KJM Press Note to Commemorate the Global Day of Action Against Open Pit Mining

The Justice in Mining Collective (Kolektif Jistis Min or KJM), a group of organizations working to prevent metal mining in the nation of Haiti, honors the global day of action against open pit mining with this note of courage and resistance. KJM salutes communities and organizations in Latin America, the Caribbean, and in Africa that are leading movements to resist open pit mining and the serious consequences it presents to life on earth. KJM sends a special message of congratulations to the people of El Salvador for successfully convincing Parliament to pass a law to prohibit metal mining activity.

KJM releases this note at a moment where companies and the government are pushing to develop this risky and dangerous sector without informing the Haitian population—including the communities that sit inside and proximate to mining permits—of the consequences of mining. KJM denounces the companies that enter Haitian communities and spread propoganda that mineral extraction will bring development and opportunity. In fact, all over the world, we see communities affected by mining that are now trying to force companies to leave. People do not want to live with the environmental contamination and social ills that metal mining brings. For example, in Ghana, West Africa, Newmont forced thousands of people to leave their homes and their land, often making it harder for families to get by. In Peru, rivers and streams contaminated by metal mining have led communities to mobilize to resist the construction of a new open pit mine. In Papua New Guinea, we see not only environmental destruction, but also violent acts carried out against local people, especially women, by company security guards. Mining activity is destroying local economies as well as the environment and ecosystem. Hunger, unemployment, poverty and suffering plague whole communities in general, but most affect workers, small holder farmers, and the poor masses.

Today, more than 10% of land in Haiti is under mineral concession. These permits are held by multinational companies that enter Haiti to do business. However, according to Haitian law, all of the prospection permits in Haiti have expired: prospection permits are valid for only two years. This means that the companies that hold them do not have authority to conduct any activities; they must wait for Parliament to pass the draft mining law. Without a new law, it appears that companies cannot recommence mining activities.

KJM recently learned that the Public Works Commission submitted the draft mining law to Haitian Parliament. The law was written by the Haitian government with the support of the World Bank. Experts agree that the draft law presents a true danger to the Haitian people: it does not protect our environment; it prioritizes companies over the people; it removes the oversight role that the current law requires Parliament to play; and the law allows mining activity to occur behind closed doors, without the Haitian people accessing information. KJM asks the Haitian people and members of Parliament—if they care to defend the interests of Haitian people—to follow the example of the nation of El Salvador and stop the disaster that metal mining would be to our nation, our environment, and the general public of Haiti.

Farmers in all of Haiti are threatened by the prospect of losing their land to mining companies. If companies take over farmland, national production will decline and poverty and hunger will only increase as the population rises. Haiti is at an intersection, and flying above are the vultures—both local and international—that aim to take advantage of the poverty and ill-education of the people to pillage our nation’s natural resources, leaving the people in the exploited areas to suffer. Today, water resources—springs, rivers, and wells—are goind dry and becoming contaminated with chemicals like cyanide, lead, and mercury. Of all countries in this hemisphere, Haiti has the least forest cover even though the Haitian Constitution, in Article 253, recognizes that the environment is the natural framework for a productive and healthy society. Needless to say, the proposed mining law does not respect our Constitution.

It is for this reason the Justice in Mining Collective asks that concerned communities, organizations, and citizens stand up to prevent our government and companies from exploiting our resrouces and implementing this potentially lethal project.

Yes to life, no to mining exploitation!

Signatory organizations for KJM:

ODISMA
CE-JILAP
BATAY OUVRIYE
TET KOLE
VISDNO
GARR
CFEDEC
OPAB
RNDDH
ICCAH
RAMO
MODEP
GREPAE
MOSADA
MOLEGHAF
PAPDA
POHDH
CDM-OD
AVS
ANTRED
ANNIH
KRPN
AFDPR
AJCAD