Archives
Heads They Win, Tails You Lose: Canadian Nickel Companies in Guatemala
Eviction for unbuilt mine
The human cost of speculation on the financial markets by mining companies is high. This is evidenced by the grave human rights abuses that have been committed on behalf of Inco and Skye Resources. This mining project is but one example of what the promises of "development" and "corporate social responsibility" mean for the people directly affected by these projects. […]
After the Water Wars in Bolivia: The Struggle for a “Social-Public” Alternative
Photo: Tom Kruse
In the month of February, an unusual plight fell upon the city of La Paz. Torrential rains that hit the region ruptured the water main that services the wealthiest zone of the city, leaving the residents of the Zona Sur (Southern Zone) without water for several days. While it is common for residents in poor barrios not to have access to piped water, upper and middle class residents are accustomed to hearing the gush of clean, running water every time they open the tap. […]
Landowners’ Rebellion: Slavery and Saneamiento in Bolivia
In recent weeks, cattle ranchers and landowners in Bolivia’s Cordillera province, located in the south of the department of Santa Cruz, resorted to blockades and violence in order to halt the work of Bolivia’s National Institute for Agrarian Reform. As a referendum on Departmental Autonomy for Santa Cruz draws near, the conflict calls into question the central government’s ability to enforce the law in the Bolivian lowlands.
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Argentina’s Soy Storm: Tensions Rising Among Farmers
Argentina has often been described as the bread basket of the Southern Cone, with plenty of fertile land for grains and cattle.Yet with world food prices soaring, soy critics worry about Argentina’s ability to feed its own people at affordable prices. […]
Illegal Autonomy Referendum Deepens Division in Bolivia
Santa Cruz and the other lowland departments of Bolivia plan to go ahead with a referendum to approve autonomy statutes, setting a new system of government for the department on May 4th, in spite of the National Electoral Court ruling forbidding the referendum and the disapproval of the international community. […]
Anti-Hunger Protests Rock Haiti
Anger over rising prices has been building for many months in Haiti, with basic food stuffs increasingly out of reach for the poor. Tires were recently set ablaze in the streets and thrown together to form barricades that paralyzed traffic for days. […]
Ecuador Undergoes Mining Makeover
Anti-Mining Protest
Ecuador’s constitutional assembly passed a mining mandate last week that cancelled a majority of the country’s mining concessions, suspended remaining projects, and imposed a moratorium on awarding new concessions while giving the government a six month deadline to re-write the country’s mining legislation. […]
Paraguay Changes: Elections End 60 Years of Right Wing Rule
Paraguay Votes
Asuncion, Paraguay – Even before last night’s official results were announced, supporters of leftist presidential candidate Fernando Lugo were in the streets celebrating what many called a dream come true. […]