Canada Throws Ecuador into Reverse
When a little nation reined in big miners, our ambassador got very political.
http://thetyee.ca/News/2008/07/11/CanMining/.
By Jennifer Moore
Published: July 11, 2008
Canada is "re-engaging with the Americas." That's what Minister of
International Trade David Emerson told the Canada Council for the
Americas in Vancouver this past February, elaborating that Canada
wants to play "a positive role" to "help citizens throughout the
region thrive in the world."

"You can count on Canada and Canadians," Emerson assured.

But in Ecuador, a small Andean nation a quarter the size of British
Columbia, Canada's government has aligned itself with powerful
Canadian mining interests to undo a recently passed decree crafted to
strengthen protection for human rights and the environment.

The government decree, hailed as a momentous victory by a grassroots
movement fighting big mining projects in Ecuador, would halt what
critics call a pell-mell method of granting mining concessions
heedless of communities' wishes or damage to nature.

Canada is a top investor in Ecuador and Canada's ambassador to Ecuador
is Christian Lapointe. Lately, he has been very busy helping to put
Canadian mining companies in good stead with the Ecuadorian
government. Two companies have projects suspended and have been

Written by Daniel Denvir and Thea Riofrancos, Upside Down World
Friday, 16 May 2008

The Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) declared itself in opposition to the government of Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa on May 12. The CONAIE accused the president of continuing right-wing neoliberal economic and racist social policies. The harsh condemnation focused on Correas opposition to two key demands: the recognition of Ecuador as a plurinational state in the new constitution and the requirement that communities must offer prior consent before large-scale mining and other major extractive projects take place.

Ecuador is currently governed by a Constituent Assembly, which is writing a new Ecuadorian constitution as well as performing all legislative functions. The Assembly was convened after voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional referendum in April 2007. Members of Correas Alianza Pais party won 74 of the 130 seats. Patchakutik, the CONAIE's electoral arm, has four representatives in the Assembly.

While the CONAIE has supported a number of Correa`s programs, most social movement activists in Ecuador say that this conflict was foreseeable. Correa`s support for large scale mining and his opposition to plurinationality run up against the indigenous movement's top political priorities.

Latin America is preparing to settle accounts with its white settler elite
The political movements and protests sweeping the continent - from Bolivia to Venezuela - are as much about race as class
by Richard Gott
November 19, 2006
The Guardian
The recent explosion of indigenous protest in Latin America, culminating in the election this year of Evo Morales, an Aymara indian, as president of Bolivia, has highlighted the precarious position of the white-settler elite that has dominated the continent for so many centuries. Although the term "white settler" is familiar in the history of most European colonies, and comes with a pejorative ring, the whites in Latin America (as in the US) are not usually described in this way, and never use the expression themselves. No Spanish or Portuguese word exists that can adequately translate the English term.

Written by Cyril Mychalejko, Upside Down World
Monday, 25 September 2006

"Welcome to Ascendant Copper, a socially responsible corporate citizen," states the Canadian mining company's website. Ascendant also boasts of being a member of the UN Global Compact. Ironically it was officially accepted into the group on July 12, the same day that several hundred Intag residents marched in Quito to protest the company's mining project.

Written by Hanna Dahlstrom
Tuesday, 17 January 2006

Latin America is boiling with revolutionary potential these days that could redefine economics, politics and social relations. But sometimes things aren't always as they seem.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is widely seen to be at the center of Latin America's transformation by building a regional trade bloc through the creation of ALBA and Venezuela's membership in Mercosur to oppose U.S. dominance and its constant push for free trade agreements with Latin American governments.

December 19, 2005 (rightsaction.org)

"Mr. Davis said many of people are keen to sell their land to the company. "The turnout is remarkable. We own more than 1,000 hectares of land already. We're giving fair market value for land that is potentially valuable to us. "If people find that offensive, I'm sorry."" Ascendant is registered in British Columbia. Its head office is in Denver, Colorado.

by Gustavo González*

SANTIAGO, Jun 6 (IPS) - The "war on terror", identified in Amnesty
International's annual report as a new source of human rights abuses,
is threatening to expand to Latin America, targeting indigenous
movements that are demanding autonomy and protesting free-market
policies and "neo-liberal" globalisation.

In the United States "there is a perception of indigenous activists as

by Hugo Chávez; April 10, 2005

The following are excerpts from a speech given by Hugo Chávez at Gigantinho Stadium during the 2005 World Social Forum.

Inspiration.

Ignacio Ramonet, in his introduction, mentioned that I am a new kind of leader. I accept this, especially coming from a bright mind such as Ignacio’s, but I am inspired by many old leaders.

President under attack over free-market ideals and exploitation of resources

Jo Tuckman in La Paz, Tuesday March 15, 2005, The Guardian

Scratching her swollen and shoeless feet after digging up her potato field, Roberta Centeño looks exhausted but says she has plenty of energy for the struggle ahead.