INTAG RECHAZA ASCENDANT COPPER CORPORATION
Thursday, May 25, 2006
20 de Mayo 2006 Golpe Mortal para Ascendant: Todo indica que la Asamblea Zonal realizada por las Juntas Parroquiales de Intag este último sábado en García Moreno, se convertirá en el golpe mortal para los planes de la empresa transnacional Ascendant Copper Corporation de minar cobre en la zona de Intag. Los que estuvieron en la plaza de García Moreno no dudaron que el histórico envento realizado el 20 de Mayo 2006, convocado por todos los siete presidentes de las Juntas Parroquiales de Intag; Shisela Morales, de García Moreno, Gustavo León, de Peñaherrera, José Garzón, de Cuellaje, Alex Vergara, de Apuela, Azucena Encalada de Vacas Galindo, Bladimir Santander, de Selva Alegre, y Patricio Bolaños, de Plaza Gutierrez, será el golpe final para acabar con los problemas minería en la zona de Intag. Entre las resoluciones más importante tomadas en la Asamblea: exigir la inmediata salida de la empresa Ascendant Copper Corporation de la zona de Intag, y de toda aquella vinculada a ésta, o que reciba financiamiento de la misma. También crea la Coordinadora Zonal de Intag, cuyo fin será impulsar un desarrollo sustentable, basado en la proteccion de los recursos naturales de Intag. La resolución fue propuesta por los presidentes de las Juntas Parroquiales, y aprobada por unanimidad. Se les dió 15 días a las mencionadas empresas para que abandone la zona de Intag pacíficamente. La resolución también expresa el rechazo a que futuras empresas ingresen a la zona de Intag, y se solidariza con las comunidades y parroquias sufriendo los impactos de la actividad minera. Todos los presidentes de las Juntas Parroquiales expusieron sobre esta problemática ante aproximadamente 800 participantes y representantes de las comunidades y de grupos organizados de la zona de Intag, monto que fue reportado en el informe policial del evento, aunque hubieron otras estimaciones más bajas. Representantes del Municipio de Cotacachi, la Asamblea de Unidad Cantonal de Cotacachi, la Unorcac, y otras organizaciones del Cantón, también estuvieron presentes para respaldar este importante evento. De las más de 20 intervenciones, aproximadamente el 90% expresaron su rechazo a la minería y un sí por la vida, y muchos hicieron un llamado urgente a la unión de la zona de Intag. Gracias a las reiteradas llamadas a la unión y cordura por los presidentes de las diferentes Parroquias y la oportuna intervención de la policía, no hubo ningún tipo de enfrentamiento. Según un conteo independiente de parte de 3 observadores internacionales, solo 80 de los participantes apoyaron a la empresa minera y a la minería; y de estos, un alto porcentaje eran empleados de le empresa transnacional. Entre los hinchas de la minera se encontraban los empleados de seguridad que no dejaron de tomar fotos y filmar el evento. Sin embargo, ningún representante de la empresa Ascendant Copper Corporation o de la Daimi Services estuvieron presentes para enfrentar las fuertes denuncias y críticas contra éstas, y en especial la división que ha creado entre las comunidades y familias. El evento tuvo un eje transversal: un claro y contundente llamado para proteger nuestros recursos naturales, rechazar la mineria, y un llamado a la unión de la zona de Intag, que antes de la entrada de la empresa minera era una isla de paz y armonía social. Este evento vivirá en la historia ecuatoriana como no solo el primer rechazo contundente a la minería por parte de todos los Gobiernos Parroquiales de una zona, sino también como el primer llamado de alerta al país de la amenaza que presenta la minería transnacional a los recursos naturales y a la paz social. Como leía uno de los más de 50 carteles y telas pintadas: HOY LA OXI, MAÑANA ASCENDANT. Esa mañana llegó temprano para la Ascendant. COMISIÓN DE PRENSA DECOIN Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag
Images From the May 20th Meeting
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Intag's Parishes and Communities Demand: "ASCENDANT HAS TO LEAVE INTAG IMMEDIATELY"
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20 May- Deadly Blow to Ascendant
Monday, May 22, 2006
20 May 2006 Intag deals a deadly blow to Ascendant Copper Corporation's plan to mine copper in Ecuador It was a hot, perfectly sunny day in the town García Moreno where, depending on three different sources, between 500 and 800 representatives from all of Intag's Parishes and most of its communities, in addition to most organizations working in the Intag area of Northwest Ecuador, met to try and resolve once and for all the problems created by the presence of Ascendant Copper Corporation, which has generated a strong and determined resistance to their copper mining project (the higher estimate of attendees came from an official police report of the event) Hundreds of men, women and children of all ages came in more than 12 small pick-up trucks, large trucks and on foot from small villages as far as 3 hours away, bringing colorful banners bearing strong anti-mining messages, and with only one goal in mind: to tell Ascendant Copper Corporation to go home. The area has been the scene of recent and violent confrontations between communities and mining employees, which last December led to the burning of Ascendant's mining camp in the area. Three-hundred persons from over a dozen communities assumed responsibility for the torching of the camp, and Ascendant filed three separate criminal lawsuits against 10 women and men from several farming communities as a result of three community direct-action measures. Many of the speakers at Saturday's Assembly complained bitterly of the deep divisions created by the presence of Ascendant in this mountainous area of small villages, clean rivers and tranquil lifestyle, situated about 4 hours away from the famous Andean town of Otavalo, Imbabura province. Though there have been other assemblies with similar resolutions in the past, this time, the resolutions were presented by seven local government officials. In Ecuador, Parish governments are the equivalent of a small municipal government, with their own jurisdiction, laws and Ordinances. This is, as far as we know, the first time so many local governments have publicly called for the immediate expulsion of a mining company in Ecuador, and perhaps in the world. About 90% of the speakers representing the Parish Governments, communities and organizations expressed their heartfelt opposition to mining, including all the Parish government officials. At the end of the meeting the Assembly approved several resolutions, but the most important one was that, ASCENDANT HAS TO LEAVE INTAG IMMEDIATELY The proposal received nearly unanimous support, and a deadline of two weeks was given for them to clear out. The resolution also called for the expulsion of any other company with links, or being financed by Ascendant- including Daimi Services and Terrambiente, and warned the national government that they will not permit the presence of this, or any other mining company in Intag. The measure also included the creation of a new Intag-wide umbrella development organization to oversee the area's sustainable development, based on the conservation of the natural resources. Intag is within two of the world's 34 Biological Hotspots, exceptionally rich in water resources, and the copper project was situated in an area rich in primary cloud forests, protecting dozens of mammal, amphibian and bird species threatened by extinction. There were no violent incidents, due in part to the low turnout of the pro-mining faction, which did not exceed 80 persons; some of which were company employees. For more information and to view photos of the event, please go to: www.decoin.org Contacts: Carlos Zorrilla DECOIN Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag PO BOX 144, Otavalo, Imbabura Ecuador www.decoin.org decoin@hoy.net
In the News: Ascendant Copper Corporation Meets Resistance in Ecuador
Monday, May 15, 2006
From Upside Down World Written by Cyril Mychalejko | Monday, 15 May 2006 | Go to Article In spite of criticism and resistance from local residents, Canadian mining company Ascendant Copper Corporation has big plans for its two large mining operations in Ecuador. "We are confident that Ecuador will grow to be one of the world's great copper districts," said Gary E. Davis, President and CEO of Ascendant. Read more...
May 14 (Strange) Update: IN INTAG EVEN THE DEAD SUPPORT MINING!
Sunday, May 14, 2006
This could be one for Ripley's Believe it or Not. Today I got a hold of a document with a lot of nonsense about an assembly supporting the work of the mining company in Intag, and rejecting the presence of Carlos Zorrilla, for leading the opposition against the mining project. Further down, the fictional assembly agrees to reject the presence of the other 3 "bad" foreigners: Jose Decoux, Denis Laporta and Mary Ellen Fieweger (they also included me here too for good measure). Strangely, the document does not list a single community representative present at the imaginary assembly. So far nothing unusual, the pro-mining faction have tried this idiotic strategy plenty of times before without success. BUT THIS TIME, one of the persons signing said document has been dead for quite a while! No kidding; as in deceased, departed, stiff, dead, muerto - and buried six feet underground. My hat's off to Ascendant and their miraculous power to get stiffs to sign petitions asking for the expulsion of foreigners from Ecuador!! This could be one hell of a lot more profitable than their much troubled billion-dollar copper mine. As far as I know, there are no laws requiring Environmental Impact Statement to get dead people's signatures, nor to socialize the Terms of Reference! Another funny thing related to this latest circus show was the fact that people going around getting the signatures, were doing so on Thursday and Friday - for a "community assembly" that was supposed to have taken place on Wednesday! The document had about 100 empty spaces for people to sign, but only 9 were with signatures. That´s including the dead guy. We were told that the nice people going around the communities getting the signatures all worked for Daimi Services, who was contracted by Ascendant to convince people of the wonders of mining. Well, now we know there's at least one dead guy who's convinced!
May 4th Update 2
Friday, May 05, 2006
May 4th Updates to the update... More information is slowly filtering in about the confrontation that took place yesterday in the vicinity of Junin. Not surprisingly, there are different versions; the one I heard today was that closer to 20 what the communities labeled "intruders" were found in the junction of the Chalguayacu and Junin Rivers, and that the "scuffle", was a bit more serious, with several people involved. We are still not sure of the gravity of the injuries sustained, and by whom, but it seems a company employee received the worse of it, but the two sources concurred no one was hospitalized (as of yesterday afternoon) And today, Thursday May 4th, Polibio Perez, the president of the Community Development Council, who was approximately 40 kilometers from the scene of the conflict at the time it happened, sent a letter to the Governor of Imbabura Province asking for an urgent meeting of all pertinent stakeholders in an attempt to quell the growing violence. We'll be updating the site as we get more reliable information on just what took place yesterday. Off the Hook! Good news- today the Superior Court in Ibarra rejected the request by the District Attorney to imprison the four accused community members for the damages related to the December 10th burning of the Ascendant mining camp. The District Attorney had earlier asked the judge in the case to imprison the accused preventively; even though the accused have not presented any proofs in their defense. The lower court judge refused, and the DA, in a very, very unusual and suspect move, appealed the lower courts decision to the Superior Court, who today agreed with the lower Courts decision to reject the petition for preventive prison!
INTAG 4 MAY UPDATE
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Ascendant's Supposed EIA Running Into TroubleConcessions Again Imperiled: Government Reaffirms Community's Rights to Prior ConsultationNew Confrontation in JuninNew Campaign Targets AscendantAscendant's Supposed EIA Running Into Trouble DECOIN recently uncovered proof that Ascendant Copper Corporation's Environmental Impact Study (EIS) was undertaken without the approval or knowledge of governmental mining authorities, and violating other legal procedures. On January 3rd, the company announced that the EIS was going to be submitted to communities and the government for discussion, and following a 30 days public comment period, it would be turned over to mining authorities for final approval. Turns out they were wrong. Very wrong. In fact, Terrambiente, the consulting firm hired by Ascendant to supposedly undertake and socialized the EIS, had to first count with a set of Terms of References approved by the Ministry of Energy and Mines before preparing the EIS. However, on a letter dated 10th of April, Ministry officials admitted that the Terms of Reference had NOT been approved, and that they didn't even know anything was being "socialized" in Intag. Only after the Terms of Reference are approved, and after being sufficiently socialized with the communities and authorities within the mining area, then can Terrambiente proceed to carry out the EIS. You can't do the EIA, and then work on the Terms of References (TDRs). At least not legally. After the TDRs are approved and the EIS finished (could take many months), it will then be necessary for it to be socialized all over again with the local authorities and communities. Then, and only then, will the EIS be ready for submission to the Ministry of Energy and Mines for approval. Let's put it this way: given that all local authorities and most communities are virulently opposed to the mining project - including Parish and the Municipal governments, as well as just about every single NGO working in this County- a snowball in hell has a better chance of making it! What happened to Whistler Anyway??? On a related note, we were left wondering what happened to Whistler, the consulting firm originally hired to undertake the Environmental Impact Statement, and when how/when did Terrambiente come into the picture? That was a lot of money invested in Whistler, and the company seems to have kept real quiet about Whistler's destiny. Did anyone out there hear that the company disassociated itself from Whistler because of conflict of interests issues? A while back, if you recall, we denounced that one of Whistler's employee, or perhaps even a partner, also owned a part of the smelting royalties for the Junin project. Who would have guessed? It seems this unusual conflict of interest was too much even for Ascendant. Concessions Again Imperiled: Government Reaffirms Community's Rights to Prior ConsultationOn March 17th, the Nation's Comptroller General made public a resolution reminding all public officials that the community's right to prior consultation must be respected, as stipulated in Article 88 of Ecuador's Constitution. It observed that if this right is violated, it would annul any decision taken by governmental authorities- including those involving contracts. The mining concessions held by Ascendant Copper Corporation were granted without previously consulting with the communities in Intag, and would therefore be subject to annulment. This is a premise held and supported by most communities and local governments opposing the mining project, but especially by Cotacachi County's Mayor, who has said from the beginning the concessions are illegal. ON THE GROUND. Daimi Services has certainly been busy hiring people in Intag lately. We are told that many are essentially being paid do nothing much. Rumors abound that more than a few are paid informers, and that Daimi is preferring to hire people from Junin- at significantly higher pay than others. They have resumed where CODEGAM had left off, offering communities stuff. However, in the community of Barcelona, community members rejected the offers from Daimi to donate a computer and school supplies and told the teacher she could take the garbage (and...) home!! , but that stuff from the company would not be allowed in the school! For some reason, they haven't even tried offering roads, clinics, computer or bridges in Junin. Maybe they know what the response would be. Some people are interpreting this as bribing, or conscience purchasing. You just wonder who the hell is the genius who thinks that by throwing enough money around that sooner or later people will "come around" to loving mining. Anyway, teachers can always use computers in their own home. And, if there's anyone out there wanting to support Barcelona's decision and buy them a computer for the school - without strings attached - get in touch with us. NEW OBSERVERS: A new group of enthusiastic international observers are in Barcelona, Cerro Pelado and El Triunfo, as well as in Junin, the communities most at risk by the mining project. Some will be staying for months at a time, others for as long as a year. All are dedicated to recording any human-rights violations, and supporting the work of the communities. This was all made possible by the support of the Intag Solidarity Network (www.intagsolidarity.org). New Confrontation in JuninMay 4th. Yesterday we received a report that about 40 community members (mostly women) from the communities of Chalguayacu Alto, Chalguayacu Bajo and Junin, forced about 12 Ascendant Copper Corporations workers, and/or employees working for one of its contractors (Daimi Services), to leave an area down river from the community of Junin, as the employees were apparently taking river water samples without Junins permission. The person reporting this latest provocation said that when community members asked the intruders to leave, they refused, and a scuffle ensued in which at least one of the intruders might have received minor injuries. However, no one was seriously hurt, and there were no arrests, our eye-witness source informed us. This latest and unfortunate confrontation is the just one more in a series of provocations that have dramatically increased since the presence of the company contracted by Ascendant Copper Corporation to supposedly socializeits supposedEnvironmental Impact Study, and obtain the social license from the people of Intag for the Junin mining project. Instead, social conflicts have increased, along with provocations, and divisive tactics. As informed earlier, Daimi employees have been linked to the hiring of dozens of people from several communities, and it turned out that the Environmental Impact Study that was being socializedwas prepared without the necessary Terms of References having been previously approved by the Ministry of Energy and Mines. Its clear to us that there was something else behind the so-called socialization program, and the obtaining of the social license. Above and beyond other ramifications of this latest and spontaneous collective actions by the communities aimed at protecting their rights and have their decision regarding mining respected, it goes a long ways to show that the people of Intag, and specially those surrounding the mining site, are as determined as ever to take any measure to protect their communities from the debacle that is industrial mining. New Campaign Targets AscendantFriends of the Earth & MiningWatch launch "No Means No to Ascendant Copper in Ecuador" campaign Communities Call for Cancellation of Canadian Mining Company's Concessions in Ecuador (Ottawa, May 3, 2006) A new campaign launched today by Friends of the Earth Canada and MiningWatch Canada is focused on informing investors and potential investors in Vancouver-based Ascendant Copper (listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange) of the true depth of community resistance and irregularities with respect to the company's Junín project in northwest Ecuador. The "No Means No to Ascendant Copper in Ecuador" campaign begins one day prior to Ascendant's annual general meeting (May 4, 2006) in Vancouver. The organizations have released a new documentary film on the subject, "The Curse of Copper" which can be viewed at www.ascendantalert.ca. Also released is official correspondence related to the communities' effort to enforce local environmental laws. "The Intag cloud forest is blessed with some of the most important biodiversity on the planet. So properly, the communities of the Intag took the important democratic step of proclaiming their area an ecological county," observed Beatrice Olivastri, Chief Executive Officer of Friends of the Earth Canada. "To enforce this ordinance, they're insisting that all mining and prospecting arrangements located in the Intag be cancelled and are proceeding with legal steps to accomplish this. It is the height of arrogance to think that Ascendant, a Canadian junior mining company, believes it can ignore or can bypass this significant environmental law. What part of 'no' does Ascendant not understand?" The information Ascendant provides for the public and shareholders on its website is inconsistent with the official correspondence made public today, issued by elected local representatives of the Intag to the Ecuadorian Minister of Energy and Mining, reaffirming their rejection of the Junín mining project and highlighting grave irregularities in Ascendant's development process. "Ascendant shareholders-and anyone concerned with proper disclosure and fair play in the market-should pay close attention to what Ascendant management is telling them and what is really going on," said MiningWatch Canada spokesperson Jamie Kneen. Carlos Zorrilla, Executive Director of DECOIN, Ecuador, added "The Canadian government is about to embark on a series of Roundtable hearings on the need to regulate the activities of Canadian mining companies overseas - and here is a perfect example of this need, given that alleged violations by Ascendant Copper have already been documented in complaints to the Ontario Securities Commission and the Canadian government." For additional information please contact:Beatrice Olivastri, Friends of the Earth, (613) 241-0085 ext. 26; cell (613) 724-8690 Jamie Kneen or Joan Kuyek, MiningWatch Canada, (613) 569-3439 Carlos Zorrilla, DECOIN, ++593 6 2648509 Get the facts - view the film "The Curse of Copper" at www.ascendantalert.caCopies of the correspondence cited above can be obtained at www.foecanada.orgThe Intag region of Cotacachi County in the province of Imbabura, is part of both the Choco and Ecuadorian Andes biodiversity hotspots. Cloud forests like that of Intag are among the most endangered ecosystems on the planet-down to less than 10 percent of their original extent, mostly destroyed in the past 40 years-and also contain exceptionally large numbers of plant and animal species found nowhere else in the world.
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