Isolation and Persecution of Women Activists

These testimonies demonstrate that, women mining activism requires courage and tremendous doses of commitment.

“I am constantly the target of comments and jokes from the workers of the mine and their families. Some of them spit at me when they meet me in the street,” says Margarita.

Lack of support demoralises women and leaves them feeling persecuted, devalued, and marginalised. In response to this complex problem, in conjunction with women activists LAMMP has set up the Women Defenders Network (Unión Latinoamericana de Mujeres). Margarita, Hilda and Cleofe have set up women’s groups and are now part of a regional platform which brings women activists together and provides them with the tools and resources to build their organisational capacity, as well as a sense of support and solidarity. A key component of this work is documenting and monitoring human rights violations against women activists.

Cleofe has been punished both for her activism and for being a woman.

“I am a poor, vulnerable woman. I am not the only woman punished for opposing a project, but I don’t recall a case in which justice has been done.”

She is from the Piura highlands, along Peru’s northern border with Ecuador. She enjoyed a simple life as a farmer in the community of Ñangalí, Huancabamba. In 2003 the arrival of UK-based mining company Monterrico Metals permanently changed Cleofe’s life.

Ñangalí is a comunidad campesina – a peasant community – protected by a law requiring a two-thirds majority of community members to consent to any externally imposed development project. From the start, the Majaz mine was controversial. The communities of Segunda y Cajas and Yanta alleged they were not consulted about the project. Furthermore, as the territory is situated adjacent to Peru’s border with Ecuador, the presidential decree 023-2003 granted permits on the grounds that the mine was of public necessity and special interest to the Peruvian state.

Amidst overwhelming opposition by the local communities Monterrico proceeded to build its campsite, signalling the start of its exploration activities.

In the summer of 2005, after requests for dialogue with Majaz were ignored, hundreds of campesinos organised a peaceful march to the mining site of Henry’s Hill. Their objective was to force the workers out of their territory.

As a member of the traditional “Ronda Campesinas” (a group of leaders responsible for enforcing law and order within communities), Cleofe took part in the five-day march. “It started well, but the police ambushed and attacked us with tear gas. They burnt our clothes and destroyed our food,” says Cleofe, adding, “I was among the 28 who were caught and imprisoned in the campsite”.

During five days of captivity Cleofe and another woman were kept half-naked in a small toilet with a plastic black sack over their heads, their feet and hands tied.

“We didn’t have food or water. Repeatedly they beat us with their fists and boots. All of them took pleasure in squeezing my breasts so hard that often I felt like fainting”. Cleofe acknowledges that she has not been able to recover physically or emotionally from her ordeal. It was not just the fear of the beating or the lack of water. “They constantly threatened us with rape”, whilst indulging in fantasies of what they were going to do to us.

When Cleofe was released she lodged a complaint with the state prosecutor. The company denied any involvement, and so her complaint was not investigated. In retaliation the company sued her, alleging that she broke into the mine site and destroyed private property.

Although still angry and unable to deal with the consequences of her experience, Cleofe admits she does “not know what else I could do. I am a poor, vulnerable woman. I am not the only woman punished for opposing a project, but I don’t recall a case in which justice has been done”. Whilst the legal process against her continues its way, in January 2009 photos were released that clearly illustrate the abuses and injuries inflicted by the police and security workers on the camppesinos detained at the Majaz campsite. In response to the public outcry the government ordered an investigation. In the meantime Cleofe continues receiving threatening death messages advising her “not to talk”.

The decade 1990 to 2000 saw mining investment in Peru increase five-fold. Mining now comprises 6.6 % of GDP and makes up 57 percent of the country’s exports. The staggering growth of the mining industry has earned Peru a place among world-class producers. A 2005 World Bank report puts Peru as the world’s second largest producer of silver, third largest producer of zinc, and sixth largest producer of gold.

The United Kingdom has been one of the biggest investors in the growing mineral sector. In 2002 total investment in mineral exploration and production by UK companies totalled nearly US$800 million, over 47 percent of total foreign investment in the mineral sector.

But steady expansion of the mining industry requires an ever-increasing supply of land. Concessions for mineral exploration quadrupled from four million to 16 million acres between 1990 and 2000, according to the World Bank. Mining is so ubiquitous that in 1999 over 50 percent of rural communities were affected by mining.

Hilda grew up in the city of Espinar, where she was a respected community leader and member of several groups challenging the operations of the Tintaya mine. The mine, which in the early 80s started as a state-run operation, has had many owners. However members of the rural communities directly affected by the mine operations maintain that the mine was constructed without due consultation and that new projects (to increase its capacity) as well as tailings ponds have been added without due consideration to the social and environmental impact.

Distrust of local mechanisms to resolve disputes is exacerbated by the fact that on those occasions when complaints of poor waste management and severe environmental degradation that affects livestock have been investigated, the mine has always been exonerated of any wrong-doing. Feelings that mining corporations are allowed to do as they please are entrenched, and leaders report a lack of transparency and access to information, especially during spills of toxic materials when they are prevented from taking photos.

In 2003 in her capacity as secretary for human rights of the “Front for the Defence of Espinar Rights”, Hilda participated in discussions with BHP Billiton, which culminated in an agreement known as the “Convenio Marco” which, among other points established that BHP Billiton would redistribute up to 3% of its pre-tax profits to development projects.

Leaders of grass-roots groups report that after the agreement was signed they suffered persecution. This situation, coupled with complaints that BHP Billiton was not fulfilling agreements, was the reason for them drafting a new agreement and demanding that BHP Billiton sign it within two days. The refusal of BHP Billiton managers to meet with the organisers resulted in three days of public protest. There were some incidents of violence and destruction of property.

“Is it a crime to participate in a public protest?”

Local police detained and charged 73 people with disproportionately large offences, alleging $US10 million worth of damage and loss of revenue. The mine was closed for a month for fear of further vandalism.

Hilda feels victimised because although she was not among those who entered the offices of the company, she was singled out and accused of leading the protests, instigating criminal acts, violence towards authorities and obstructing their legal duties. “Is it a crime to participate in a public protest?” asks Hilda.

A criminal investigation was started against her and the 73 other protestors. Hilda reports that during hearings she “was asked to admit her responsibility given the evidence against her”.

The legal process dragged on for years. During this time Hilda reports that mine workers and representative of local authorities subjected her to surveillance and death threats. The media constantly reported on her activities, and one TV channel referred to her as a terrorist. The process has left her physically and emotionally exhausted. “Sometimes I was notified about an oral hearing only the day before, which meant that I had to leave my work and travel for hours, only to find that the hearing had been cancelled due to minor problems”.

Despite an appeal by the state prosecutor, in January 2009 all 73-community activists were absolved of their crimes for lack of evidence. However, the social conflict over the activities of the mine continues. Unable to cope with threats and surveillance, Hilda has moved to another town.

Margarita lives with her mother and two young sons in Glorieta de Mayoc, a village 80km east of Lima. Mining has been a feature of this Andean village since colonial times; and large-scale mining has brought business, jobs and environmental problems.

Through chronic exposure to mining dust and toxic tailings, members of the community have contracted arsenical dermatitis and many other dermatological diseases. Toxic particles present in the air have badly affected the children, and skin and respiratory problems are prevalent.

“My struggle to end the mining pollution of my hometown is the story of my life, but I am continually intimidated, verbally abused and receive death threats”

Margarita’s adobe cottage and small farming plot are adjacent to one of the mine’s tailings tip. To escape dust and noise, most of her neighbours sold their properties but Margarita stayed. “This is my mother’s home and we have nowhere to go,” she explains. Margarita has dedicated much of the past ten years to fighting the public health and environmental ramifications of the mine, but to little avail.

In 2003 Margarita and the Committee of People Affected by the activities of the Tamboraque mine took their complaint to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission of the Organisation of American States, alleging violations to the right to life, health, property and freedom of assembly. The complaint was upheld.

In 2006 the Canadian Gold Hawk bought the Tamboraque mine and renamed it Caricancha. Production and processing of gold and silver followed a year later. Margarita says, “as soon as the new owners took over, the soft-spoken polite Canadian managers and workers began putting relentless pressure on me.” They claimed that the OAS complaint affected their image and caused problems with the authorities. “They wanted me to withdraw the complaint, and in exchange they promised work and handouts.”

Most members of the Committee gave in to the mine, and gradually Margarita became the only person refusing to accommodate the mining company. This act of defiance brought upon her the anger of mine workers and the community; to this day she suffers a constant barrage of humiliation and harassment. “Stones were thrown onto the roofs of our houses…one of the mine workers…came to my door to insult me and threaten to blow me up,” she reported. Her niece was threatened with rape, the main electricity cables were deliberately cut and an angry mob threatened to throw her into the river. Despite threats, attacks and intimidation the police have offered her only sporadic protection.

The whole village is divided between those who favour the mine and those like Margarita who push for strict environmental standards. “My struggle to end the mining pollution of my hometown is the story of my life, but I am continually intimidated, verbally abused and receive death threats,” said Margarita.

In 2007, through its 100 percent subsidiary Compañía Minera San Juan, Gold Hawk constructed a large tailings pond to contain more than a ton of toxic waste left by the extraction process.

In May 2008 after ground displacements were detected in the tailing areas, the mine was closed. In July the government declared the area in a state of emergency due to landslide risks, which threatened the river Rimac, the main source of water for the entire city of Lima.

As a result of soil contamination Margarita is not able to farm any more. “Life is a struggle,” she says. Her cleaning job with the council provides her with less than US$3 a day. Her battle with the authorities is not over yet; the mine is still closed but new permits have been granted. The company is expected to restart operations in mid 2009.

El Frente de Mujeres Defensoras de la Pachamama is a grass-roots group led by women for women activists committed to raising awareness of the devastating impact of mining on rural and indigenous women’s capacity to earn a living from traditional farming.

Tired of the way authorities dismissed their complaints about contamination of rivers near to small and large-scale developments, many women started spontaneously to work together. In 2007 the 300-strong group became a registered NGO.

Since then, members of the Women’s Defenders of Mother Earth have fought courageously against the passing of a new mining law allowing large-scale mining in protected and farming areas or inhabited by indigenous communities.

The group – composed mainly of rural and indigenous women – believes that the social and environmental costs of large-scale mining are too high to justify mining’s role as an income-generating activity for Ecuador.

Members of the group want to ensure that their children inherit a clean environment, free of the contamination of mining. “It is the future of our children that we are worried about,” says 65 year old Angelilta Loja president of the group. Like all members of the group, she believes that large-scale mining will limit access to clean water supplies, despite water rights being enshrined in the new constitution. The group has joined with other civic organisations to demand that Ecuador does not allow industrial mining.

The group is member of the NCCDLS (National Coordinating Committee for Defense of Life and Sovereignty), a large community-based association representing a network of rural and indigenous associations around the country who share an anti-mining viewpoint.

The Women Defenders of Mother Earth is an ambitious community project that serves not only to unify its members against the threat of mining but also to consolidate and strengthen women’s participation within important local structures such as the NCCDLS.

The organisation provides women with training, and creates opportunities for engaging in the mining debate at all levels.

Mining in Ecuador and the new Mining Law

Most of Ecuador’s 4,000 mining concessions are located on land occupied by indigenous and rural communities. Mining concessions cover approximately 20 percent of the territory of Ecuador, but a revised mining law could increase this territory quickly by removing limits on expansion. So far 26 percent of mining concessions are in Azuay province, with a further 21 percent in Pichincha. Although no mining projects have yet reached the production stage, several Canadian companies among them IAMGOLD Corp, Kinross and Corriente Resources are eager to develop production of ore bodies described as the most important findings in the last decades.

In April 2008 President Correa revoked three-quarters of Ecuador’s mining concessions and called a halt to operations while the government revised the country’s mining law. At the time a national debate on whether the country should allow large-scale mining was promised. Despite strong opposition, nine months later in January 2009 legislators passed a bill that resumed mining activities previously suspended and promoted large-scale mining. Although the government claims that the new law includes stricter environmental controls and increased royalties, rural and indigenous groups predict that the law, which gives priority to corporations for access to water, land, and infrastructure, will violate indigenous and rural communities’ human and environmental rights.

As well as providing evidence of the many ways in which women’s activism is criminalised, a programme of documentation and monitoring of human rights violations enables activists to address issues of safety and protection.
Taken from LAMMP’s database of Human Rights violations the next pages present the testimony of several women members of the group. Their stories illustrates how members of the Women’s Defender’s of Mother Earth group are being systematically targeted by police repression and miners.

In The Eye Of The Storm

The passing of the new mining law was met with strong public protests demanding a national debate and challenging the government to explain why profitable projects owned by foreign companies were left untouched. The Women Defenders of Mother Earth group held women-only events urging women activists to voice their concerns.

Their participation was met with police repression. Many activists echo the experience of Maria Francisca Zhagui Chuchuca. During a protest in April 2008 she says: “Five policemen attacked us with teargas and firearms. As if we were animals, before arresting us they beat us. I am a farmer and all I am doing is fighting for life and water. I have not committed a crime, I have not killed, and I have not stolen.” After being hit on the leg with a tear-gas canister she finds it difficult to work. During a radio broadcast President Correa has labelled members of the group “infantile ecologists”, warning them that as leader of the anti-mining opposition they have to “face the consequences of their actions”

LINA SOLANO is the co-ordinator of the Women’s Defenders of Mother Earth. She is from Cuenca, the third largest city in Ecuador and the capital of the Azuay province, a region targeted by mining companies.

““I had not realised how important is the work we are doing. Case documentation not only gives us evidence of the criminalisation of our struggle, it also allows us to understand the challenges we face. As a group we are committed to documenting violations of our fundamental rights.”

Since the President’s first address in April 2008, Lina has received menacing e-mails from a member of a so-called “White Legion death squad battalion” which claims to be monitoring her work.

On 23rd October 2008 the Public Prosecutor’s office of Gualaquiza informed Lina that there are two lawsuits against her. In both cases she is falsely accused of leading armed groups first into a mining camp and months later into the office of a mining company. Lina says

”The charges are fabricated, linked to my work and seek to damage my reputation as leader. In the first case I was far away from the place of the incident. In the second, I have witnesses that I was participating in a pacific protest together with fellow members of the Defenders of Mother Earth”.

Apart from Lina there are ten more members of the group facing serious charges ranging from “terrorism” to “destruction of public property”.

Since its creation the group has been growing in recognition and their public profile has risen considerably. As their message is perceived as capable of mobilising and obtaining public support, members of the group are paying a high personal price at the community level, where mine workers target the activists. This is the case of Gloria Livia Jimenez who on her way back home after celebrating Christmas with her family was attacked by two miners who had previously warned her that unless she left she would be killed. The beating was so severe that she was taken into hospital. “They kicked and punched me, the tendons were torn.” Armed with a medical X rays and a medical report, she filed a complaint at the office of the prosecutor. Last month at an oral hearing the miners admitted that Gloria’s opposition to mining projects had motivated their assault. They offered her US$200 in compensation, providing she dropped charges. Livia refused: “All I want is justice”.

Last year at a regional meeting hosted in Ecuador by LAMMP and ULAM more than 60 women activists from Venezuela, Bolivia, Guatemala, Peru and Ecuador agreed to prioritise the construction of a regional database to record human rights violations against women mining activists. “I had not realised how important is the work we are doing. Case documentation not only gives us evidence of the criminalisation of our struggle, it also allows us to understand the challenges we face. As a group we are committed to documenting violations of our fundamental rights.” says Lina Solano – Coordinator of the Women Defenders of Mother Earth.

The Women Defenders of Mother Earth group is member of the Women’s Defenders Network “Union Latinoamericana de Mujeres” (ULAM), an initiative supported by LAMMP.