renewed request for action!

Please take a minute to demand an end to the increasing violence against indigenous leaders and communities in Guatemala. Just a few weeks ago we contacted you for your help in upholding the rights of these people who are resisting harmful mining and other extractive industries and protecting their territories from environmental threats.

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If you already responded, thank you for taking action to demand that President Alvaro Colom take measures to end this repression. And please take a minute to send a new letter, below, to keep the pressure on. If you did not yet take action, please do so today!

The situation in Guatemala is unfortunately worsening. In the early morning of 7 August, Antonio Morales López, a peasant leader from the Tixel Village in Colotenango Huehuetenango, was gunned down after having received death threats. López, a former member of the municipal council, was an important leader in the local resistance to open pit mining in the region.

The assassination of Antonio Morales López is not an isolated incident. As indigenous and peasant communities have strengthened their resistance to mining and other extractive projects, violence and repression has increased. On August 2nd, Amilcar Pop, president of the Guatemalan Association of Mayan Lawyers, was attacked and injured by an armed group in the capital city. Amilcar had been part of a support team for the community consultations that have taken place in Huehuetenango, providing crucial legal support to indigenous and peasant leaders. On August 8th, a group of activists en route to an indigenous and peasant rally organized at the border with Mexico were intimidated by a heavily armed man and as security officials. A group of activists heading home after the rally were run off the road by an all-terrain vehicle with darkened windows.

The events of August in Guatemala demonstrate the systematic violence and repression in the region carried out by hired thugs, who find safety in the structure of impunity created throughout the years from the dictatorship times through to today, where democracy is threatened by corporate interests.

We again need your help to call attention to what’s happening in Guatemala. Here are some ideas for how you can become involved:

Write to the President of Guatemala, demanding immediate and effective action so that human rights are upheld in the country. We have updated the letter below so that President Colom knows that we are paying attention to what is happening in Guatemala.
Let your friends know! Send this information to your friends, ask them to take action, and invite them to join the Friends of the Earth International cyberaction network.
Watch a 12 minute video made by Indymedia http://chiapas.indymedia.org/article_157356 (in Spanish) to learn more about the struggle against the cement factory and circulate the video among your contacts.
Listen to a Real World Radio report on a recent mining referendum in Guatemala and tell your friends about it: http://www.radiomundoreal.fm/rmr/?q=en/node/25883
Using the button below, donate to the Friends of the Earth International Solidarity Fund to support ongoing efforts to defend human and environmental rights in Guatemala.

You can read more about the situation here.

Thank you for your support.

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Mr. Alvaro Colom Caballeros
Constitutional President
of the Republic of Guatemala
Central America

Dear Mr. President,

I am alarmed to hear that the violence against indigenous leaders and communities in Guatemala is increasing and intensifying. This situation violates human rights agreements, and contradicts the speech you gave when you were sworn in as president when you said that this is a time “of privileging the poor”.

I have heard about the events of August in Guatemala, including the assassination of Antonio Morales López, the attack on Amilcar Pop, and the terrorization of a group of people en route to an indigenous and peasant rally organized at the Mexican border.

I remain concerned about the actions of your government against the rural communities of San Juan Sacatepéquez. These communities exercised their universally recognized right to community consultation about their environment, in this case regarding the building of a cement factory.

I also know about the pressure exerted by the government police force and the Goldcorp gold mining company on the families of the San Miguel Ixtahuacán municipality in San Marcos. These families are opposed to mining exploitation because it is damaging their land and water sources. They have the right to protest.

Furthermore, I understand that 22 municipalities have expressed their absolute rejection of open pit gold mining in community consultations. These consultations were carried out through both legitimately elected and traditional authorities. However, your government does not respect the outcomes, and is still issuing exploitation licenses in the areas inhabited by indigenous peoples.

I am outraged by the situation in Guatemala. I demand that you put an end to the State of Prevention in the San Juan Sacatepequez municipality and its communities, and that you immediately stop issuing new mining concessions in the country. I also urge you to address the inequality of land ownership in Guatemala, which has led to many conflicts and negatively impacted the country's indigenous communities.

The Guatemalan state must guarantee the rights of its citizens.

Yours sincerely,

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