The Andes
Peru: police surround Conga occupation
Hundreds of National Police troops have surrounded a protest encampment estabished by campesinos at the site of the Conga mining project in northern Peru.
Tag: control of water
Southeast Asia
Malaysia: 10 dead in stand-off with Sulu partisans
The Sultanate of Sulu claims that 10 members of the royal army were killed in an attack by Malaysian authorities on a village siezed by the Sulu partisans in Sabah state on Borneo.
The Andes
Ecuador left opposition reacts to Correa re-election
Ecuador’s indigenous movement reacted to the re-election of President Rafael Correa by calling upon him to end the extractive model and criminalization of protest.
The Andes
Peru: mining company rejects Conga referendum
The Yanacocha mining company issued a statement warning that a consulta by local villagers on the Conga project could “place in danger all the mineral industry” of Peru.
Palestine
SodaStream greenwashes occupation of Palestine
Israeli firm SodaStream bills itself as eco-friendly by obviating the need for soda bottles—as it illegally operates on stolen Bedoin and Palestinian lands in the West Bank.
Central America
Nicaragua raises stakes in border conflict
Edén Pastora, Nicaragua's development czar for the strategic San Juan Basin, threatened a retliatory suit at The Hague for Costa Rica's legal challenge to his dredging operations.
The Andes
Peru: water authority rejects mine expansion
Peru’s conflict-ridden Yanacocha mining company is appealing a ruling of the National Water Authority barring expansion of its open-pit operations into new lands.
The Amazon
Brazil: Amazon peoples declare against hydro
The Munduruku indigenous people in the Brazilian Amazon charge that the government is militarizing their lands to quell opposition to mega-scale hydroelectric projects.
The Andes
Peru: villages to hold referendum on Conga project
Villages in the area to be impacted by the Conga gold mine in Peru’s Cajamarca region announced that they will hold a referendum on the project—in defiance of Lima.
Central America
Costa Rica upholds ban on open-pit mining
Costa Rica’s Constitutional Tribunal unanimously rejected a case brought by the country’s Mining and Industry Association challenging the 2010 ban on open-pit mining.
Central America
Panama Canal expansion fuels inter-oceanic race
With Chinese investment, Nicaragua is moving ahead with a new inter-oceanic canal plan—in a race with Panama, which is expanding its own canal for a new era of global trade.
The Andes
Peru: new mobilization against Conga project
Campesinos in Peru’s northern Cajamarca region began the year with a renewed campaign against the pending Conga mining project, pledging to occupy the concession area.