwestern region of Honduras woke up on July 16 to find that 15 sections of their corn crops had been destroyed during the night.”

That article adds, “[The community] said the attack was perpetrated by members of the Madrid family, associated with one of Honduras’ powerful families, the Atala Zablahs.” Peoples Dispatch further reports that the Atala Zablah family has invested in the Agua Zarca hydroelectric dam project.

The COPINH urgent alert on this situation can be read here.

The PBI-Honduras post also noted, “This community, and particularly the human rights defender Rosalina Dominguéz, have received several serious threats in recent months for their work in defense of #LandAndTerritory.”

This past May, our friends at Amnesty International Canada posted, “Rosalina Domínguez, her four sons and two members of the community of Río Blanco, Intibucá, in Honduras were threatened last 30 April and 1 May 2019.”

Their post highlighted, “The community members are afraid that this might be the beginning of a new wave of attacks against them. They received threats previously for protesting the Agua Zarca Dam alongside COPINH.”

The Indigenous Lenca communities of Rio Blanco are members of COPINH and oppose this hydroelectric dam that lacks their free, prior and informed consent.

In March 2019, Vice reported, “All three foreign investors—including Dutch bank FMO, Finnish finance company FinnFund, and the Central American Bank of Economic Integration (CABEI)—have withdrawn from the project, putting the construction project on indefinite hold.”

That article adds, “However, DESA [the company behind the construction of the dam] owns the concession for 50 years, [Berta Cáceres’ daughter Bertha] Zúniga says, meaning the company has the exclusive right to work the land until 2059. ‘They have not given up and apparently have no intention of abandoning the project altogether.’”

Furthermore, The Guardian has reported, “The 2009 coup that ushered in a pro-business government who sanctioned scores of renewable energy projects, mines, and biofuel plantations, in rural communities without consultation.”

That article also noted, “At least 49 mega-projects were destined for Lenca territories, and Cáceres led multiple campaigns to stop land-grabs.”

Cáceres, who received the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in 2015, was murdered in March 2016 for opposing the dam. PBI-Honduras began providing accompaniment to Copinh Intibucá, the organization Cáceres had led, in May 2016.

PBI-Guatemala seeks volunteers; apply by July 22!

By
Brent Patterson
-

This is the last call out for this opportunity!

Peace Brigades International is seeking field project volunteers in Guatemala! The deadline to submit an application is Monday July 22. 

Last year, ten international volunteers with PBI-Guatemala accompanied members of eleven organizations and three human rights defenders working on issues including environmental and land rights, impunity and globalization, and women’s and gender rights.

Volunteers are based in Guatemala City from where they travel to other regions of the country.

In 2018, PBI had 84 volunteers accompanying at-risk human rights defenders in Guatemala, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico and Kenya.

All the information on how to apply can be found here.

Please help spread the word!

PBI gathers for a face-to-face planning meeting in Charleroi, Belgium

By
Brent Patterson
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Staff and volunteers from five Peace Brigades International field projects (Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Indonesia), eleven country groups (including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Spain) and the international secretariat met last week in Charleroi, Belgium to coordinate our ongoing work in defence of human rights.

In 2018, PBI provided accompaniment to over 1,000 human rights defenders so that they could continue and expand their vital work.

A PBI chart notes that 55% of those human rights defenders work on issues related to civil and political rights, 21% on land and environmental rights, 17% on economic, social and cultural rights, and 7% on gender and sexual rights.

Last year, PBI also helped to amplify the voices of human rights defenders and provided a platform for their stories to be told and profiles to be raised through 316 bulletins, reports, videos, radio and online tools.

And international advocacy missions enabled 36 human rights defenders to raise international awareness of and support for their work in Europe and North America.

PBI-Canada has prioritized finding volunteers to accompany human rights defenders in the field, writing about the groups PBI accompanies through regular articles on our website and social media channels, and organizing speaking tours, including one later this year.

The three-day meeting in Belgium helped to both integrate and advance that work with PBI entities around the world.

To read more about the work of PBI, please see our 2018 annual review.

PBI-Colombia at meeting of Basque parliamentarians with the Inter-Church Justice and Peace Commission

By
Brent Patterson
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On July 17, the Peace Brigades International-Colombia Project tweeted, “Today the delegation of the Basque Government parliamentarians visits the @Justiciaypazcol office and meets @IDARDOS in order to listen to their concerns about the current security situation in the territories they accompany and the threats they have received this year.”

@Justiciaypazcol is the Twitter handle for the Inter-Church Justice and Peace Commission (CIJP), which has been accompanied by PBI-Colombia since 1994. @IDARDOS refers to Iván Danilo Rueda R, a legal representative for the CIJP.

PBI-Colombia later tweeted, “Thanks to the Delegation of the Basque Government for its visit to the office of @Justiciaypazcol, for its support in the construction of peace and in the protection of human rights in Colombia.”

Also related to the PBI-Colombia tweet, CEAR-Euskadi tweeted, “In Bogotá we started the agenda at the headquarters of the Inter-Church Commission of Justice and Peace. The meeting is accompanied by @PBIColombia, an organization that has issued an alert regarding the risk situation of its members.”

As noted on its website, “CEAR-Euskadi defends the rights of refugees, stateless people and migrants and we work to support their integral development to ensure their success in the new society that welcomes them.”

CEAR is the acronym for the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid. Euskadi refers to the Basque Country, an autonomous community in Spain, in the Basque language.

PBI-Colombia has previously explained that the CIJP accompanies community processes in the Bajo Atrato region and that in the last few months the CIJP has been the victim of serious threats due to their work in the region.

For example, Agencia Prensa Rural recently reported (in Spanish), “We reject the death threat via text message, uttered against the human rights defender Carlos Fernández, member of the Inter-Church Justice and Peace Commission, held on June 26.”

PBI-Colombia’s Javier Garate recently wrote this update on the security situation in the Bajo Atrato region and a visit to the Nueva Esperanza (New Hope) Humanitarian Zone by representatives of five embassies and other officials.

PBI-Honduras accompanies Dina Meza to meetings with journalists in La Paz and Marcala

By
Brent Patterson
-

On July 12, the Peace Brigades International-Honduras Project posted, “Last week, we accompanied Dina Meza from Asopodehu in meetings with journalists in the cities of La Paz and Marcala in order to discuss topics related to #FreedomofExpression.”

Meza is a journalist in a country where it is known to be a dangerous profession.

At least 62 journalists were killed in Honduras between 2006 and 2017, making it one of the most dangerous countries in the world for reporters.

Journalists are also regularly threatened when they report on vested interests.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Jody Williams, who led a delegation of women including Sarah Harmer and Tantoo Cardinal to Honduras in 2012, highlighted this in her article about their visit to the site of the San Martin mine owned by Vancouver-based Goldcorp Inc.

Williams noted, “A few days before we arrived in Honduras, Gilda Carolina Silvestrucci — a local journalist who was talking to environmental activists about the problems with mining in the Siria Valley — received threats against her life and those of her children.”

And she noted, “A journalist in Santa Rosa de Copan, where the Canadian company Aura Minerals operates, also reported receiving threats for having reported on concerns over mining operations in the area.”

It is in this context that Meza also works as the director of Asopodehu (the Association for Democracy and Human Rights).

Asopodehu was founded in 2012 and its stated mission (translated from Spanish) is “to accompany victims of violations of their fundamental human rights, with emphasis on vulnerable groups: journalists, social communicators, women, youth, indigenous people, blacks and the community of sexual diversity.”

Al Jazeera has reported, “[Meza] has repeatedly suffered threats of sexual violence and against her life, as well as surveillance and other forms of intimidation, such as unusual late-night phone calls.” Threats have also been made against her children.

That article adds, “As a safety precaution, Meza often is flanked by a pair of international human rights observers provided by Peace Brigades International when she works in the field on investigations or reporting outside of the capital, Tegucigalpa.”

PBI has provided protective accompaniment to Meza since May 2014.

Meza has commented, “I can do my work only thanks to the support of PBI. If it wasn’t for the accompaniment I get, it would be much more difficult to do my job.”

PBI-Mexico accompanies LGBTI+ pride march in Chihuahua

By
Brent Patterson
-

On Saturday July 6, the Peace Brigades International-Mexico Project accompanied the LGBTI+ pride march in the city of Chihuahua.

PBI-Mexico notes on social media that more than 10,000 people marched in that gathering against discrimination and hate crimes.

In October 2018, El Universal reported that Mexico has the second highest number of murders of transgender and transsexual people in the world every year.

Prior to the march, Difusión Norte reported (in Spanish), “In order to make visible and remember the struggle of those who pursue the equality of the LGBT+ community, this Saturday, July 6, 2019, the XII Pride of Chihuahua March will take place through the streets of the Center, organized by the Sexual Diversity Committee of Chihuahua.”

That article adds, “In different parts of the world there is a march of pride to remember the raid that took place in New York in 1969 at a meeting point of the LGBT+ community.”

That refers to the Stonewall rebellion that took place after a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village in New York City in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969. This was a pivotal moment in the emergence of the gay liberation movement. By June 28, 1970, the first gay pride marches took place in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and numerous other cities in the United States.

The Difusión Norte article notes, “This year the march will be dedicated to trans people, who are the most vulnerable population in Mexico.”

El Universal has reported, “Transgender women are one of the most vulnerable social groups in Mexico, next to homosexuals, and they are often subjected to physical aggression due to their identity.”

PBI-Mexico highlights that according to a survey conducted by the National Council to Prevent Discrimination (CONAPRED) and the State Commission of Human Rights (CNDH), the state of Chihuahua has the second highest number of homicides against members of the LGBTI community.

El Heraldo de Chihuahua adds (in Spanish), “The National Discrimination Survey reveals that 7 out of every 10 inhabitants in Mexico say that homosexuals and transgendered people are the least respected by society.”

That El Heraldo article also notes, “The results of the National Survey on Homophobia at Work show that 35 percent of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people have been victims of some kind of discrimination in their workplace, which has resulted in 15 percent having had to resign.”

#PBIAcompaña #TRANSitandoSinMiedo #LGBTambienEsFamilia #PBIaccompanies #LGBTQI+ #pride #gaypride #Stonewall50

PBI-Honduras accompanies ASOPODEHU at march against deaths from dengue epidemic

By
Brent Patterson
-

On July 10, the Peace Brigades International-Honduras Project posted that it had accompanied ASOPODEHU to the observation of a march called by the Platform for the Defence of Health and Education to denounce corruption and the lack of resources in the face of the dengue epidemic that Honduras suffers between other issues.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says that a total of 11,436 cases of dengue had been reported in Honduras as of June 2-8.

Proceso Digital highlights (in Spanish), “So far this year the dengue epidemic registers 90 deaths suspected of dengue, of which 48 have already been confirmed.”

The outreach for the march said that the number of deaths could be as high as 101.

The Platform says, “We regret that children are dying in our country, which are the future, due to the negligence and corruption of the rulers.”

Prensa Latina reports (in Spanish) that the mobilization condemned increases in dengue deaths and demanded the departure of the country’s president Juan Orlando Hernández.

On June 22, a controversy emerged when a truck donated to the Ministry of Health in Honduras by the Government of Canada to help address the dengue crisis was photographed being used to transport security forces.

The Canadian ambassador to Honduras James K. Hill issued a sternly worded statement that read: “We have insisted that immediate steps be taken to ensure that this unacceptable use of development cooperation resources provided by Canada does not happen again.”

There have been ongoing strikes and protests in Honduras since late April over President Juan Orlando Hernández’s proposed ‘reforms’ of the health and education systems, deep public dissatisfaction with his government, allegations of corruption, and findings of widespread irregularities in the November 2017 election.

On June 28, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a statement noting that it is investigating the deaths of four people and that “another 78 people, including journalists and human rights defenders, have reportedly been injured by the security forces in the context of the protests.”

ASOPODEHU refers to the Association for Democracy and Human Rights in Honduras, an organization headed by journalist Dina Meza.

Its mission (translated from Spanish) is “to accompany victims of violations of their fundamental human rights, with emphasis on vulnerable groups: journalists, social communicators, women, youth, indigenous people, blacks and the community of sexual diversity.”

PBI-Honduras has accompanied Meza since May 2014.

PBI-Canada’s Paul Bocking reports on his field visit to Mexico

By
Brent Patterson
-

Toronto-based Peace Brigades International-Canada Board of Directors member Paul Bocking recently travelled to Mexico. This is his report:

On Tuesday, June 25, I met with Virry Schaafsma, the advocacy coordinator for PBI-Mexico, and representatives of several international and Mexico-based human rights groups (including Oxfam, UNHCR, CNDH, PRODESC, PODER, etc) at 4 am, at the Mexico City airport.

The team of about a dozen of us drove for four hours into the countryside to the small community of Ixtacamaxtitlán, in rural Puebla, through beautiful landscapes of small farms, rolling hills, mountains and rivers.

We were to monitor a community information meeting convened by the Mexican ministry of the environment (SEMARNAT), where a Canadian mining company would promote a proposed mining development, and residents would have an opportunity to ask questions, and potentially deliver comprehensive presentations in response.

The Canadian company, Almaden Minerals Ltd (which goes by the name Minera Gorrion in Mexico), had already begun exploration (i.e., drilling activities) despite the contested nature of its permit.

The company has not acknowledged claims by Indigenous communities in the area, which should legally require a higher level of informed consent to development.

Many residents are also concerned about the project’s potential to contaminate their water systems, and the general environmental consequences in an area that’s both very biodiverse, and with lots of existing human activity (farming, etc).

Our concern at the meeting was that opponents of the mine would have the opportunity to voice their concerns and not be threatened by the mine company or its supporters.

When we arrived at the meeting hall, we could see that roughly half of the 1400 attendees were wearing yellow hats and t-shirts distributed by the company that said, ‘Yes to the mine, yes to jobs’.

We were sure to be as visible as possible, introducing ourselves to the police (whom we later learned had some relationship with the company – feeding them during the day, and had arranged for their presence), government officials and the company reps themselves.

The meeting began with a 45-minute PowerPoint presentation by the company, first emphasizing the jobs that purportedly would be created and the taxes paid, and then entering into detail on the protection of animals, forests and water systems.

Next, 24 people who had registered earlier, each delivered a five-minute presentation. Many were grad students, some were with local groups and NGOs. Around 20 were critical of the mine. Their presentations ranged from the highly technical, with 3D presentations of projected rainfall, and a level of detail that made the audience’s eyes glaze over, to very hard hitting.

The most provocative projected photos of mining disasters elsewhere in Mexico, and illnesses from exposure to toxic chemicals. “Is this what you want?” leading opponents to shout “No!” while supporters generally booed and heckled. The presenter closed stating, “Enjoy your t-shirts and free sandwiches, because that’s all you’re going to get from this company!” The hall erupted in cheers and jeers. I was briefly worried a big fight would break out.

On the other hand, we also heard a memorable presentation from a college of mining and metallurgy, titled ‘Mining in our lives’. The mining rep asked people to pull out their cell phones and look up at the steel beams holding up the ceiling: “The products of mining are all around us!” (his presentation was censured by SEMARNAT, who told him this didn’t count as an informative deputation). A rep from an explosives company began, “The history of dynamite starts in the 16th Century…”

During the course of these presentations, it was my impression that many of the yellow t-shirts and hats began to disappear. Wearing them also did not prevent one from clapping for opponents of the mine.

We later heard that people had been paid 150 pesos and the promise of a meal to visibly support the mine. Others were told they had to show up, if they wanted to get a job there in the future. Of the thousand or so people remaining in the hall, it really appeared that there were a few dozen very vocal supporters of the mine. Overall, it was a fascinating day.

The following Friday, June 28, I met at the offices of the Comite Cerezo in Mexico City, which was formed in the late 1990s to campaign for the release of political prisoners. It’s since been known for delivering human rights training to NGOs and political groups, and more recently, engaging in labour rights advocacy.

Alfonso Cerezo described some of their work supporting subcontracted custodians who clean Mexico City’s high schools. The workers were endeavouring to unionize, but the company pressured them to join a fake company-controlled union. Others were fired or didn’t have their contracts renewed. Unfortunately, this is very common in Mexico. A legal campaign continues.

The Comite Cerezo has received threats over the years from various authorities due to their advocacy work, hence PBI’s accompaniment.

I was proud to see the great work of PBI-Mexico, and glad to have met Virry.

Paul Bocking is a lecturer in labour studies at McMaster University and geography at the University of Toronto, and an elected local officer of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation. He studies labour internationalism, geographies of labour, and teachers’ work in Canada, the US and Mexico.

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