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Resistance to Mining in Guatemala & Honduras - Fall 2009Indigenous and Popular Resistance to Gold Mining in Guatemala & Honduras Rights Action Speaking Tour, Fall 2009 Join us to hear Karen Spring, a volunteer with Rights Action who has been working for the past two years with communities in Guatemala and Honduras, supporting them in their resistance efforts against extractive resource firms that are mining in their communities. Following Karen's multimedia presentation, Professors Shin Imai and David Szablowski will provide comment on the related indigenous rights and transnational regulatory issues. We welcome a diverse audience to contribute to the discussion. This event is endorsed by the Nathanson Centre on Transnational Human Rights, Crime and Security, SPINLAW, and the Center for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean. Key issues and questions we hope to address include:
BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Rights Action has worked in and supported grassroots indigenous and campesino movements in Guatemala, since the 1980s, and in Honduras since Hurricane Mitch devastated the country in 1998. One issue it has worked on, over the past years, is supporting local resistance to the environmental and health harms, and the human, indigenous and land rights violations caused by global mining companies, particularly the Canadian gold mining giant Goldcorp Inc., that operates open-pit, cyanide-leach mines in Honduras and Guatemala. In their work, Rights Action pays particular attention to the policies and actions of the governments of Canada and the United States that directly support North American resource extraction companies like Goldcorp Inc. During his time at Osgoode, Shin Imai has served as Director of the Intensive Program in Aboriginal Lands, Resources and Governments, Co-Director of the Latin American Human Rights Research and Education Network, Academic Director of the Intensive Program in Poverty Law at Parkdale Community Legal Services, and as Director of Clinical Education for the Law School. His research interests are Aboriginal law in Canada, indigenous rights in Latin America, alternative dispute resolution and clinical legal education. Professor Imai received Osgoode's Excellence in Teaching Award in 2004 and 2007. As a professor in the Law and Society program, David Szaslowski works in the areas of globalization and the law, and socio-legal studies, specifically domestic, international and transnational legal authorities. Having conducted research in across Latin America, in 2007 he published Transnational Law and Local Struggles: Mining, Communities and the World Bank. He has lived and taught in the Horn of Africa and has recently been engaged in a project examining the operationalization of emerging transnational norms requiring informed consent or consultation for extractive industry development on indigenous territory. Global Economic Governance & The IMF- Winter 2008 Mr. Jonathan Fried Executive Director for Canada, Ireland and the Caribbean at the International Monetary Fund “Global Economic Governance: The IMF in Turbulent Times” Tuesday, January 22, 2008 Mr. Fried is a distinguished senior public servant who has served as Senior Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister Paul Martin and Associate Deputy Minister at the Department of Foreign Affairs, among other key portfolios. Formerly a Visiting Professor at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, and Adjunct Professor at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, Georgetown University Law Center and Carleton University, Mr. Fried has also served as a member of the Inter-American Juridical Committee, and as its Chair in 1996. Legal Empowerment of the Poor - Fall 2008 The International Legal Partnership (ILP) at Osgoode Hall Law School and the Canadian International Council (CIC) present: Dr. Naresh Singh Frm. Executive Director, United Nations Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor “The 'Legal Empowerment' Model for Global Poverty Reduction: A Viable Progressive Agenda or Just Another Model for Development?” Wednesday, September 17, 2008 6:00 – 8:00pm Faculty Club, University of Toronto 41 Willcocks Street Toronto, Ontario M5S 1C7 Tel: (416) 978-6325 Currently, four billion people are excluded from the benefits and protections provided by the rule of law. Poor people around the world, live, work and operate in the informal sector, vulnerable to exploitation and corruption. Though their livelihoods may fulfill basic daily needs, their efforts rarely flourish into thriving enterprise or long-term security, thus the persistent problem of global poverty. Dr. Naresh Singh has spent the past two years working with a diverse team of experts to pioneer an approach to development. Through his work with the UN Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor, co-chaired by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Dr. Hernando de Soto, Development Economist and President of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy, Dr. Singh has worked with 21 Commissioners and 16 Advisory Board members to conduct 22 national consultations with representatives from local governments, academia, civil society and grassroots movements. These efforts have resulted in a model for development that focuses on improving the internal dynamics of countries to serve as a complement to existing international aid efforts. The Commission's final report, “The Way Forward: Making the Law Work for Everyone” argues that by expanding legal protection, more citizens develop an increased stake in the maintenance of a peaceful social order and the stability of the local government. It identifies four crucial pillars which must be central in national and international efforts aimed at the legal empowerment of the poor: access to justice and rule of law, property rights, labour rights, and 'business rights'. Is this a viable 'way forward' for poverty reduction or is it just another model for development?  |
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