By Francois Guindon
Rights Action
On September 7th, 2009, some 600 indigenous campesinos from San Miguel Ixtahuacán and other municipalities came to the city of San Marcos to denounce the lack of impartiality in the national judicial system and to denounce the use of the legal system as a strategy of “criminalization of the struggle for human rights” by Montana Exploradora (subsidiary 100% owned by the Canada’s Goldcorp Inc.)
Crisanta Perez is part of the “Goldcorp 5″ whose trial is supposed to begin today.
Crisanta Perez also has other charges pending against her for her participation in previous activities in defense of human and indigenous rights that are being violated by Goldcorp’s open-pit, cyanide-leach mine.
Using the legal system to lay frivolous or fraudulent charges against community leaders (“criminalization for the struggle for human rights”) is a common tool of repression, used to weaken opposition to its mine.
Marching into the Central Park of San Marcos, the demonstrators arrived as Goldcorp’s (Montana Exploradora) lawyers were leaving the court. 15 minutes later, the lawyers flew away in a helicopter over San Marcos.
The day’s protest began with a denunciation of the Guatemalan judicial system.
In a declaration, the Frente de Defensa Miguelense (FREDEMI, whose members are ADISMI, the local parish and the Casa del Pueblo indigenous leadership) declared: “The Mayan Mam people of San Miguel Ixtahuacán [...] denounce that we continue to be submitted to a state of historical exclusion, racism and discrimination that has occurred since the Spanish invasion through to today. Recently, under the influence of neo-liberalist ["development" projects], such as mining activity, we continue being victims of abuse and violence.
Our individual and collective well-being have been taken away by the failure of the State to guarantee our rights.”
“We do not believe in this so-called justice; it serves the interests of a powerful transnational while we are treated like criminals for defending our rights”.
A time of mourning was called for; everyone kept silent. Then, a community leader said: “Rest in peace, western justice. May real justice prevail from now on.” There followed a prayer for peace, respect for Mother Earth and justice for the violations caused by Goldcorp’s operations in San Miguel Ixtahuacán.
Demonstrators pray for justice and Mother Earth in front of the courts in San Marcos.
Lawyers defending the “Goldcorp 5″, and involved in other cases related to Goldcorp’s mining operations, have concluded that judges have not been acting in an impartial manner. Justice cannot by achieved in San Marcos according to these lawyers.
The legal processes were flawed from the beginning and legal procedures and principles are being violated by government and judicial officials.
None of the “Goldcorp 5″ presented themselves before the judges. “In these legal conditions, the only guarantee we have is that we will lose our case,” explained one of the lawyers defending Crisanta and the others. Rather, a motion was submitted, accusing the judge of partiality, in order to pressure for fair legal processes in upcoming cases.
“We are all Crisanta … if she is guilty, we are all guilty of defending our rights.”
