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99% of the crimes committed during Guatemala's war have not been brought to justice. Of over 45,000 forced disappearances, only one case has gone to trial. Send an email to support war survivors' right to truth and justice today.  
 Did You Know? 

> Attacks against human rights defenders in Guatemala have doubled over the last five years. NISGUA's teams of on-the-ground international human rights monitors work to deter violence in communities, courtrooms and at public events.

 > Former dictator Efrain Rios Montt, who ruled during the bloodiest period of the war, currently holds a seat in the Guatemalan Congress. He is wanted for genocide and crimes against humanity.    

>
The Xalalá hydro-electric dam is rejected by 90% of the local population because it would displace thousands of indigenous people and damage farmlands and forests. 

Almost 400 mining concessions have been granted to transnational gold, silver, nickel, and zinc companies in Guatemala, posing severe threats to rural communities' social and environmental well-being. 


NISGUA Spring 2008 West Coast Tour

Resource Extraction and Community Autonomy: The Marlin Gold Mine in San Marcos, Guatemala

Tour Speaker: Fausto Valiente

 
This spring, NISGUA will host Fausto Roberto Valiente de León of the Pastoral Commission for Peace and Ecology (COPAE) to speak about community struggles against toxic open-pit mining in San Marcos, Guatemala.

Fausto will describe the devastating affects of mining on rural communities and will address the role of international actors and the neoliberal model in facilitating the entry of Northern mining companies in Guatemala.

The Marlin Mine is a gold and silver extraction project of the Canadian and U.S. mining company Gold Corp. The open-pit mine threatens to contaminate and deplete the water sources for surrounding communities and has displaced people from their ancestral lands. In a community referendum held in the municipality of Sipakapa, people delivered a resounding “no” to mining within the municipal territory.

The organization COPAE monitors the health, social, and environmental effects of the Marlin Mine and supports community efforts to exert their right to autonomy against transnational corporations and create locally determined economic alternatives for development. COPAE has accompanied communities throughout the referendum process in Sipakapa and other forms of resistance in San Miguel Ixtahuacán.

As the people affected by the Marlin Mine continue to defend their rights, NISGUA is organizing a solidarity campaign to draw international attention to the issue and to pressure Gold Corp to respect the demands of Guatemalan communities. Fausto’s tour is an essential step in this campaign, as it will include actions around the Gold Corp annual shareholder meeting in Toronto in late May.

TOUR SCHEDULE

May 1-3, Austin, TX 

May 4-7, Los Angeles, CA 

May 8-13, SF Bay Area, including the following events: 

Friday May 9th: Brown-Bag Lunch @ Tides Center (Pacific Room), 12:30-1:30

Sunday May 11th: Presentation at The Long Haul Infoshop, 3124 Shattuck Ave in Berkeley (across from La Peña Cultural Center) - Cafe open at 6pm, Dinner served at 7:30, Presentation begins at 8:00

Tuesday May 13: Panel Discussion with Luis Solano
The Women's Building- Audre Lord Room (2nd Floor), 3543 18th Street (@ Valencia), San Francisco, 6:30pm

May 14, Olympia, WA 

May 15-17, Seattle, WA 

May 20-21, Toronto, Canada

 

Please contact Jillian Tuck at jillian@nisgua.org for more information about tour events and/or to organize an additional tour stop.

 




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