The Dominion - drug war

Militarized Mining in Mexico

dawn — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 10:31:06 +0000

Canadian mining company makes good off the "drug war"

MADERA, MEXICO—On an August afternoon in 2008, Dante Valdez Jimenez was giving a teacher training class in an elementary school in Madera, a small town in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua. But before he got through his lecture, he was interrupted by a group of 30 men, some of them armed.

In the minutes that followed, Valdez was savagely beaten in front of his students. While they beat him, his attackers yelled that he should keep his nose out of other people's business. Valdez was lucky to escape with his life.

Five days later, Amnesty International put out an alert expressing concern for the safety of Valdez, as well as members of a nearby community. The attack was political: Valdez is known for his work against Minefinders, a Vancouver-based company that operates an open-pit gold mine near Madera. Amnesty indicated that among the attackers were employees of the mining company.

“There isn’t a single authority in any of the three levels of government that is looking out for the people who are displaced, for people who have been mistreated or beaten,” said Valdez, his voice quiet and low. He pointed out that there was a classroom full of witnesses to the incident, but there was never an investigation.

The attack on Valdez wasn’t an isolated event, but a brazen reminder of the repression meted out to those who organized against Minefinders, which began operating in Mexico in 1994 on the heels of the North American Free Trade Agreement. The company started construction on a low-grade, cyanide-leaching gold and silver mine near Madera in 2007.

Madera, which means “wood” in Spanish, is situated high in the Sierra Madre mountain range and possesses the rugged air of a logging town. But the area is anything but tranquil: throughout the Sierra Madre, the Sinaloa Cartel, Mexico's most powerful drug cartel, is said to be battling with La Linea, the armed wing of the Juarez Cartel.

According to the official story, at stake are trafficking routes, as well as vast fields where marijuana and opium poppies are cultivated by peasant and Indigenous farmers.

The war in Mexico, often called a “war on drugs,” launched in late 2006, resulting in increased violence and militarization that has spread to municipalities and rural areas all over the country. The northern state of Chihuahua has been particularly hard hit. Since 2008, more than 9,000 people have been murdered in the city of Juarez alone, and massacres against unarmed civilians have taken place across the state.

But in some areas, like Madera, it appears the militarization that’s taken place on the pretext of the drug war has worked in favour of the extractive industries.

Before construction of the Minefinders mine could begin, the historic town of Dolores was relocated to make way for the project, affecting more than 60 families. Locals were not ardently anti-mining, but many felt that Ejido Huizopa, the body which represents communal landholders in the area, was not getting a fair shake.

By 2008, as construction gave way to gold production, tensions between the company and members of Ejido reached a breaking point. That May, after coming to a majority decision in an assembly, members of the Ejido erected a blockade at the mine access route, demanding meaningful negotiations and a better agreement with the company. People working for the mining company were prevented from passing, but soldiers were allowed through the barricades.

Minefinders soon found a way around the protesters, one which didn’t involve sitting at a negotiating table.

“At the blockade, there was always, permanently, soldiers travelling in the company trucks, dressed like civilians, [and] as many as eight company trucks watching the demonstrations, the blockade,” said Valdez. Not only were blockaders intimidated by the presence of soldiers, but the company continued to access the mine, passing through the blockade because they had soldiers in their trucks.

During and immediately following an attack by armed commandos that year on civilians in Creel, a neighbouring village, soldiers and police maintained a continuous presence at the blockade.

“There was an attack on the community of Creel, and 14 people were killed,” explained David de la Rosa, an environmentalist and peasant organizer based in Madera. “The authorities took three days to get to Creel, and the army was here accompanying a peaceful blockade, backing up a company, just two hours away from where this took place.”

The blockade lasted one year and five months, during which time residents say Minefinders co-opted members of Ejido Huizopa through financial incentives and intimidation.

“When the mining company saw that we had a majority of [communal land owners] supporting us, they began to manipulate in a certain way, using the same people from the Ejido to manipulate other companeros, to ensure that we didn’t have a majority in decision-making,” said Luis Pena Amaya, a member of Ejido Huizopa who helped organize the blockade.

As on the blockades, the militarization of the region factored into Minefinders’ ability to win support for their open-pit mine.

“The Federal Police had a presence and intimidated people on many occasions. In the decisive assembly, they took control and surrounded the inside of the salon where we held our assembly,” said Pena Amaya. The intrusion of police into communal decision-making is unconstitutional in Mexico. “When things turned against the other group, which was the group preferred by the mining company, [Federal Police] intervened to ensure that we didn’t exercise our rights.”

Eventually, the Ejido signed an agreement with Minefinders, but problems remain. Last year, a tear in the liner of a heap leach pad, which has yet to be fully repaired, caused leakage of contaminants near the mine site. Environmentalists and human rights organizations in the area confirmed that they fear travelling to the mine site, because the road to the mine is under the control of organized crime groups.

Dawn Paley is a journalist and co-founder of the Vancouver Media Co-op.

Questions? Comments? Drop us a line: info@mediacoop.ca.

Mining In Mexico

US Military Establishes Base in Paraguay

Fri, 23 Sep 2005 09:53:10 +0000

Preparations made to "spread democracy"

The Estigarribia airbase. photo: Clarin

Controversy is raging in Paraguay, where the US military is conducting secretive operations. 500 US troops arrived in the country on July 1st with planes, weapons and ammunition. Eyewitness reports prove that an airbase exists in Mariscal Estigarribia, Paraguay, which is 200 kilometers from the border with Bolivia and may be utilized by the US military. Officials in Paraguay claim the military operations are routine humanitarian efforts and deny that any plans are underway for a US base. Yet human rights gropsin the area are deeply worried.

White House officials are using rhetoric about terrorist threats in the tri-border region (where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet) in order to build their case for military operations, in many ways reminiscent to the build up to the invasion of Iraq. [1]

The tri-border area is home to the Guarani Aquifer, one of the world's largest reserves of water. Near the Estigarribia airbase are Bolivia's natural gas reserves, the second largest in Latin America. Political analysts believe US operations in Paraguay are part of a preventative war to control these natural resources and suppress social uprisings in Bolivia.

Argentine Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel commented on the situation in Paraguay, "Once the United States arrives, it takes it a long time to leave. And that really frightens me." [2]

The Estigarribia airbase was constructed in the 1980s for US technicians hired by the Paraguayan dictator Alfredo Stroessner, and is capable of housing 16,000 troops. A journalist writing for the Argentine newspaper Clarin, recently visited the base and reported it to be in perfect condition, capable of handling large military planes. It's oversized for the Paraguayan air force, which only has a handful of small aircraft. The base has an enormous radar system, huge hangars and an air traffic control tower. The airstrip itself is larger than the one at the international airport in Asuncion, the Paraguayan capital. Near the base is a military camp which has recently grown in size. [3]

"Estigarribia is ideal because it is operable throughout the year…I am sure that the US presence will increase," said Paraguayan defense analyst Horacio Galeano Perrone. [4]

Denials and Immunity

"The national government has not reached any agreement with the United States for the establishment of a US military base" in Paraguay, states a communiqué signed by Paraguayan Foreign Minister Leila Rachid. The US Embassy in Paraguay has also released statements officially denying plans to set up a military base in the country. [5]

The Pentagon used this same language when describing its actions in Manta, Ecuador, now the home of an $80 million US military base. First they said the facility was an archaic "dirt strip" which would be used for weather monitoring and would not permanently house US personnel. Days later, the Pentagon stated that Manta was to serve as a major military base tasked with a variety of security-related missions. [6]

Paraguayan political analyst and historian Milda Rivarola said that, "in practice, there has already been a (US) base operating in Paraguay for over 50 years." The US armed forces have had an ongoing presence in the country, she said. "In the past, they needed congressional authorization every six months, but now they have been granted permission to be here for a year and a half." [7]

On May 26, 2005 the Paraguayan Senate granted the US troops total immunity from national and International Criminal Court jurisdiction until December 2006. The legislation is automatically extendable. Since December 2004, the US has been pressuring Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela and Paraguay into signing a deal which would grant immunity to US military. The Bush administration threatened to deny the countries up to $24.5 million in economic and military aid if they refused to sign the immunity deal. Paraguay was the only country to accept the offer. [8]

Coup Warning in Bolivia

The proximity of the Estigarribia base to Bolivian natural gas reserves, and the fact that the military operations coincide with a presidential election in Bolivia, has also been a cause for concern. The election is scheduled to take place on December 4 2005. Bolivian Workers' Union leader Jaime Solares, and Movement Toward Socialism (M.A.S.) Legislator Antonio Peredo, have warned of US plans for a military coup to frustrate the elections. Solares said the US Embassy backs rightwing ex-President Jorge Quiroga in his bid for office, and will go as far as necessary to prevent any other candidate's victory. [9]

The most recent national poll conducted showed leftwing M.A.S. congressman Evo Morales barely one point behind Quiroga in the race. Solares said there were calls in June 2005 for a military coup during the massive protests that toppled President Carlos Mesa. Recent US military operations in neighboring Paraguay would facilitate such an intervention. [10]

The Bush administration played a key role in the 2002 coup against President Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and the 2004 ousting of Haitian president Bertram Aristide.

The Tri-Border Terror Theory

In March, William Pope, the US State Department's principal deputy coordinator of counterterrorism, said that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed is believed to have visited the tri-border area for several weeks in 1995. Defense officials say that Hezbollah and Hamas, radical Islamic groups from the Middle East, "get a lot of funding" from this tri-border area, and that further unrest in the region could leave a political "black hole" that would erode other democratic efforts. [11]

Military analysts from Uruguay and Bolivia maintain that the threat of terrorism is often used by the US as an excuse for military intervention and the monopolization of natural resources. In the case of Paraguay, the US may be preparing to secure the Guarani water reserves and Bolivia's natural gas. [12]

In spite of frequent attempts to link terror networks to the tri-border area, there is little proof of the connection. However, this did not prevent the US from "liberating" Iraq in 2003. As Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld argued during the debate over weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, "Simply because you do not have evidence that something does exist does not mean that you have evidence that it doesn't exist." [14]

Paraguayan and US officials contend that much of the recent military collaborations are based on health and humanitarian work. [13] However, State Department reports do not mention any funding for health works in Paraguay. They do mention that funding for the Counterterrorism Fellowship Program (CTFP) in the country doubled for 2005. The report explained, ""Bilateral relations between the US and Paraguay are strong, with Paraguay providing excellent cooperation in the fight against terrorism…CTFP provided funds for Paraguayans to attend coups on the dynamics of international terrorism, and the importance and application of intelligence in combating terrorism." [14]

Col. Hugo Mendoza of the Paraguayan army said he's thankful the US military is helping Paraguay meet security threats through the joint exercises. "We're learning new things and working with new equipment and the latest technology which we would not be able to afford otherwise." [15]

Journalist and human rights activist Alfredo Boccia Paz, said, "These missions are always disguised as humanitarian aid…What Paraguay does not and cannot control is the total number of agents that enter the country." [16]

Meanwhile, neighboring countries have not warmly received the news of the military activity. The Chilean Communist Party demanded that Paraguayan President Nicanor Duarte "reconsider and cancel" recent military deals with the US as they are "extremely serious for Latin America." [17]

In Paraguay, human rights and activist organizations have mobilized against the military activity. When Donald Rumsfeld visited the country in August, protesters greeted his entourage with chants such as, "Rumsfeld, you fascist, you are the terrorist!" as a military band welcomed him by playing the "Star Spangled Banner". [18]

Benjamin Dangl has traveled and worked as a journalist in Paraguay and Bolivia. He is the editor of www.TowardFreedom.com, a progressive perspective on world events and www.USdeDownWorld.org , an online magazine about activism and politics in Latin America. To read more of his articles, go here Email: ben (at) USdedownworld.org

Sources:

Benjamin Dangl, "What is the US Doing in Paraguay?" USde Down World, 8-01-05 http://USdedownworld.org/US-in-Paraguay.htm

Alejandro Sciscioli, "US Military Presence in Paraguay Stirs Speculation", Inter Press Service, 8-4-05 http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/116435/1/

Claudio Aliscioni, "Los marines de EE.UU. ponen un pie en Paraguay" Clarin, 9-11-05 http://www.clarin.com/suplementos/zona/2005/09/11/z-03615.htm

Sciscioli

Mary Donohue and Melissa Nepomiachi, "Washington Secures Long Sought Hemispheric Outpost," Council on Hemispheric Affairs, 7-20-2005
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article9541.htm

Sciscioli

Dangl

US Encouraging Military Coup in Bolivia, Prensa Latina 9-13-05
http://www.plenglish.com.mx/article.asp?ID={5FC
4E7C4-49A3-4BCD-A796-08441FD72BEE}&language=EN

US Encouraging Military Coup in Bolivia, Prensa Latina 9-13-05

Josh White, RUSeld, in Latin America, Voices Democracy Concerns, Washington Post 8-17-05
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/16/AR2005081601288_pf.html
Joe Pappalardo, South America Hotspot Garners US Attention, National Defense Magazine, 6-05
http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/issUS2005/Jun/uf-south_america.htm

Raúl Zibechi, South America's New Militarism, Foreign Policy in Focus, 7-18-05
http://www.fpif.org/fpiftxt/165
Juan Alfaro El Pentagono Logro Instalarse en el Cono Sur, Portal Alba, 7-15-05
http://www.alternativabolivariana.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=257

Duarte: There will be no US military base in Paraguay, EFE, 8-30-05 http://www.mexico.com/notimexico/?method=una&id=4459&lang=eng
Jim Shultz, Bush Brings the False Intelligence Game to South America, USde Down World, 9-6-05 http://www.USdedownworld.org/shultz-bolivia.htm

Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Foreign Military Training, US Department of State, 5-05 http://www.state.gov/t/pm/rls/rpt/fmtrpt/2005/45677.htm

Donna Miles, RUSeld Wraps Up Paraguayan Visit, American Forces Press Service 8-17-05 http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Aug2005/20050817_2471.html

Sciscioli

Chileans Demand Duarte Cancel Dangerous US Military Agreements, Prensa Latina, 8-30-05 http://www.plenglish.com/article.asp?ID=%7
B383AA974-DB73-4300-B170-E36511639F13%7D)&language=EN

Bill Weinberg, Paraguayans Protest RUSeld, World War 4 Report, 8-23-05
http://www.ww4report.com/node/971
Al Giordano, RUSeld Booed in Paraguay, Narco News, 8-17-05
http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2005/8/17/18316/7090

Estigarribia airbase photo from article by Claudio Aliscioni, "Los marines de EE.U.U. ponen un pie en Paraguay" Clarin, 9-11-05 http://www.clarin.com/suplementos/zona/2005/09/11/z-03615.htm

UpsideDownWorld's Ben Dangl investigates the how and why of the new US presence in Paraguay.

Destruction or development: the war on drugs in Afghanistan

Thu, 27 Jan 2005 09:37:56 +0000

At the insistence of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the U.S. has agreed not to follow through with a planned aerial spraying program intended to eradicate opium production in Afghanistan. In November, the Bush administration raised its drug-busting budget in Afghanistan from $130 million to $780 million with $300 million earmarked for eradication programs, half of which was to fund the aerial spraying of opium fields.

Habibullah Qaderi, the newly appointed counter-narcotics minister, cited that taking away the livelihood of farmers would lead to security problems in certain parts of the country. While re-stating the Afghan government's committment to halting cultivation, Qaderi insisted that the economics behind the country's opium problem must be taken into consideration.

In providing 87% of the world's opium and heroin derivatives, Afghanistan has become economically dependent on the drug trade. Opium crops yield ten times the income of traditional crops for growers, contributing $4 billion in profits in 2004 (amounting to 60 percent of the country's legal economy) and employing 2.3 million people, with up to 30% of households dependent on the cultivation of opium for their income.

Because of this dependency, the Afghan government is concerned that while spraying programs may slow the trade in the short term, it will only do so at the cost of leaving a large portion of the population without a livelihood. Without international aid money to subsidize alternative sources of income, he stated, security problems would inevitably arise. And with local and parliamentary elections scheduled for this spring, the issue of security is weighing heavily on Karzai's government.

From the perspective of the U.S. government, however, the drug trade in Afghanistan is also a source of income for Al Qaeda and Taliban elements still operating in the country, making the war on drugs also part of the war on terror. While concerted efforts have been made to train an Afghan police force to cut off the drug trade, counter-narcotics personnel are severly understaffed, and with international troops in the country without a drug enforcement mandate, Afghan resources are stretched impossibly thin.

Experts point to a more widespread, if lower profile, problem associated with opium cultivation in Afghanistan. With addiction rates in neighboring countries like Pakistan and Iran significantly higher than average, the death toll from AIDS and drugs in the region will ultimately far exceed deaths from terrorist acts. U.S. recognition of this aspect of the opium trade has been slow in coming. With only 10% of narcotics arriving in the U.S. coming from Afghanistan, it wasn't until the U.N. declared the country at risk of becoming a narco-state that the U.S. administration raised its committed funds to $780 million.

The only other country named a narco-state is Colombia, where the U.S. government spent over $2 billion between 2000 and 2003 on a similarly designed program with mixed results. Despite large-scale eradication, coca production in the country has remained steady, to the extent that two grams of cocaine bought in the U.S. are now one fifth the price in 1981. While Colombia government officials have lauded the program as a "resounding success", the Washington Office on Latin America dubbed the war on drugs in the southern hemisphere a failure.

Ustina Markus, an analyst writing for ISN Security Watch, fears that the Afghan aid package may suffer a similar failure. "Given that a massive aid package had little impact on stopping the Columbian drug trade," Markus writes, "the prospects for Afghanistan are not good."

With doubts surrounding the potential of short-sighted eradication programs as an alternative solution, analysts are stressing that a long-term, well thought out committment to economic recovery will be the most effective means to halting the cultivation of opium in Afghanistan. But while farmers are unlikely to voluntarily stop growing opium without some kind of financial incentive, subsidies for legal crops could cost more than forced eradication in a country where long periods of drought make alternative crops difficult to grow, and where roads, irrigation networks and markets have been devastated after decades of war.

While finding a means to developing alternative sources of income for Afghan farmers may prove a difficult task, the consequences of failing to do so are relatively simple. Abdul Wahid, a former opium producer who switched to traditional crops after officials told him to "wait and see", states, "If we get help, maybe it's gone for good. If not, we'll plant again."

Nathan Lepp

» Christian Science Monitor: Crop spraying draws controversy in Afghan drug fight

» Eurasianet: Afghanistan's antidrug minister vows action but says farmers need aid, alternative incomes

» ISN Security Watch: War, drugs and the war on drugs

» Sydney Morning Herald: Quality drugs, by the kilo