Member of the Committee in Defense of Life and Peace in San Rafael Las Flores Detained

UPDATED May 1, 2015
Last night, Roberto de Jesus Pivaral y Pivaral was release from police custody due to lack of evidence, and all charges against him were dropped. Pivaral was charged with murder on April 21 (see information below). He was held for 10 days after being arrested by the National Civil Police accompanied by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. Pivaral is a founding member of the Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores.


On April 21 at approximately 7:30pm, Roberto de Jesus Pivaral, founding member and part of the Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa, was detained by members of the Guatemalan Civil Police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office at his home. According to his family, a judge’s order for his capture was not presented before he was taken to the court house in San Rafael Las Flores. The Public Prosecutor’s twitter page states that Mr. Pivaral is accused of the murder of Wosbeli Gómez Sandoval in 2014, a candidate for the Unidad de Nueva Esperanza (UNE) political party.

The Committee in Defense of Life and Peace was created as a form of resistance to Tahoe Resources’ silver mine, which began extracting silver in 2014, and has organized good-faith community referenda regarding metal extraction in communities throughout municipality since 2011. Though the Committee had presented the required number of signatures to request such a vote at a municipal level, the Municipal Mayor and his council has denied the request on several occasions.

Roberto Pivaral leading a march in San Rafael Las Flores asking the
mayor of the municipality to hold a community consultation about metal
mining in the area. Photo: CPR Urbana

In April 2013, 16 out of 23 local development councils (COCODES) from the municipality of San Rafael Las Flores presented an open letter callingon the President of Guatemala to cancel the exploitation license that had recently be granted to Minera San Rafael. Last year, when Mr. Pivaral made his intention to run for mayor of San Rafael Las Flores known, he vowed to represent the more than half of the communities from the municipality that have publically shown their opposition to the mining project, in addition to those who had repeatedly asked the current administration for the right to hold a community referendum. He has also played a lead role in organizing the consultations that have taken place at a local level. Mr. Pivaral was anticipating running with the Lider political party in September’s elections.

Over 90 people have been criminalized in the municipalities around Tahoe’s Escobal mine for their opposition to the project. The Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores has been especially targeted and the trial against Oscar Morales, another founding member and coordinator of the Committee, began last Thursday. Mr. Morales has been accused of uttering threats against the Manager of External Relations for Minera San Rafael. According to his lawyer from the Centre for Legal, Environmental and Social Action (CALAS), this is the company’s third attempt to criminalize Mr. Morales.

Roberto de Jesus Pivaral is currently being held in the El Boqueron detention centre waiting to hear when his first audience before a judge will take place.

Human rights defenders from Barillas convicted despite irregularities in proceedings

An excerpt from a press release issued by the Guatemalan Unit for the 

Protection of Human Rights Defenders (UDEFEGUA):

"On Thursday, November 13, the trial court judge in Villa Nueva sent Oscar Morales, a leader in the resistance movement in San Rafael las Flores, to trial for allegedly threatening the manager of the mining company, Minera San Rafael, S.A., subsidiary of Canadian company Tahoe Resources. During the evidentiary hearing, the judge revealed his partiality when he indicted the human rights defender without a proper investigation. The judge is now sending the case to trial without a clear investigation and despite the fact that the Public Prosecutor's office has stated that they do not have enough evidence to accuse the defendant. In sending the case to trial, it has become clear that the judge is prioritizing private interests that are represented by lawyers of the third-party plaintiff. The trial against Oscar Morales opens on December 29.

On November 14, Saúl Aurelio Méndez and Rogelio Velásquez, water rights defenders from Barillas, Huehuetenango, were convicted by a Sentencing Tribunal in Huehuetenango for conspiracy to commit murder. The two human rights defenders were illegally detained on May 2, 2012 during a state of siege imposed by the government of Guatemala. After a lengthy process, they were released and declared innocent. However, while en-route with their lawyer for the final hearing on this case, they were arrested by the police outside the Guatemala City court house for the murder and femicide of two people who were lynched in Barillas in 2010.

Both the legal process itself and the verdict against the human rights defenders were plagued with irregularities. The verdict was reached without proving the individual responsibility of the accused, violating one of the core guarantees of the judicial system that states that individuals cannot be brought to trial for the actions of others. Both cases demonstrate how private interests trump justice, leading to the political persecution of social leaders and human rights defenders."

Link to original press release in Spanish can be found here.

Other statements from Guatemala:

"They accuse me of something I did not commit. My intention has always been to defend the rights of nature." (Saúl Aurelio Méndez Muñoz)

"I am someone of few material resources. I have fought for the rights of Mother Nature and for defending natural resources, I am now in prison." (Antonio Rogelio Velásquez)

"Together with their communities, [Saúl and Rogelio] expressed their opposition to the construction of the hydroelectric Hidro Santa Cruz. This struggle has meant repression and criminalization for them, their families and their communities by the Guatemalan state who, far from working for the wellbeing of the citizens of the country, protect the interests of transnational companies such as Ecoener Hidralia and its extractive projects in northern Huehuetenango. All of this threatens the lives of communities and the natural resources of the Guatemalan people." (Statement from the Departmental Assembly of Huehuetenango)

"It is clear that the case of Rogelio and Saúl corresponds to a strategy of terror that seeks to weaken community resistance and paralyze social movements in defense of territory. This [goal] wasn't achieved because those of us who defend life and territory remain united.” (Statement from the Departmental Assembly of Huehuetenango)

Link to original statements in Spanish can be found here.

"We are a peaceful people" - Mataquescuintla celebrates 2nd anniversary of municipal referendum against mining

"Second Anniversary, Municipal Consultation as requested by Residents."
Photo: CPR Urbana

“Authorities will come and go, but it’s the responsibility of the people to uphold this decision,” says Moisés Divas to a large crowd gathered in the central park in the municipality of Mataquescuintla, Jalapa, located less than six miles from Tahoe Resources' Escobal silver mine. Two years ago, 98% of the population voted “NO” to the presence of metallic mining on their territory. Last week, hundreds gathered to celebrate the second anniversary of the consultation and to make sure the decision sticks.

"The referendum was a moment when the people could make their voices heard," says Enrique López, member of the city council. "The type of development that is being imposed in this territory is not long-term development for our people." A community-based mapping project undertaken recently in the departments of Santa Rosa, Jalapa and Jutiapa demonstrates Tahoe's grip in the region – highlighting a territory almost completely covered by mining licenses. In addition to the already-operating Escobal mine, Mataquescuintla is impacted by six other metallic exploration licenses.

Residents of Mataquescuintla locate their home on a community map to learn
which mining license might impact their lives and livelihoods.

On November 11, 2012, more than 60% of registered voters in Mataquescuintla voted in a community referendum and 98% of participants – more than 10,000 people - voted to ban the presence of mining on their territories. Together, they joined other municipalities in the area in voicing their loud opposition to the presence of mining companies such as Tahoe Resources, who began commercial production of its silver mine in the area in January 2014.

A month before starting production, Guatemala's highest court ruled in support of Mataquescuintla's municipal referendum, striking down the lawsuit filed to challenge its constitutionality. The groundbreaking decision recognized the responsibility that municipal authorities have to convene such votes and to make decisions according to their results, affirming their value as “adequate means by which peoples may exercise their right to give their opinion and be consulted on topics of interest.”



The decision is particularly important given the government and company's unwillingness to recognize consultations as a legitimate form of decision making that reflects community support or opposition to large-scale projects on their territory. Despite this seemingly dismissive stance, various consultations in Tahoe's area of influence were challenged in Guatemalan courts. Additionally, in the municipality of San Rafael las Flores where the Escobal project is located, efforts to organize a municipal consultation were thwarted by a massive campaign to criminalize leaders demanding a vote. During the anniversary celebration, Moisés Divas reflected on this contradiction stating, “If they don't care about the consultations, if they don't think they are powerful, why do they put so much effort into blocking them?”

While Tahoe Resources publicly promotes that it holds widespread community support for its operations, municipalities surrounding the mine continue in opposition. For example, the municipality of Mataquescuintla has refused to allow Tahoe access to the electrical power station located inside their municipal jurisdiction. Instead operations at Escobal continue to be powered by temporary generators.

Mataquescuintla is not the only neighboring municipality that soundly rejects the company's presence. Four additional nearby municipalities have voted against the mine in municipal referenda, while more than half of the communities in the municipality of San Rafael las Flores - right where the Escobal mine is located - have also declared themselves in opposition.

Maria Antonia Solares from San Juan Bosco stands in front of the
 map highlighting the Tahoe license that covers her community.

Maria Antonia Solares from the nearby community of San Juan Bosco in the municipality of San Rafael las Flores was present at the celebration in Mataquescuintla. Residents of her community are also facing impacts from the Escobal mine and the real possibility of Tahoe expansion into their backyard with the already granted Juan Bosco exploration license.

"It's important to be here, to learn from one another," says Solares. "Even though this is not my home, I am motivated by seeing other people defend their territory in the same way we are in San Juan Bosco." 

Guatemalan Prosecutor summons Tahoe Resources CEO to testify about criminalization of community leaders

For additional background on this case see the article: A cheat sheet for Kevin McArthur on Tahoe Resources' tactics to silence opposition in Guatemala

PRESS RELEASE 

Friday, October 17, 2014

Source: Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores - Guatemalan Centre for Environmental, Social and Legal Action (CALAS) 

 

(Guatemala City): Kevin McArthur, CEO of the transnational Canadian mining company Tahoe Resources Inc, owner of the subsidiary Minera San Rafael S.A., has been summoned by the District Attorney’s office in Villa Nueva, department of Guatemala to provide his declaration with regard to Minera San Rafael’s policy of criminalization against community leaders in the department of Santa Rosa who are in peaceful resistance to the Escobal mine. This declaration was requested as part of case MP015-2013-7757 for which the District Attorney is responible and in which regard the Manager of External Relations for Minera San Rafael, Camilo Ernesto Medina Mazariegos, has falsely accused without grounds the community leader and coordinator of the Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores, Oscar Roderico Morales Garcia. This is the third time that Minera San Rafael has made efforts to criminalize Oscar Roderico Morales Garcia by way of its workers.

The summons for Kevin McArthur as CEO of Tahoe Resources to provide his testimony to the District Attorney’s office in the Municipality of Villa Nueva was presented to the office of Minera San Rafael in Guatemala City on the afternoon of October 15th, 2014. According to the order, Mr. McArthur is obliged to be present to make his declaration on October 21st at 10am.

The Committee in Defense of Life and Peace of San Rafael Las Flores and the Guatemalan Centre for Environmental, Social and Legal Action (CALAS) have been taking all possible legal actions to ensure that the CEO of Tahoe Resources appears in Guatemala to provide his testimony and demonstrate the policy of criminalization against activists and community leaders that Minera San Rafael has been carrying out.

‘Justice for Nature, Justice for Communities in Resistance’

For more information:

• Pedro Rafael Maldonado, General Director, CALAS, (502) 24744545, (502) 54178499, rafamaldonado(at)calas.org.gt 

Summary of Related Documents  
On October 10, 2014, Oscar Roderico Morales García made a request to the District Attorney’s Office in Villa Nueva, Department of Guatemala to summon Tahoe Resources CEO Kevin McArthur to testify in connection with criminal charges made against him by a Tahoe employee. The reason provided for the request was “To testify to the policy of criminalization that [the company’s subsidiary] has been carrying out against community leaders in resistance to the imposition of the Escobal mining project in the muncipality of San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa. This declaration will demonstrate that the complaint that has been made against me is part of a series of cases that Tahoe Resources Inc by way of Minera San Rafael, S.A. has undertaken in Guatemala against community leaders in the area of influence of the Escobal mine in order to effectively impose it on the community.” The request makes reference to rights enshrined in the Guatemalan Political Constitution and Procedural Criminal Code. See the summons issued by the District Attorney here.

On October 15, 2014, the District Attorney’s Office in the Municipality of Villa Nueva, Guatemala issued an urgent summons addressed to CEO Kevin McArthur at Tahoe Resources’ office in Guatemala City requesting his presence at the District Attorney’s office on October 21, 2014 at 10am or to communicate directly with the office by phone. He is asked to provide his testimony in response to Oscar Roderico Morales García's request. See original document signed by Auxilliary Attorney I Karen Jimena Ucelo Lima and received at the offices of Minera San Rafael S.A. in Gutemala at 3:40pm on October 15, 2015: MP015-2013-7757, Fiscalía Municipal de Villa Nueva, Guatemala, Agencia 3UDI.

NISGUA has accompanied communities in opposition to the Tahoe Resources Escobal mine since 2011.

Communities in Santa Rosa and Jalapa launch campaign to halt Tahoe Resources' expansion

"Water and life are worth more than silver or gold. You are intelligent, don't let them fool you." Community organized billboard campaign in Santa Rosa and Jalapa. Photo NISGUA

In February 2013, the community of San Juan Bosco, located just 8 miles from Tahoe Resources' massive Escobal silver mine, held a referendum in which 99% of people voted against mining. Local residents were not just concerned about impacts of the Escobal mine on their water and crops, but about another Tahoe exploration license, Juan Bosco, which is located, as the name suggests, right on top of the small farming community. Now, nine months after Tahoe announced a start to operations at Escobal, the Environmental Impact Assessment for the Juan Bosco license has been published for public comment, indicating an important step forward in the granting of the exploitation permit.

In an ongoing attempt to make their voices heard, communities of Santa Rosa and Jalapa announced last Monday the launch of a campaign to halt Tahoe's expansion. The company's plans to exploit at least 12 mineral veins in an area covering 2,398 square kilometers are moving swiftly ahead despite community opposition and more than a dozen referenda in which more than 53,000 people in six municipalities voted against mining in their territory. See the full press release from communities below.

Residents of Mataquescuintla map Tahoe mining licenses compared to the location of communities, local water sources and forests. Photo NISGUA

Tahoe's decision to move forward with the Juan Bosco license was met with concern and frustration by local residents. At a press conference in Guatemala City on September 1, one resident commented, “In San Juan Bosco we feel indignant because we already had our referenda. We are a community that depends on agriculture and this mine threatens our water. That is why we continue to oppose these projects.”

Likewise, representatives from 10 communities, including three Xinca indigenous communities impacted by Tahoe's expansion plans in the departments of Santa Rosa and Jalapa, expressed concern that neither Tahoe, nor the Guatemalan government respect their right to consultation and self-determination. They also denounced local mayors who are accepting mining royalties against the will of the people.

A representative from the municipality of Santa Rosa de Lima, where in 2012, more than 98% of the population voted against Tahoe Resources' Escobal mine explained: “Our mayor, and others in the region, accepted the royalties – but the money is only serving to line their own pockets... We demand that the government and the company respect our referendum. We may be farmers but we still deserve rights. The constitution applies to everyone.” A representative from San Juan Bosco, in the municipality of San Rafael las Flores where the mine is located agreed: “We haven't seen development. All we have seen are increased conflicts.”

Community representatives also addressed Tahoe Resources' statements contending that the company has social support for the project and that it consulted with local communities, stating “The company says that they consulted with us and that is a lie. What the company does is gather signatures by deceiving people and take advantage of their poverty. The company offers trees or fertilizer and so people give their signatures and ID number. That's not a real consultation.” 

A leader from the Xinca community of Jumaytepeque questioned the discourse of the government and the multinational companies stating, “When they come and tell us that mining brings development, I have to ask, 'then why are we in the same situation, or worse off, than we were 10 years ago?' Every day more and more people are living in poverty. And people living near the mines are faced with health problems they never had before.”

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Press Release: Communities of Santa Rosa and Jalapa Organized in Defense of Territory and Nature 

Versión en Español

Since 2012, we have held citizen requested municipal referendums, in which more than 53,000 residents have manifested, through the legitimate exercise of our rights as citizens, that WE DO NOT AGREE with chemical mineral mining in any part of our territory. According to the Constitutional Court, these consultations have been declared constitutionally legal and binding at the municipal level.

Despite the clear rejection of chemical mining of metals in our territory, and with the complicity of the [Guatemalan] government, the company, Minera San Rafael, continues actions focused on entering our municipalities through underhanded measures, knowing full well  that the only thing they achieve is the generation of increased conflict, while disturbing the peace and community tranquillity. Clear proof of this is the granting of the exploration licenses named Juan Bosco and Andres during the first quarter of 2012. These licenses affect municipalities located in [the departments of] Santa Rosa, Jalapa and Guatemala. Now, despite the evident opposition of our communities and in a demonstration of disrespect for the clear wishes of the people, the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources has published the Environmental Impact Assessment (2014-EIA-4413) for the  Juan Bosco Mine Exploitation License (LEXR-089-08), for public comment. 

According to a presentation and information presented to investors in June in Vancouver, Canada, Tahoe Resources Inc. (owner of the Minera San Rafael, S.A.) plans to exploit at least 12 mineral veins in our territory,  including gold, silver, zinc, etc. [According to Tahoe Resources] an area of 2,498 km2 will be exploited through various licenses, some that have already been obtained, others that are still in process. However, [the company] is selling this project to investors as though it already owns the land, arguing that the current government is pro-mining and that in Guatemala they pay an extremely low tax rate, making it a profitable business opportunity. 

Faced with this grave situation, we have expressed our opposition to the chemical metal mining in our territories through municipal and good-faith community referendums. Today we are launching a campaign that seeks to make clear to the pro-mining and sell-out Guatemalan government, as well as the mining companies and their investors, that our land is not for sale. We have a development model that respects the environment and Mother Earth. For us, water and life are worth more, much more, than silver or gold.

Therefore, on more than 100 km of highway in our municipalities we have placed signs so that those who enter our territories know that more than 98% of residents do not want the chemical mineral mining and that we are in constant peaceful resistance to these projects.

Guatemala, August 2014

NISGUA has accompanied communities in opposition to the Tahoe Resources Escobal mine since 2011.

‘On the Road for Justice’ Speaking Tour to Bring Attention to Guatemala Mining Conflict, Need for Remedy in Canada

(Ottawa) How is it that when community leaders wrongfully targeted in the wake of violence connected with Tahoe Resources’ Escobal silver mine in Guatemala they spend months in jail, while the company’s former head of security, accused of ordering guards to open fire on protesters last April, is first given house arrest and then allowed to avoid prison by arguing that he is sick?

This is just one of the stark asymmetries in the current conflict between the Toronto-listed mining firm and communities in southeastern Guatemala, where repression and violence have been the outcome of efforts to install the project without social support.

More than half of the communities in the municipality of San Rafael las Flores, where the Escobal project is located, have declared opposition to the mine. In neighbouring municipalities, in the departments of Santa Rosa and Jalapa, the majority of the population has voted against the mine in municipal referenda.



Nonetheless, Tahoe Resources reported in January that the Escobal mine is operational, claiming that “unanticipated social issues have been addressed.” According to local reports, the only thing that Tahoe Resources seems to have resolved is how to mine despite ongoing conflict in Guatemala, where the company and its principal investor, Goldcorp, wield considerable political and economic influence.

This conflict brings to the forefront the need for the Canadian government to facilitate access to justice for abuses committed abroad. The tour of a group of Guatemalans to include stops in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia will link to the Canadian Network for Corporate Accountability’s Open for Justice campaign. The CNCA campaign calls for laws to allow access to Canadian courts for people who have been harmed by the international operations of Canadian companies. It also calls for the creation of an extractive-sector Ombuds office in Canada mandated to investigate accusations of abuses and make recommendations to the government and the companies involved.

To provide a first hand community account of the situation around the Escobal mine, lawyer Rafael Maldonado from the Guatemalan Centre for Environmental, Social, and Legal Action (CALAS) will visit Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal to talk about the current state of Canadian mining conflicts in Guatemala.

Mr. Maldonado has defended numerous community members who have been criminalized for their opposition to the Tahoe project and represents plaintiffs in the case against Alberto Rotondo, who is facing charges for aggravated assault against six community members. Mr. Maldonado also represents communities in a case of industrial contamination against the mine.

Mr. Oscar Morales will join Mr. Maldonado in Toronto and then travel to Kingston, Peterborough and Vancouver. Mr. Morales is Coordinator of the Committee in Defense of Life and Peace in San Rafael Las Flores, as well as a community advocate and agronomist who is deeply concerned about the environmental and social impacts of Tahoe's mine. He has worked to support the six men shot by mine security in April 2013 and has been an advocate for the community consultations that have taken place throughout Santa Rosa.

Ms. Celeste Gutierrez from the Diocesan Committee in Defense of Nature (CODIDENA) from Santa Rosa will also participate in the events in Toronto and then travel to the Maritimes. Ms. Gutierrez will speak on CODIDENA's work to educate communities on the impacts of mining projects, her experiences organizing community consultations in Santa Rosa and the risks for human rights defenders in Guatemala.

For more information or to arrange interviews with the delegation:

• Jen Moore, Latin America Program Coordinator, MiningWatch Canada, (613) 569-3439, jen(at)miningwatch.ca

This speaking tour would not be possible without the support and hard work of the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project (JCAP) at Osgoode Hall Law School, the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network (BTS), and the Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA).

Public events:

OTTAWA


Tues Mar 18th from 6:30-8pm


25One Community, 2nd Floor, 251 Bank St


Organized by Octopus Books, MiningWatch Canada, CNCA, the Public Service Alliance of Canada Social Justice Fund, Education in Action and the Americas Policy Group

TORONTO


Thurs Mar 20th from 7-9pm


Koffler House, Room 108, University of Toronto, 569 Spadina Crescent


Organized by the Mining Injustice Solidarity Network (MISN), BTS, NISGUA and friends

HALIFAX


Sun Mar 23rd at 10:30am


Edgewood Oxford United Church, 3055 Connaught Ave.


Organized by the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network

KINGSTON


Mon Mar 24th from 1:30-3pm


Providence Motherhouse Auditorium, 1200 Princess St (across from the Peach Tree Inn)


Organized by the Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation Office of the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul

PETERBOROUGH


Mon Mar 24th from 6:30-8:30pm


Sadleir House, 751 George St. N.


with a short film screening and Q&A to follow


Organized by Canadians for Mining Awareness

MONTREAL


Mon Mar 24th from 6:30-9pm


Salle D-R200, UQAM (1430, rue Saint-Denis)


with Alain Deneault, author of 'Canada: A New Tax Haven'


Organized by the Projet Accompagnement Québec Guatemala and the Social Justice Committee of Montreal

TATAMAGOUCHE


Mon Mar 24th at 7pm


Event at the Tatamagouche Centre, Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia


Organized by the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network



ANTIGONISH


Tues Mar 25th at 7pm


Room 150, Coady International Institute


Organized by the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network



VANCOUVER


Wed Mar 26th from 5:15-8pm


CAWP Room 2916, Forest Science Centre, University of British Columbia


with a screening of "Gold Fever"


Organized by the Forestry Graduate Students Association at UBC

FREDERICTON


Wed Mar 26th at 5:30pm
James Dunn Hall, room TBA, St. Thomas University


Organized by the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network

VANCOUVER


Sat Mar 29th from 7-9pm


Two Nations, One Struggle


Grandview Calvary Baptist Church, 1803 East 1st Ave


with Marilyn Baptiste, council of Xeni Gwet'in, Tŝilhqot’in Nation


Organized by Cafe Rebelde, with support from Amnesty International, the Mining Justice Alliance, the Canada-Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights and Streams of Justice

Find a one page backgrounder here.