Recovering Tradition – Letter from Guatemala

Mining interests. Canadian companies. Indigenous Mayan people. Land rights. Collective rights. Divide and conquer. Environmental destruction. Threats to opponents. Brainwashing TV ads. Loss of dignity. Loss of land. Loss of culture.

All these words go through my head as I think about the Maya – Mam people near San Marcos, Guatemala, where Goldcorp’s Marlin mine is operating.

According to Ruben, one of our partners in the area, the mine has divided his people. Land that was previously considered collective has become a commodity and the Canadian mining company is purchasing plot by plot, offering people three or four times the market value. The lure of short – term gain has divided and weakened indigenous communities, allowing for larger mining operations.

Some, like Theodora Hernandez, refuse to sell, as they want to stay on the land of their ancestors. This comes at a price. One night, two men showed up at her door and shot her in the face. Miraculously, she survived.

Social conflict has emerged in many communities, as mineworkers want to protect their jobs. A referendum was organised in 2005 to see if the local communities wanted the mine. The vast majority were opposed, but the company went ahead with the support of the government. The international convention requiring consent of indigenous people (the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which was not endorsed by Canada) was simply ignored, despite Guatemala being a signatory. The mine is currently allowed to continue operating until 2015.

And it isn’t only Guatemalans who have noticed a problem. A story in The Globe and Mail back in 2010 (and updated in 2012) reported that Goldcorp “has been dealt an adverse ruling from the Inter – American Commission on Human Rights, which has called on the project to be shut pending an investigation into alleged human rights abuses and environmental problems.” And Mining Watch Canada, a watchdog agency tasked with monitoring environmental and community issues related to mining, noted that community protests against new mines have become so common (and yet are often ignored by mining companies and governments) that “Ernst & Young identified community opposition, frequently called lack of ‘social license,’ as a top risk facing mining companies in 2013 – 2014.”

As Christians we are called to keep a watchful eye on situations like these. Who else will amplify the voices of the oppressed if local governments bypass international conventions for monetary gain and private interests flood TVs with commercials telling stories of community improvements thanks to the mine?
Following an ecumenical visit to the area in the fall of 2013, some churches, such as the United Church of Canada, have looked into divesting their pension investment funds from Goldcorp, the parent company of the Marlin mine. The PCC, a shareholder with 16,000 shares as of December 2013, is in dialogue with Goldcorp through its International Affairs Committee and further reports are expected at this year’s General Assembly. As noted by the committee in its reports to the Assembly, “the dialogue focuses on several issues including the need for ongoing consultation with local communities, water quality, and processes related to adequate preparation for the mine’s closure.”

“The purpose of this dialogue (and of dialogues with corporations generally) is to encourage a corporation to strengthen its commitment to human rights and to protect the environment through sound policies and practices,” as stated in the Assembly’s Acts and Proceedings from 2012.

Meanwhile, our church’s partner continues to accompany these marginalized communities with the goal of improving their productivity, economic resilience and sovereignty. In Guatemala’s western highlands, people largely depend on subsistence agriculture for their livelihoods, which is no easy task. With the support of Presbyterian World Service & Development, Ruben and his team have trained hundreds of families to recover traditional agricultural practices, including home gardens. In their villages, 13 schools have established gardens that engage over 1,000 students in producing vegetables and fruit, while also improving their nutrition. Women are trained and then empowered to share their knowledge and to work together to strengthen their communities. PWS&D also supports the work of Kairos, whose projects help protect people from various abuses from mining exploitation. Behind all of this is the important work of building the capacity of women and men to protect their culture and their heritage, including the defense of their collective indigenous land rights.