Update from Junin
Sunday, May 23, 2004
22 May 6:30 pm
Word just in from Junin:
A newly formed women's group in Junin decided to go and confront the miners, who were cleaning up the old abandoned mining camp (site of the Mitsubishi bonfire) , and asked the miners to leave. The miners left!!!, but we don't have any details on what transcurred. The miners were within the 2,500 hectare reserve Decoin helped Junin buy years ago, thus were there illegally.
Also, there is some doubt now about the real owner of the mining concession. We should find out more by tuesday (monday is an official holiday).
Keep tuned
EMPRESA MINERA EN JUNÍN-ECUADOR
Se crea el Consejo de Desarrollo Comunitario para enfrentar la nueva amenaza
minera e impulsar el desarrollo comunitario, y Junín decide a favor
de enjuiciar el estado ecuatoriano.
El día 15 de mayo del año en curso, y 7 años después del incendio del campamento minero de una subsidiaria de la Mitsubishi Corporation el cual terminó con el proyecto minero impuesto por el gobierno ecuatoriano en la Cordillera del Toisán, cerca de 150 comuneros de 12 comunidades de la Zona de Intag y representantes de numerosas organizaciones locales, se reunieron en la comunidad de Junín para conmemorar 7 años de lucha en contra de la minería y a favor de la vida en este hermoso rincón de Intag, ubicado en el Cantón Cotacachi, Provincia de Imbabura. El Festival por la Vida contó con una intervención de un grupo musical ecológico y un gran baile.
Durante el histórico evento, se denunció la presencia de la empresa minera Ascendant Exploration en una reunión en la comunidad de Chalguayacu Alto (muy cerca de Junín) el día anterior, donde anunciaron que ellos eran los nuevos concesionarios mineros. Vinieron bien preparados con personajes muy cuestionados a nivel local, regional y nacional, como son el ex diputado Ronald Andrade, y un ex-funcionario del INDA. Según informes de los asistentes, las personas de las comunidades locales apenas pudieron expresarse, al verse la reunión dominada por personas de otros lugares, y de la empresa.
Los empleados de la empresa admitieron haber ingresado a la Reserva Comunitaria de Junín en varias ocasiones sin haber solicitado autorización de la comunidad; y sin haberles explicado de los motivos por su presencia en el sector. De nuevo se vislumbra el irrespeto de las empresas a las comunidades locales, y pone en tela de juicio el hermoso, y falso discurso de las empresas.
Un resultado concreto e importante de la reunión en Junín fue la creación del Consejo de Desarrollo Comunitario para promover un desarrollo social y económico en favor de las comunidades, con la consigna de NO A LA MINERÍA Y SÍ A LA VIDA. La directiva está compuesta por dirigentes de las comunidades de Chalguayacu Bajo, Junín, la Armenia, Cerro Pelado, El Rosal y el sector de los Manduriacos; y contará con el respaldo incondicional de numerosas organizaciones de la Zona de Intag, como son: Aacri (Asociación de Caficultores de Intag); DECOIN (Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag); Coordinadora de Mujeres de Intag; Grupo Mujer y Medio Ambiente; Grupo de Guardabosques Comunitario Flor de Mayo; la Asociación de Agroecológicos de Intag, entre otros. Su presidente, el Señor Polibio Pérez, asegura que muchas otras comunidades y organizaciones se sumarán y apoyarán al Consejo de Desarrollo Comunitario.
Otro de los resultados de la reunión fue la decisión por mayoría de los moradores de Junín de presentar una queja oficial por violación de los derechos humanos por parte del estado ecuatoriano ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos. La queja se refiere a la violación constitucional del derecho a la consulta previa, una vez que el gobierno permitió actividades mineras sin haber antes consultado con las comunidades (la concesión le otorga el derecho a las empresas realizar cualesquier actividad minera durante 30 años dentro de sus concesiones- e incluye el derecho al usufructo de todo recurso-incluyendo el recuso agua).
De parte de la DECOIN, se pide total respaldo a las comunidades potencialmente afectadas por la minería y al Consejo de Desarrollo Comunitario con hechos concretos y proyectos alternativos para ayudarles enfrentar esta nueva y devastadora amenaza.
***NOTA URGENTE: El 21 de Mayo recibimos una llamada de uno de los dirigente del Consejo de Desarrollo Comunitario con la preocupante noticias que habían ingresado de nuevo empleados de la empresa para iniciar trabajos en la concesión. Estamos intentando de confirmar los hechos y les mantendremos informados a través de la página web.
Responsable del boletín:
DECOIN- Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag
www.decoin.org
Correo Electrónico: <a href="mailto:decoin@hoy.net">decoin@hoy.net</a>
EMERGENCY IN JUNIN
Friday, May 21, 2004
We've been without a phone since right after sending the last news update - the only bad line in our neighborhood.
Some bad news: this morning I found out the miners went back to Junin without asking permission or holding a regional forum on mining; the Brigadier General, we are told, has come back with armed "bodyguards", and the company is offering $20 a day wages; about 4 times the
agricultural wages. Technically, if this is true, they would be in violation of national legislation, for they cannot (in theory) explore without a Environmental Impact Statement. We will be confirming this, and other news in the next few days and sharing with all.
What can you do? Lots, for first we have to work out a clear strategy, but in any case, we'll be needing help with political pressures (letter writing, etc), but also with fundraising in North America to try and confront this new development, plus try and pay for Junin's case in Washington (Interamerican Human Rights Commission).
Right now I personally would like to try using the corrupt court system to try and stall them until we get on our feet. But it's hard to be optimistic knowing how the courts work here.
As a background, there is a major strike in Pichincha province with hundreds of people blocking the highway and threats of violence to close down mines that are contaminating community water sources (Decoin sent a delegation yesterday to support their initiative; and
it is still going on right now).
Carlos
NEW MINING THREAT IN INTAG
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
The Community Development Council is created in the Junin area to confront the new mining threat and to support community development, and Junin decides to sue the Ecuadorian government.
(updated 28 May)
Dear friends,
This past Sunday (May 16th) I came back from a two day trip to Junin with some good, but also some very troubling news. We (DECOIN) were in Junin to help commemorate 7 years of the expulsion of Mitsubishi from our forests, rivers and communities. In all, nearly 150 residents from twelve communities showed up in the beautiful Junin valley to meet, share experiences and dreams, and celebrate.
As soon as we arrived, however, we were informed that a mining company had just held a meeting in the village of Chalguayacu Alto (next to Junin) the day before (May 14) to inform everyone they were the new mining concession owners, and to do what they all do: offer high paying jobs and promise the moon. Fortunately, the mining company (Ascendant Exploration) is a exploration company and too small to actually exploit the mine. We believe they are there to make the concession attractive to a much bigger company, by, among other things, buying a few leaders, and trying to neutralize the opposition. I know it reads like a scene from a movie, but during the meeting, a young man was caught trying to tape interventions by some DECOIN representatives. It turned out that he was sent by someone who had denounced DECOIN at the meeting the day before in Chalguayacu Alto (both are natives of Intag).
At the May 14th meeting, Ascendant Exploration employees admitted they had gone into the Junin community forest reserve without asking permission from the community, or letting anyone know what they were doing in the area.
Before the party and dance was to began, the program called for a special meeting to create a community focus organization to help not only confront the new mining threat, but also to help community development. The result was the Council for Community Development, made up by local people from at least 7 local communities, and counts with the support of many local organizations, including DECOIN, Intag's Women's Coordinating Committee, AACRI (Intag coffee association), to name just a few of the 8 organizations present at the meeting expressing their full support. In 1997 it was a similar local organization that was key in driving Mitsubishi out of Intag, when hundreds of campesinos burned down the mining camp.
The new community organization will focus on supporting communities develop projects and to actively oppose mining. Their first action was to contact Cotacachi's mayor today, Monday 17, to denounce the presence of the mining company in their community and ask for his personal intervention to stop them from returning.
The mining company seems to be a shell company set up in Ecuador, but owned by another shell set up in the West Indies (Turks and Caicos Islands). The web has interesting background on the individuals making up these shells, including a retired Brigadier General from Ecuador with background in national security organizations, and several Canadian and U.S. investors; plus a bunch of professional miners (scammers?) (((at the 14 may meeting the general let it know that it would not be too much trouble to order the military to protect the mining interests, and we suspect he was hired exclusively to intimidate the locals)))
On May 21st, and after receiving news mining employees were in the community forests reserve, a newly formed women's group in Junin decided to go and confront the miners, who were cleaning up the old abandoned mining camp (site of the Mitsubishi bonfire) , and asked the miners to leave. The miners left!!!, but we don't have any details on what transpired. The miners were within the 2,500 hectare reserve Decoin helped Junin buy years ago, thus were there illegally. As of May 26th, the community reserve was free of miners (there are no phones in Junin, so communication is very difficult)
(*update 28/May) Another key development that took place in Junin on the 15th of May was the unanimous decision by the community to take their case to the Interamerican Human Rights Commission. They will claim that Ecuador violated their to be previously consulted regarding mining activities in their area, and their right to live in an environment free of contamination, both fundamental rights guaranteed in Ecuador's Constitution . They started the paperwork to present their case on May 27th. DECOIN will be assisting the community in the legal case as well as their on-the-ground resistance, and working with CDES, a Human Rights organization based in Quito who will be their legal council in Ecuador.
If you would like to help the newly created Community Development Council, you can contact them at the following address:
intag2004@yahoo.es Or you can contact DECOIN at decoin@hoy.net
For more details, please check out our web page.
More as things develop (and they definitely will).
Carlos Zorrilla
Troubling Developments
Friday, May 07, 2004
I just finished talking to Roberto Castro, our principal employee and Decoin member, who, on his latest trip to Otavalo, told me someone on the bus talked out loud almost the whole way about the wonders of mining, and about the bad work of the "few persons" who oppose progress, and who are keeping inteños from good roads, clinics, good schools and so on. This comes right after we found out that a few persons have shown up in several communities, including Junin and Apuela, asking a lot of questions about mining and the opposition groups. We were recently also informed there is someone spying on DECOIN in a nearby town (the woman's own nieces told us secretly). Additionally, on two separate occasions, letters containing donations to Decoin have not made it to our Po box. The Ministry of Energy and Mines has signed a number of contracts with the Imbabura government to build community bridges in the area- illegally, without the knowledge of the County government officials. The dots connect, and are troubling.
It feels like the government is gathering information to try and dismantle the opposition in Intag anyway they can.
I'll try to keep you informed.
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