"OTRA VEZ LA MINA" (Once Again, Mining)
(Made by Jose Cubur, Comunicador social with CUC, www.cuc.org.gt, C: 5837-0114)
"Once Again, Mining" is a 7 minute film, shot during and after the May 8, 2012, attempt, by the gold and silver mining company EXMINGUA (owned by Radius Gold Inc. of Canada) to enter with a convoy of some 25-30 mining company trucks full of equipment, accompanied by some 25-30 trucks of heavily armed National Police, at 1:00am, in the morning, so as to avoid the peacefully protesting villagers of the two affected municipalities - San Jose del Golfo and San Pedro Ayumpac -, who were never consulted about this mining business and who never gave legal permission for a mine to operate in their lands.
In the film:
- one sees armed civilians patrolling on community lands. Apparently, they are former military, now hired by EXMINGUA (Radius Gold), and have no insignias identifying who they are;
- one sees the convoy of company and police trucks, winding through a village, at 1:00am in the morning;
- one hears from villagers that they were not presented with any legal order, by the National Police, explaining why they were accompanying the mining company convoy, and that they had any permission to pass through community lands at 1:00 in the morning;
- one sees the Vice-mayor of San Jose del Golfo talking with villagers, explaining that in the Mayor's office they have found no documentation of any agreement between the previous mayor and the EXMINGUA (Radius Gold) company;
COINCIDENCE?
And, one learns that the General Manager of Radius Gold's subsidiary in Guatemala (EXMINGUA) is Selwyn Morales, who was director of the Ministry of Mines and Energy in 2010 when EXMINGUA received its mining concession in 2010.
A Public Letter, sent to Member of Parliament Diane Ablonczy, concerning the criminalization of people in Guatemala who are peacefully defending communities from illegal and harmful entry of Canadian (and other) mining companies.
We send you this sad update about work we are involved with in Guatemala. Please consider donating 'humanitarian relief' funds for the needs of Yolanda Oqueli, and for the other people and communities mentioned in this article.
Dear Yoli: I have no words in my heart or mouth that could possibly express my outrage and grief over what has happened. The harm to your precious sacred person is vile and inexcusable. The intended harm to your soul, your spirit, your struggle, and the struggle of all those, who like you, are in love with the Earth
On June 13, assassins on a motorcycle shot multiple times at Yolanda Oqueli Veliz, a community leader from the municipalities of San José el Golfo and San Pedro Ayampuc, just out side of Guatemala City. Yolanda is in critical but stable condition in a Guatemala City Hospital, one bullet still lodged in her body. Humanitarian-emergency relief funds are needed.
PUBLIC STATEMENT: by FRENAM (Frente Norte del Área Metropolitana Pueblos en Resitencia) about May 8, 2012, militarized convoy of mining company trucks
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