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Cornerstone and ENAMI violating court ruling?

*Cornerstone CEO, Brooke Macdonald. Video still*

This blatant violation of the law is in keeping with statements by Cornerstone Capital Resources CEO Brooke Macdonald when he stated at the recent shareholder meeting in Toronto, Canada on June 25^th: "We will follow the law, but this decision of this lower court in Imbabura is subject to appeal, and we believe that the lower court erred in law and is incorrect… If we lose the appeal then we'll be out of there." [emphasis added]

Ecuadorian organsisation Observatorio Minero Ambiental & Social del Norte de Ecuador (OMASNE) denounced the activities on 10^th July, saying the mining companies have “failed to comply with judicial rulings” and that they now “continue to conduct mining exploration illegally in the area of influence of Los Cedros Protective Forest”. [full denunciation by OMASNE below]

OMASNE go on to say that Cornerstone Resources continues to sign agreements with landowners to conduct their exploration efforts in the Los Cedros Protected Forest, and insists that Cornerstone withdraw their activities from the area in accordance with the court's ruling.

MiningWatch Canada states: “This most recent decision is yet another example of the sovereign decisions that communities and courts are making in the country, falling on the deaf ears of the company.”

The judges in the provincial court of Imbabura ruled on June 19 that there had been a violation of mining-impacted communities' right to be consulted, and revoked the previous sentence of November 2018 in which the Action of Protection was discarded. They also forced the Ministry of Environment and Water to publicise the ruling and formally apologise to the impacted communities.

Los Cedros was established in 1988 as a biological and scientific reserve with the help of the Rainforest Information Centre. It consists of 17,000 acres of incredibly rare, premontane wet tropical forest and cloud forest, and numerous critically endangered and vulnerable species, including puma, jaguar and the rare Brown-Headed Spider Monkey.

OMASNE’s statement (translated by Roo Vandergrift, Marrow of the Mountain) follows:

[OMASNE DENUNCIATION] #JusticiaLosCedros

The mining companies #Cornerstone and # ENAMI-EP continue to conduct mining exploration ILLEGALLY in the area of influence of Los Cedros Protective Forest.

Cornerstone and ENAMI-EP attempt to gloss over the violation of the right to environmental consultation, which has already been determined in the ruling by the Provincial Court of Justice of Imbabura on June 19 of this year.

But, at the hands of the Ecuadorian state, for more than a decade mining companies have been deploying an invasive propaganda of "Legal, Responsible Mining"; however, once again mining companies have VIOLATED THE RIGHTS OF THE ECUADORIANS and failed to comply with judicial rulings favorable to the defense of the Water, biodiversity, and the rights of humans and nature in different territories of the country.

The Provincial Court of Justice of Imbabura, in the sentence issued in numerals 2 and 4, clearly indicates the violation of the right of the Environmental Consultation to the communities of the area of influence of the mining project and also that it resolved to withdraw the environmental license to the mining companies for operate:

2.- Declare the violation of the right to participation, established in Article 61, paragraph 4, of the Ecuadorian Constitution, in the guarantee of the environmental consultation established in article 398 ibidem, which should have been carried out to the peoples located in the area of influence of the Magdalena River Mining project, conformed by the Magdalena River 01 concessions (Code: 40000339) and Magdalena River 02 (Code: 40000340), located within the Protected Forest "Los Cedros", Llurimagua sector, García Moreno parish, Cotacachi canton, province of Imbabura.

4.- As a measure of reparation is available, leave without effect the act administrative dispute, consisting of Resolution No. 225741, dated December 12, 2017, in which the Ministry of Environment and Water, granted the environmental registration in favor of the National Mining Company ENAMI EP, to perform the initial exploration phase of the Magdalena River Mining Project, conformed by the Rio Magdalena 01 concessions (Code: 40000339) and Magdalena River 02 (Code: 40000340), located within the Protected Forest "Los Cedros", sector Llurimagua, García Moreno parish, Cotacachi canton, province of Imbabura

What does the Ecuadorian Ministry of the Environment expect? Them to comply with the judgment of the Court?

Where are the state institutions that must regulate the mining activity to bring order and prioritize the Court's decision in which the right of Ecuadorians is given priority?

Are the local and provincial authorities going to pronounce themselves in this respect and govern in favor of the people of Imbabura?

Note: This piece was edited to correct Cornerstone's CEO and where the shareholder meeting took place.

Los Cedros court win

The judges in the provincial court of Imbabura ruled that there had been a violation of mining-impacted communities' right to be consulted, and revoked the previous sentence of November 2018 in which the Action of Protection was discarded. They also forced the Ministry of Environment and Water to publicise the ruling and formally apologise to the impacted communities.

Most importantly, the environmental license for ENAMI/Cornerstone and BHP to conduct explorations has been revoked, which means they can no longer legally trespass on the area.

This win throws into disarray the future of mining companies in this highly biodiverse water-source part of Ecuador. It is the fifth time in just over one year that judges in Ecuador have ruled against extractive industries in protected areas based on the lack of community consultation.

*Brown-headed Spider Monkey. Photo: David Ni Castro*

The judges travelled to Los Cedros in April to see the reserve for themselves, and to interview locals about the operations of the mining companies in the area.

The ruling has helped to set a precedent for protection of Protected Forests at a national level. The requirement that immediate reparation is made makes the ruling historical as well.

The Ministries of Environment and Water must also offer public apologies to the communities affected, with apologies to be published in a national newspaper as well as on the front page of its website, for a period of three months.

*Jose DeCoux, administrator of Los Cedros. Image credit: La Hora*

José DeCoux, administrator of Los Cedros, celebrated the decision, saying "We are glad that the Court has taken into account our complaint, which spoke of the lack of a consultative process... It is not the first time that we have faced a mining company here in the reserve, and we have left with conservation leading. It is a historical failure [for the mining companies]."

José believes those in governance need to obey the rule of the Constitution. "They must learn that the correct steps must be followed before they issue a mining concession. They must seek approval from the people who will be affected by such a concession."

He says that a recent ruling in Quito, by the Constitutional Court, that denied the request for consultation in the sector of Cascabel, in Imbabura, Carchi, was for procedural reasons.

"The popular consultation request was badly prepared. We think that we can develop a good one, with lawyers that are experts in constitutional law," José says.

However, the battle is far from over. The court’s ruling on mining in Los Cedros was primarily on the grounds that communities in the region were not properly consulted about the environmental license given to the National Mining Company for initial explorations.

Other defenses, which included references to Constitutional Law around the rights of Pachamama, human rights to clean water, and the forbidding of metals mining in protected forests, were not included in the final ruling. This means the other 41 mega-diverse protected forests covered by mining concessions are still at risk.

Ecuador, meanwhile, is pushing brazenly ahead with its plans to become a ‘mining country’. Last month, a Presidential Decree was introduced changing the national mining laws to dramatically weaken legal requirements for prior and informed consultation. While Ecuador’s constitution remains a safe harbour for activists, with its strong focus on human and nature rights, the real battles from now on are going to be at the level of local and regional courts, where proceedings are routinely corrupted by pro-mining interests.

On this basis, the Rainforest Action Group’s focus is currently on establishing a Legal Fund to help those on the frontline get hearings at the constitutional level, and to obtain expert representation in court. Other donations will go to resource production and distribution, and community mobilisations and actions both in Australia and Ecuador.

Click here to donate to the Ecuador Endangered Crowdfund. For tax deductibility, donate here.

Mafia gunfight over Rinehart concession

At least 19 people were injured in a twelve-hour shoot-out between rival organised crime gangs in Hanrine's lucrative gold mining concession in northwestern Ecuador. The gunfight near Buenos Aires killed an unknown number of people, with bodies reportedly hastily buried or dumped down mine shafts where the confrontation took place. A truck transporting local residents and some of the wounded from the area also overturned, injuring 15.

The gunfight took place on Imba 2, a mining concession owned by Hanrine, a subsidiary of Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting, where an illegal mining enterprise has been operating since December 2017.

Thousands of miners from Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela and other countries descended on the site when gold was discovered in late 2017. As many as ten thousand people have since moved into the area to mine for gold.

Rival mafia gangs have been vying for control of the lucrative trade since early 2019. Tens of millions of dollars in gold has left the site to be processed in the south of the country, with onground sources suggesting that police officers have simply watched truck drivers pay approximately $50,000 in bribes to move each load of gold material.

The newcomers have caused serious problems for the residents of Buenos Aires, with reports of violence, drugs and prostitution in the town. In May, local residents blockaded the main road into the mine after locals were threatened by armed men.

The illegal operation and resulting violence are damaging the hopes of Australian companies that Ecuador would prove to be a safe mining haven. Solgold, operating in the country since 2011, is hoping to construct Cascabel, one of the largest copper mines in the world, only 15km north of the recent violence. Australian miners Newcrest and BHP have a 25% share of Solgold.

Local newspapers have reported that local mafia are using the mining base near Buenos Aires as a launching place to establish new illegal mines in the region. Two such illegal operations with hundreds of miners, have been shut down in the past few months by Ecuadorian authorities. One of these was on another Solgold concession.

The Ecuadorian Government has effectively lost control of the Imba 2 concession. This loss represents a major embarrassment to the Government who are trying to attract mining investment into the country. If this dispute remains unresolved it could mean that mining concession owners such as Hanrine may have to take legal action against the Ecuadorian Government, or leave the country entirely. It would appear that the north of the country is too volatile to establish mining operations.

The Rainforest Action Group has been monitoring and researching miners in Ecuador for over a year, and we know that this news is frightening investors. We need to keep the pressure on these companies and remind investors that there is no way to regulate their activities in such fragile, socially disadvantaged and mega-biodiverse areas. Where there is mining, there will be violence, human rights atrocities and ecocide.

New mining policy

"This constitutes a deepening of extractive policy in Ecuador and a violation of individual and collective civil rights, especially the right to previous consultation, as communities have not been consulted regarding the award of concessions in favour of mining companies. The consolidation of the extractivist model will contribute to increased violence towards affected communities, evidencing the continuity of mechanisms aimed at prosecuting, criminalizing and prosecuting people, leaders and social organizations who have been resisting for many years." says a report by CEDHU (Ecuador’s National Human Rights Commission). Read the report here (in Spanish).

The new regulations will result in more protests and resistance by communities, and repression on the part of the government; not to mention widespread and permanent environmental degradation. According to environmental activist Carlos Zorilla, these changes mean "the government will try to severely limit the scope and reach of FPIC for indigenous peoples and environmental consultation for everyone else, by trying to illegitimately regulate it to death".

Over 200 species facing extinction would be impacted if even one gold or copper mine is allowed to go ahead in Intag. These policies would be particularly concerning in areas where communities are already battling mines such as Intag's Llurimagua project, which this year received recent damning reports from the Comptroller’s investigation and the National Ombudsman’s Office; and the Loma Larga mine, another embattled area close to several large Australian concessions.

Already 15% of the country has been sold in mining concessions, with 7.5% already having some form of mining activity.

Fernando Benalcázar, Vice Minister of Mining, says that one of the important points of the new mining action base is the promotion of research and development, especially to determine the real potential of 33% of the national territory, where large deposits can be seen that can be exploited in the future. "You can not become a mining power like Canada or Australia without studying and investigating the possibilities that we have. That does not mean that the entire 33% of the territory will be exploited in the future," Benalcázar said.

"In the previous government, basic guidelines were developed for the period 2016-2020, under the context that Ecuador was considered a potential investment destination. But since 2018, we went from potential to consolidation as a formal investment destination. Now the large mining companies worldwide are already investing in the country and it is important to have a consistent policy," he said.

Ecuador's new loan with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been a key impetus behind changes to the mining policy.

On April 24, 2019, President Lenín Moreno ordered the issuing of a new State Mining Policy through Executive Decree 722, which has six axes: sectoral planning, investments, prior and popular consultation, efficient and sustainable management, combat to illegal mining and tax benefits. These axes fundamentally seek greater articulation among Ministries, foreign investors and sectors of civil society, while increasing investment with tax benefits such as tax exemptions and elimination of others, making the rules for granting of permits and environmental licenses more flexible, and regulating free, prior and informed consent. The Government has also included the Fruta del Norte and Mirador mining projects, located in Zamora Chinchipe and Loma Larga in Azuay respectively, in its mining investments plan that forms part of the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) Agreement.

This new Executive Decree is part of changes at a level of law known as 'organic law' (código orgánico), one step higher than common law and one step lower than constitutional law. Such laws cannot over-ride the constitutional laws regarding previous consultation, environmental protection, citizen rights, or the rights of nature. So if a case reaches the constitutional court, the Ecuadorian Government has a high chance of losing. The government may be hedging its bets on the premise that most grassroots land protection cases will lose and run out of funds for appeals long before they ever get to the Supreme Court level.

CEDHU states that "the new announcement to regulate the consultations by decree is illegal; because it aims to regulate a constitutional right, violating the principle of reservation of law, and because it is a clear contradiction to judicial decisions and voices of regional populations who have demanded an end to extractive activities".

"According to research conducted by Martín Zorrilla et al (2018), our country has the greatest biodiversity in the world. The threat of extinction for part of this biodiversity has increased dramatically since April 2016, when the Government opened around 13% of the country to mining exploration, with many concessions covering previously protected forests. Given that more than 30% of the total area designated as Protected Forests (Bosques Protectores) is included in the new exploratory mining concessions, forest area will be significantly reduced if exploration or exploitation occurs. Most concessions are located in the hyper-diverse zone of forests and water sources."

CEDHU press release, May 2019

Taking cases to the constitutional courts, either singly or as a class action, will be a key part of this resistance. International activists can support the grassroots fight in Ecuador through an ongoing legal fund for Ecuadorian front line communities.

The Rainforest Action Group is working to create and support this legal fund. At present, we are continuing to take donations via the Rainforest Information Centre’s Ecuador Endangered crowdfund, which has sent around $20,000 to Ecuador since the campaign was started in 2017.

DONATE TO THE LEGAL FUND HERE

Illegal mining in Imbabura

Since December last year, groups of three, five or ten men, with or without experience, have been arriving in this territory. Their dialect identifies to which region of the country they belong. They declare themselves as good people and assure me that faith moves them to help them reach this mountain about 2,300 meters above sea level.

"Our life is more important than the mine, so we take care of ourselves and try to avoid selfishness, envy and greed for gold that could cause acts of violence," said one of the "inhabitants" of this new town formed of plastic tents.

Those with the most expertise in mining are from Portovelo, Zaruma (El Oro). They have used from a tradition of artisanal mining, long before the Spaniards arrived at the Yellow River in 1549.

The adverse conditions on the site end any illusions with the same promptness with which they arrive. Some families who arrive with their young children leave that afternoon or the next day.

The fatigue from the trip, the cold nights in Buenos Aires (Urcuquí), the scarcity of food, the discomfort of sleeping in spaces that previously served as hallways, corridors and rustic rooms that have been abandoned, shapes the character in ways it did not previously.

Professionals, transporters or merchants who came to the province previously paid $10-$15 per month for a room. With the discovery of the gold mine, the costs have increased to $5 -10 dollars for 24 hours.

The chatter of strange visitors outside on the street corners and in tents does not stop all the night. On the other side of a wall built from adobe or wooden planks, insomnia overcomes fatigue. I get up from the floor that served as bed and start walking the streets. I stop a few minutes to listen to the endless conversations that reflect the economic situation. It is at least, novel to hear the simple man of the town discussing his mode of investments, profits, losses, transportation, food, tools, the price of gold, the situation of his family, as well as the convenience of continuing on or saying goodbye forever.

As soon as dawn begins, and before undertaking their pilgrimage, miners must pay the owner of the house the agreed value. They hurry out to the small square surrounded by improvised tents that house products for sale. A column of four-wheel-drive trucks, mostly new, also occupies the small streets of the parish.

Rubber boots, a water poncho, a pick, a shovel, a lever, a bar, a sledgehammer, an iron point, a kitchenette, gallons of fuel and a sack of provisions, are part of the equipment that allows these miners to survive in unknown territory.

The driver's scream alerts travellers, as they fill the double cabin and the tray with 15 passengers. The miners leave the town and take a road fraught with adverse conditions. In an hour and a half of travel, avoiding narrow stretches, quagmires, gorges and bridges, the truck arrives at the last stop.

"We're here!" warns the assistant. Immediately a man of unwavering stubbornness approaches: "To pass sir, you have to pay a toll of $2 and if you want to return with cargo, you must wait in turn with 40 vans," he warns. The driver pays without problem: "Right now there is enough for everyone," he says smiling. His daily profit is up to $200. The majority return with loads of 40 60-pound sacks. The cost of passage is $2 dollars per sack, plus passengers. The persistent rain, the slippery path, dangers, are nothing in the face of gain.

Already hemmed in by mountains, in an open field are about 200 structures made from black plastic secured onto a frame of timber in the shape of an archaic house. A quagmire of mud covers the street where the dealers of one of the most expensive metals in the world - gold - stroll.

It is common to see hands carrying wads of $100 bills that seduce small miners. On either side of the street are thousands of jute sacks filled with rocks or 'betas', as they call the material, from which four or five grams of gold are extracted after processing. When bargaining with a show of cautious words, I notice that in this place there is no trust, everything is is calculated and paid for in cash.

People buying in for the first time have to work out how to find the destination. Nobody is willing to waste time to go into details. With an initial greeting they say: "Look at the end, there are miners digging the holes. You have to walk two or three hours."

The first stretch of the trial extends for about two kilometers of muddy road, and shows the toughness, dexterity and strength needed to walk one step after the other. The strength of one person is not enough to recover boots soaked in mud. The help of other pilgrims also starts the beginning of dialogue and respect between unknown Ecuadorians.

Clambering up a second knoll converted into another transfer post where hundreds of workers have erected 150 black plastic tents, takes you to prison camps with prisoners doing forced labor. In this royal scene, the heroes are the carriers who, with dirty clothes and injured shoulders, carrying hundreds of sacks from one pulley to another.

As organized as forest ants, they barely have time to raise their heads and answer: "Before, between December and January, we earned up to four dollars per sack; today we do the same job for one dollar. There are plenty of people here who pray for this hard work."

On each pulley there is a command post controlled by hardy, suspicious, distrustful people who watch out the corner of their eyes. They believe that police or military intelligence agents have infiltrated amidst the strangers. "We are careful in giving information, pictures, photographs or videos. We know that they are investigating, because we recognize that it is illegal work, but they must understand that nature has given work to 6,000 people, behind each of whom is a family. President Moreno offered 300,000 jobs per year, but 10 months into his term, unemployment is equal to or worse than before," says a miner as he places the material on the pulley.

The raw gold material that is moved night and day, in about 70 pulleys, winches or cables; the black plastic tents that house the sacks; food businesses in which a rice with chicken costs $3-4 dollars, depending on the cut desired by the client, are all part of this ghost town that survives on greed, amid selfishness and ambitions.

"There is no law here, only God for those who believe. The strength of stupid or good people is regulated by the need to live together," says a mulatto from Tumaco.

The testimony of those who prefer not to identify themselves confirms that this is a parish with high rates of poverty and unmet needs. They profess an end of conflict with the institutions responsible for security and public order who would act after a situational review.

"We lived on milk products, cheese, naranjilla and tree tomato, products that intermediaries bought at low prices. To have an idea: a large cheese was worth 1.50 and a liter of milk 0.25 cents, at farm level," he says.

There is no signal from the telephone operators. To communicate with their families, miners must queue at one of the few booths that provide this service at the parish head.

The mountain El Lomón is losing its quietness, the aroma of the native trees of guayacán, chonta ... the small springs of pure water, the delicate and natural trill of the birds, the oxygen accumulated for millions of years. The contamination has already started. They do not have septic tanks, people do their business in the middle of the native plants. The aroma of the wild trees is disappearing. In only two months, one smells the stink at a safe distance. This is a health issue that no one knows how to remedy.

The invasion came at an unexpected time. "Before Christmas I went to the village. At the end of the week when I returned hundreds of people had broken the fence of some 60 hectares of cattle pastures. There were so many that I could hardly complain. They told me they were going to pay, but only some have given me 50 cents when it occurred to them, " said Primitivo Andrade, a 75-year-old man whose face and clothes reflects his poverty.

The first day they discovered the mines, the miners knocked down dozens of trees with chainsaws, axes and machetes, and created an opening about two kilometers across to enter the mines.

Groups of five to ten men erected their plastic tents in the same place as the excavations, from where they extract the rocks with splinters of gold. At only three meters deep they found the 'betas'. That day, cries of overflowing happiness were heard that shook the mountain.

Since then, thousands of people, including businessmen, carriers, sellers, merchants, businessmen, among others, arrived in that corner of Urcuquí.

Those from Portovelo and Zaruma are more numberous and have the most experience. They help guide others whose ambition for gold has made them reckless. With a bar, sledgehammer, an iron point and a lever, they make holes wherever they want, without the slightest precaution to avoid a landslide that could bury everyone.

The miners say in the beginning shippers earned up to $800 per week to move the material 100 meters from the mine to where pulleys of air transport were placed. A pack of cigarettes cost between $4-5 until competition came and now prices have gone down, according to a Venezuelan migrant who walks among the trees accompanied by a nice and slender woman.

In the air you can see about 80 cables that carry the sacks of rock to the market. The route is about five kilometers by air. The freight is $11-12 dollars per package. A sack in the mine costs $20, and when it leaves Buenos Aires it is calculated at $38 dollars.

The noise of the small engines that drag the pulleys back and forth starts at dawn and sometimes stops at 2am , for a few hours.

The gold material is transported in trucks to Zamora Chinchipe, Zaruma and Portovelo for refinement with appropriate machinery.

In the last year, more than 45 miners have been arrested including merchants, intermediaries, drivers, workers and up to three soldiers who were carrying around 250 sacks of gold material in an armored truck.

The cases are in the Prosecutor's Office and in the courts. So far, only one person has been sentenced, the rest of the trials remain to be heard. Meanwhile, the miners ask the government to help them by legalising the mines for Ecuadorian families who do not have a job.

The invasion, artisanal mining, pollution, trade and transport continue every day. Nobody knows how and where they continue to evade controls to reach the provinces of El Oro, Loja and Zamora, among others.

Take note

Legalisation, labor security and health care are, for now, the demands of the Ecuadorian State.

The neoliberal agenda in Ecuador

Lenín Moreno. Image credit: Alberto Romo/Asamblea Nacional

The richest and most powerful in Ecuador do not like to pay taxes. That is why now, after 10 years, the elites have a new ally: Lenín Moreno. His submission to the pressures of big capital has meant that in one year of management he has moved away from the role for which he was elected, instead promoting the return to laissez-faire tax with a new bill.

This has been achieved with the support of mass media and questionable political alliances, and speeches on the fight against anti-corruption. However, the "cirugía mayor" (major surgery) to the State has ignored one of the major problems affecting the country: tax avoidance and evasion.

Of the tax debt to the Ecuadorian State totalling 4,379 million dollars, 51% ($2,228 million) belongs to the 170 most powerful economic groups in the country, with the 25 main groups owing a total of $2,005 million. These groups represent less than 1% of taxpayers.

Due to 512 ghost companies, which reported sales of $2,129 million dollars, the State has lost 655 million between 2010 and 2016 through methods such as false invoicing or contraband.

As Juan Paz and Miño Cepeda explain in their book on the History of Taxation in Ecuador, this is nothing new and goes back to the creation of the State in the 19th century. "The concentrating social layers of economic power have always led resistance to state intervention in the economy and its leading and regulatory role in taxes," they point out. The objective is always clear: to not pay taxes.

"We were used to ten years of a public policy that was elusive to the productive sector," said Richard Martinez in 2017, as president of the Ecuadorian Business Committee (CEE); now the new Minister of Economy and Finance. But what Martínez implied is that the government of the Citizens' Revolution got the business sector used to paying only just enough.

With one of the most progressive tax systems in the region, tax collection tripled from 4,600 million dollars in 2006 to 14,000 million in 2016. In the same period, indirect taxes went from 65% of the total collected to 53%, with a fiscal pressure that bordered on the average of the region.

Now they hope to benefit from a remission scheme of tax debts announced by the government that will end up benefiting the richest. Pablo Iturralde, Director of the Center for Economic Rights (CDES), explains that around 90% of the tax expense, arising from other types of tax exemption, is aimed at 10% of the highest decile.

It is a principle that starts from an elitist conception which becomes neoliberal, fusing together concepts of privileges and rights. Anti-national and anti-populist elites believe they should be treated in a privileged way with better benefits, to the detriment of the rest of society.

According to a study by the Pichincha College of Economists between 2000 and 2016, a tax avoidance of 28% was registered, that is, approximately 4.5 billion dollars that did not enter the State coffers. An amount that could have made two hydroelectric projects similar to Coca-Codo Sinclair, 1000 schools 'del Milenio' or 22 hospitals of the Ecuadorian Institute of Social Security (IESS) of a similar size to 'Los Ceibos'.

But no, this money ended up in the pocket of those who own more yet do not want to contribute. So, if corruption is the act of corrupting and transgressing the laws in pursuit of one's own benefit, isn't tax evasion an act of corruption, especially when this money needs to be hidden somewhere?

Tax haunts, euphemistically called paradises, are territories where these elites and transnationals hide their money to avoid paying taxes in their own countries. Between 2014 and 2016, Ecuadorian companies sent more than 4.700 million dollars to these dens.

According to CDES estimates, only 17% of what the country loses through the use of these mechanisms is due to corruption; the remaining 83% is due to tax evasion and avoidance; tricks that by their costs and complexities can only be funded by the economic elites.

"So, really there is a very perverse game of businessmen, political leaders and media, all evading taxes through shell companies," says Pedro Brieger, journalist and director of the news agency of Latin America and the Caribbean (Nodal).

As of 2014, 59 economic groups in Ecuador owned 174 companies in tax shelters, information that was removed from the official SRI website on May 22, 2018, as reported by the Observatory of Economy and Labor.

Even more regrettable is the fact that until 2016, Ecuador was a world leader against these corrupt mechanisms. The Correa government put forward a proposal for the creation of an international UN agency that would provide "clear, democratic and fair rules" to end these havens. In addition, they hoped to democratically approve a Popular Consultation that would prohibit public officials from having capital in these territories.

Since then, none of the anti-corruption figures have mentioned continuing this fight. Instead, now it is these elites that promote the discourse of the alleged anti-corruption, and in turn make up the groups of 'notables' who dictate national ethics. That is one of the results of Moreno's first year.

In turn, the current president has filled his ministerial cabinet and advisors with said representatives of economic elites and the chambers of commerce to guide this process.

Some of these include Minister of Foreign Trade, Pablo Campana, son-in-law of Isabel Noboa, and executive president of the Nobis Consortium; Carlos Andretta, general director of the National Customs Service of Ecuador, former director of corporate affairs at Cervecería Nacional; Raúl Ledesma, Minister of Labor, a part of the Chamber of Tourism of Guayas; Eva García, Minister of Industry and Production, who was in the Chamber of Commerce of Guayaquil and the World Trade Organization (WTO); and Carlos Pérez, Minister of Hydrocarbons, from Halliburton. But the jewel in the crown is the new Minister of Economy and Finance.

Martinez, a member of the Ecuadorian Business Committee (CEE), represents the interests of the largest companies in Ecuador (30% of GDP). His position in this entity was neoliberal, advocating less taxes, less State and less regulation; what he summarises as: "less is more". Now he will direct Ecuador's economic policy and will have the means to do so.

In a grand finale for the business elites, on May 24 the draft Organic Law for Productive Development, Attraction of Investments, Employment Generation and Stability and Fiscal Equilibrium was presented.

"Like its ideological parents, the Trole 3 Law modifies laws that address Tributes, Public-Private Partnerships, Monetary Code, Social Security of the Police, Labor Rights, Public Finances, Oil Contracts, Public Companies, Territorial Organization, Special Development Zones, Municipal Cadastres, Closed Bank Debt, Reactivation Law, among others", explain economists and analysts of the Observatory of Dollarization.

The legal body in tax aspects, proposes the elimination of income tax rises, waiving of income tax for eight to ten years for entrepreneurs who invest in the country, the gradual elimination from 2019, of the tax on removing foreign currency from Ecuador, and waiving of income tax for three years for new microenterprises. That is: tax benefits for the richest.

Thus, in one year of misgovernment and manipulation, Ecuador again morphs into a society where rights do not prevail, except for those who own more. The economic and tax policies of Moreno and the economic elites will not progress towards a path of equity, but on the contrary: towards a renewed laissez-faire tax.

Direct actions at IMARC

Environmental groups and human-rights defenders argued against the increase in global development, particularly against mining in protested forests and on Indigenous land. The Melbourne Rainforest Action Group (MRAG) was joined by the Latin American Solidarity Network, Mapuche-Aboriginal Struggles for Indigenous Land and FrontLine Against Coal for three actions that took place over the week. Protestors say they were concerned at the ongoing impact of mining especially in the wake of the IPCC report on climate change, with speakers damning the inaction of government and corporations to take the report seriously.

“We are particularly concerned at the global escalation of mining in the headwaters of the Amazon and key forests in Ecuador, where Australian mining companies are taking the lead in the push for mining exploration for copper, gold and rare earth minerals,” a member of the Melbourne Rainforest Action Group says.

“It’s like the Wild West, with BHP, Hancock and SolGold all vying for position. Our contacts in Ecuador have been increasingly worried at the presence of mining exploration teams in protected reserves, where their presence has been impacting on extremely rare and endangered species.”

Allan Mogerema, a youth leader from the Paga Hill community in PNG, and star in the recently released film “The Opposition”, said the wholesale land grabs by Australian multinationals in his country had impacted massively on his community, many members of which are now forced to live in camps and on the streets of Port Moresby.

“For decades Papua New Guinea has been on the frontline of extractivism, in particular mining. The impacts of this have include desecration of sacred sites, poisoning of waterways, rape of women by mine security and the wholesale land grabbing of Indigenous lands,” Allan says.

Mega-mining in Ecuador: the dream of a naive milkmaid

The fable tells the story of a milkmaid on her way to market carrying a pitcher full of milk on her head. On the way, she was thinking about what she would do with all the money she would receive from selling the milk: she would buy chickens that, when raised, would multiply and could be sold and, then, buy a pig, which after caring for it with great dedication, she could sell to buy a cow, and, in this way, continue to expand her business. But so distracted was the naive milkmaid thinking about her future that she stumbled on the road and her pitcher broke, along with all her ambitious hopes for progress.

Although this legend is only fiction, the milkmaid’s story seems a true economic- political projection of what awaits Ecuador if it continues to swallow the discourse that mega-mining will generate huge revenues, rescuing the country from "underdevelopment". In fact, mega-mining is for Ecuador the equivalent of a broken pitcher that offers hope that will never come, just like what happened with the naive milkmaid.

We say this because the discourse that mega-mining will generate large revenues for the country is more an illusion than a reality: beyond any propaganda, even official projections offer very poor revenue projections. Worse yet, such an illusion is perversely unrealistic in view of all the social and environmental costs that must be extracted through a surrender to transnational mining capital - capital that disguises its true intentions under the banners of "progress" and "development".

The lies behind progress

Alberto Acosto. Political economist, ex-minister of Energy and Mining, former president of the Constituent Assembly, and former candidate of the Presidency of Ecuador.

The political discourse of "development" has always been useful to cover up the most petty interests. Historically, blinded by the hopes of "development", impoverished societies have undertaken lugubrious projects, without measuring the material or human environmental losses that these entail. Perhaps the very desperation that "underdevelopment" generates leads thousands to accept as valid, projects that, in the end, only benefit a few in exchange for the spilt blood of innocents.

One of these dismal projects is mega-mining exploitation, which is falsely sold as a ladder to reach "development" [3], but is only an instrument that enriches transnational capital: capitals that leaves a wake of environmental destruction and serious social conflicts. Examples of this situation are numerous. Perhaps one of the continents that has lived it the most is Africa [4]: just think about the Marikana massacre in South Africa - provoked in 2012 - that involved the mining company Lonmin Platinum [5]; or the participation of the mining company Lundin Gold in the bloody civil war of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the late 1990s, as well as its collaboration in South African Apartheid and its complicity in crimes against humanity in Sudan. [6]

But mining devastation is not limited to Africa. Latin America has also suffered in the name of "development". Just one example: according to the Observatory of Mining Conflicts in Latin America, at the time of writing of this article, in the region there are some 246 mining conflicts, associated with 141 cases of criminalization of social protest. Among the countries with the greatest levels of conflict are Mexico, Chile and Peru (each with 40 or more), followed by Brazil and Argentina (with more than 25 cases each), then Colombia, Honduras and Bolivia (between 9 and 15). cases), later Ecuador, Nicaragua and Panama are located (with about 7 cases each) and the list goes on [7].

Added to these conflicts distributed throughout Latin America are numerous environmental disasters, such as the tragedy caused by the rupture of the dam of the mining company Samarco, in Minas Gerais, Brazil, which caused the death of 19 people, the loss of hundreds of nearby houses, along with the spill of 32 million cubic meters of mining waste [8] (a situation for which BHP Billiton, the largest mining company in the world, was responsible). As in the example of Minas Gerais, or the case of the "mining arch" promoted to the south of the Orinoco, in Venezuela [9]), there are many other cases of environmental destruction caused by mining in Latin America [10], most of which are accompanied by a wild corruption, characteristic of extractivism [11] that, when combined with a dependent capitalism, has contributed to regions like Latin America and Africa "being poor because they are rich... in natural resources".

The legacy that mining - and extractivism in general - leaves in impoverished societies shows that the mega-mining incursion into Ecuador does not have an encouraging future. Not even in economic terms.

Perhaps in other social and environmental dimensions mining is an alternative for Ecuador given the arguments - especially economic and political - which are injected into the debate. But in reality, and as this paper shows, the mining aspirations of the country are nothing but the ravings of an economic elite - that will never give benefits to the great majority - instrumented by large transnational companies that will end up with their hands muddied with blood and crime.

The mining expansion between neoliberalism, Correísmo and Morenismo

The beginning of mega-mining in the Ecuador can be dated to between the 1990s and the beginning of the 2000s, driven by a strong neoliberal impulse both in legal terms and external financing, and an incursion of foreign capital (particularly capital focused on exploration activities).

As a result of neoliberal support for mining, in 2007 the concessionary areas for this activity came to cover 20% of the national territory (approximately 5,626,751 hectares) [12].

With the arrival of Rafael Correa to the presidency in January 2007, along with the Constituent Assembly that began sessions in November of the same year, it seemed that the mega-mining advance in the country would come to an end, but it was not to be. An ephemeral possibility of stopping this mining advance was experienced with the issuance of Constituent Mandate no. 6 in April 2008 (known as the Mining Mandate). This mandate extinguished mining concessions that, for example, did not comply with obligations established in the law or affected water sources or protected areas. But within days of issuing said mandate, as noted by Sacher (2017), Correa and several ministers met with representatives of Canadian transnational mining companies - and the Ambassador of Canada - to assure them that the Government would promote large-scale mining activity in the country. (Sacher, 2017, p.165).

As a result, the Correa government made the respective legal modifications (including the creation of a new Mining Law in 2009) to allow transnational mining activity to continue in the country [13]. Paradoxically, this legal, political - and even police-military [14] - support that the Government granted to mining was combined with an attempt to reposition the State in the sector through the reversion of mining concessions, which caused the concessionary areas to be reduced to 4.5% of the national territory in 2011 (approximately 1'210,000 hectares) [15].

Although the position of the Correa government was paradoxical, when it became Correísmo [16], its turn in favor of large transnational mining interests was completed. So much though, that mining became one of the axes of Ecuador’s so-called "productive transformation." In fact, when comparing targeted "priority" sectors for economic transformation, it is noted that mining was not in the initial plans of the government, and was only included in the 2013 National Plan for Buen Vivir, or Good Living [17]. That is to say, in the first seven years of Correa's government, mining was not presented as a priority sector; but after securing power --remember that in February 2013 Correa was re-elected - the mining sector became an explicit priority (a similar reading could be made, for example, to the announcement of the Yasuní exploitation made by Correa a few months after being reelected. in 2013 [18]).

At the end of the Correísmo the mining expansion accelerated. In April 2016, the Correa government reopened the mining cadastre, that is, it reopened "the possibility for mining companies to claim new areas of the national territory for mining concessions" (Sacher, 2017, p.174). Thanks to this reopening, according to official information [19], 160 new mining concessions were delivered in 2016. But if the mining path of Correísmo was marked, the Government of Lenín Moreno has been even clearer in its efforts to deliver the country to mega-mining interests. Only between December 2016 and all of 2017, 275 additional new mining concessions were delivered [20].

Such has been the maelstrom of the 21st century mining feast that, despite the fact that on December 11, 2017 the Moreno government agreed with the indigenous movement to suspend the delivery of more concessions [21], between December 12 and 29, 69,856 new hectares were concessioned in the same year [22]. And in the midst of that Morenista mining expansion the participation of big transnational capital remains intact [23].

Between the Correa and Moreno expansions, we see that if we add all the mining concessions already delivered between 2016-2017 (around 435) with those concessions that at the time of writing this article would be in process (more than 430), the total area destined for mining would reach 15% of the national territory (approximately 3,901,956 hectares according to estimates by William Sacher in January, 2018). Faced with such expansion (laden with enormous illegalities), social movements (especially the indigenous movement) generated significant social pressure that led to the resignation of the Mining Minister (who was already a minister during Correísmo) [24], in addition to pushing the Comptroller to audit several mining projects [25]. In summary, beyond the speeches and the "dialogues", the mega-mineral expansion continues either with Correísmo or Morenismo (and in a very dark way [26]).

Small profits, selling out, and unacceptable costs

According to information presented by William Sacher in November 2017, there are 27 main mining projects active in Ecuador (the majority initiated during the neoliberal period). Of these projects, five show a considerable advance that led them to be qualified by the Correa government as "strategic projects" (implying that the government would give them greater emphasis and support in comparison to other projects). The official information of these "strategic projects" which we have collected from different press releases, is shown in Table 1. In the table it is observed that from the projects, Fruta del Norte, Mirador, Loma Larga (Quimsacocha) and Río Blanco, the State would expect to obtain by taxes, royalties, etc,. about $2,856 billion, while the estimated investment would reach $2.793 billion. In the case of Panantza-San Carlos, according to statements made by the then Minister of Mining in 2016, it would take four years to determine if the ore is economically viable.

It should be noted that there are multiple versions of how much revenue mining could generate the country, which really obscures the scenario. For example, according to estimates presented by the Ministry of Mining in October 2017 [27], for the period 2017-2021, mining is expected to generate $ 4.599 billion of foreign investment - of which one billion would supposedly be invested in 2018 [28], fiscal revenues that would reach 1.326 billion dollars, around 25 thousand jobs (4,100 direct and 19,600 indirect) and a share of GDP that would reach 4% by 2025 [29]. On the other hand, estimates made in 2012 indicated that when the five "strategic projects" are in the exploitation phase (including Panantza-San Carlos), they would generate $784 million of average annual state revenues from royalties [30].

All these figures are crumbs compared to an official estimate of May 2011 according to which the country's mining reserves would represent 270 billion dollars [31] (a figure that, by the way, seems more like a "milkmaid's racket" aimed to cheer up international financial markets that speculate on the potential profits of transnational mining capital).

Source: Ministerio de Minería. Proyectos Mineros Estratégicos, Noviembre 2016. Catálogo Minero.

These figures leave much to be thought about regarding the true profitability of mining for the Ecuadorian State.

Just to give an example, if you assume as real the estimate made in 2012 that, on average, each year the five major mining projects could generate $784 million in state revenue, it turns out that this annual amount would not even cover the cost of monthly salaries of the non-financial public sector, which between January and November of 2017 reached an average of $818 million per month (in this period, some $9 billion were spent on salaries).

Whether the estimate of the annual income that the State would obtain through royalties when all the "strategic projects" are in the exploitation phase (which would not cover even one month of salaries of the non-financial public sector), or weather these estimates of tax revenues to be obtained between 2017-2021 from, we reiterate, about $1.326 billion (which would not represent or 25% of the collection of VAT made between January and November 2017, which totaled $5.464 billion), it turns out that the revenue offered by mining to the country is extremely small.

In fact, it would be much more profitable to increase income taxes for the primary economic sectors of the country: according to information from the Internal Revenue Service, in 2016 a mere 215 economic sectors obtained $57.993 billion in income, but only generated a tax on the income of $1,325 billion, that is, 2.29% of total earned income.

If the income tax on these economic groups is increased by 1.35%, the same annual amount of tax revenue would be obtained as the estimated revenue from mining royalties. Another idea: there are estimates [32] that show that if in 2015 a ceiling of $3000 had been placed on the 38,700 public employees who then earned a remuneration equal to or greater than that limit, it would have saved $623 million per year, an amount that would cover almost 80% of the expected annual income from mining royalties. The list of examples that show how tiny the potential revenue that mining would generate are innumerable.

A wild surrender: the pitcher was always broken

When reviewing the myth of an extremely profitable mining industry in Ecuador, a mandatory question arises: Why such low profitability? Well, maybe the answer is that the mining pitcher has a structural break: a wild capitulation to transnational capital. As evidence of this surrender, we find several tax incentives for extractivist activities in general, and for mining in specific.

In effect, as Carlos Zorrilla points out, "during the last four years of Correísmo, several laws were modified and others were created with the aim of attracting transnational mining investment at all costs" [33]. Within these modifications, according to official information [34], the following is mentioned:

Benefits in income tax

For all extractivism: A tax rate of 22% is proposed with an exoneration of its payment to any new investment during its first 5 years of operations, in addition to exempting companies from the advance of said tax (for the calculation of the advance, expenses for generation of new employment, improvement of productivity and technological innovation, among others). Deductions are also included to encourage productivity, innovation and eco-efficient production, in addition to a 100% deduction for depreciation and amortization of machinery, equipment and technologies aimed at these purposes. Likewise, the tax rate on the amount destined to reinvest in productive assets is reduced by 10 points and several benefits are included to open capital of companies in favor of their workers and deductions of 100% of the cost of hiring new workers for five years for new investments (assuming that this implies support for economically depressed areas).
For mining: In addition to the above benefits, an accelerated straight-line amortization - between 5 and 10 years - of costs incurred by mining concessionaires to access mineral reserves and to build or improve state infrastructure is proposed.

Benefits in value added tax

For all extractivism: Exoneration for exported goods and services.
For mining: In addition to the above, since 2018 a 0% tariff is proposed for gold acquired by holders with a marketing license. Likewise, in mining exports, the tax paid for the periods corresponding to January 1, 2018, will be reimbursed.

Benefits in tax stability

For all extractivism: Tax stability for the maximum time of any investment contract. The income tax, the exit tax, and the value added tax are frozen. This benefit applies for a minimum investment of more than $100 million and payments of 25% of the income tax.
For mining: A previous benefit is granted to any investment in medium and large-scale metal mining, regardless of the minimum investment or any other requirements [35].

Other benefits

For all extractivism: exoneration of the tax on the exit of foreign currency to companies that carry out external financing operations. Possibility of including in the investment contract the contractual commitments necessary for the development of the new investment.

In addition to these incentives, Ecuadorian mines will produce raw metal, that is, with impurities. For example, the copper concentrate produced at Mirador will have approximately 30% copper, 60% other minerals and 10% water [36].

Since Ecuador does not have metal refineries, refining will be done in China, Europe or North America, where most of the profits will remain.

Likewise, the State grants mining companies large indirect subsidies: in construction and maintenance of roads, especially for transportation to and from mines, as well as construction of other public infrastructure for the benefit of private mining companies (for example, the construction of Puerto Cobre and of connection routes for Chinese mining company ECSA); in financing - with debt - the construction of hydroelectric power plants to provide energy at low prices (note that the mines are large consumers of electricity that can be obtained directly with various state benefits or with preferential rates); and in not claiming compensation for the loss of existing productive activities. In addition, there are many cases where companies do not pay for water, even when they consume it in huge quantities [37].

Regarding taxes, even if the government wishes to collect them, large mining companies manage to avoid them or evade their payment using several mechanisms well known by extractivism: several transnationals present in Ecuador use subsidiaries registered in tax havens, such as those of the Cayman Islands or the Virgin Islands [38]; transfers of prices, expenses and benefits; modification of balance sheets and account statements; etc. (See Sacher, 2017, pp.148-149). In short, mining companies are experts in hiding their real income to minimize taxes: "This has been shown, for the Chilean case, by Orlando Caputo, an expert on mining issues, who was Salvador Allende's representative on the Executive Committee and General Manager of Codelco" (Acosta 2009, p.97). To make matters worse, in many cases the countries of origin of large mining companies offer them various benefits. For example, Chinese companies receive incentives from their government such as: advantages in fiscal and financial terms, subsidies, low interest loans from large state banks, and even diplomatic support (Sacher, 2017, p.85).

With such surrender against transnational capital, in addition to the tricks that it uses so much to evade the payment of taxes, it is clear why large-scale mining does not promise large revenues for Ecuador.

Thus, returning to our analogy of the milkmaid who aspired to progress with her milk pitcher that ended up shattered, even though the mining pitcher promises great revenues with which the country could "develop", the reality is that this wild surrender to transnational capital assures that any mining revenue will be spilled without the need to - like the milkmaid - stumble on the road.

But the problem of mega-mining is even more complex because, even if the income for Ecuador were really significant, such activity would still prolong the country's suffering from the multiple pathologies of the curse of extractive wealth [39]: vulnerability to external shocks; recurrent economic crises; deterioration of the terms of exchange; aggressive indebtedness; impoverishing growth; import consumerism; absence of productive transformations; submission of the state to transnational capital; a police state focused on criminalizing the anti-extractivist resistance; concentration of wealth; widespread poverty and inequality; structural heterogeneity; environmental deterioration; the proliferation of corruption and rentier "mentalities"; weak governance and institutionality; widespread voracity in many important social actors that coexist with authoritarian governments; conflict that can happen even in civil wars or wars between neighboring countries (as seen repeatedly in Africa).

To these pathologies are added others specific to mega-mining like: waste and destruction of existent resources in affected zones (for example, affectation to rural agricultural activities, crafts and community tourism); deterioration of the environment with net loss of natural resources; impacts of the presence of powerful companies that even deterritorialize the State; among many other pathologies that affect both the life of the human beings and Nature and that are not substitutable by any sum of money (following the idea of "super-strong sustainability" [40]).

Social and environmental costs of the false mining promise

Besides the fact that mega-mining is a broken pitcher that offers false promises of "progress", the social and environmental costs that it generates - beyond the mere economic dimension - are very serious.

On one hand, the mine workers themselves continually denounce their precarious working conditions, the pollution of the environment, the hoarding of water, and the generation of housing shortages, among other complaints. Also, they receive low wages and many are disabled after repeated accidents, besides suffering from serious pathologies such as pneumoconiosis (mineral dust in the lungs) and hearing loss (deafness). To this is added untimely job dismissals, an aggressive and often violent stance with unions, and even harassment for union membership. As a result, the confrontations of workers with the police and security guards are frequent and violent, sometimes involving the deaths of workers.

On the other hand, there are recurrent conflicts between mining companies and communities located near the mines (which suffer permanent police and military aggression). Moreover, the inhabitants of such communities suffer from serious illnesses such as respiratory, skin and eye diseases: with health care costs of cure that are not paid by companies. We can also add the multiple displacements of entire communities in order to cede territories that allow mega-mining activity to be carried out.

For examples of the social and environmental costs described above, and that mega- mining has already generated in Ecuador, we can look to the cases associated with each of the five "strategic projects" already underway in Ecuador (which, unbelievably, were legally registered while already in their respective exploratory phases, a stage that supposedly - according to the industry and the government - does not generate major impacts).

Fruta del Norte: The project is located very close to the "La Zarza" wildlife reserve and is located on land used by mining companies without the consent of the local population, and has caused the displacement of communities and water pollution. [41] This project even allowed transnational investors to profit from stock market speculation during the sale of the project from Aurelian to the Canadian company Kinross, before Kinross sold its stake to Lundin Gold [42].
Mirador: Only with the execution of this project, 326 million tons of waste would be extracted, implying around 3,260 million dollars in estimated remediation costs (Sacher and Acosta, 2012, p.76). Besides that, it would generate 6 times more waste per day than the capital city of Quito and would contaminate, per day, the amount of water equivalent to Ibarra's consumption (the project is next to 227 water sources). In this project there are serious social problems such as the use of violence to evict populations [43], demolitions of homes, restricted access to the area, permanent surveillance, precarious working conditions [44], and even the assassination of anti-mining leaders like José Tendetza [45].
Quimsacocha: For each day of execution of this project, some 3,000 tons of materials will be moved, equivalent to "15 times the daily garbage collection of the city of Cuenca". Such removal of materials would seriously contaminate the water sources of that city (Acosta and Sacher, 2011) [46].
Río Blanco: The project is within the Molleturo-Mollepongo Protected Forest, and forms part of the buffer area for Cajas National Park and the Biosphere Reserve of Macizo del Cajas. Apart from endangering these reserves, the project would affect several water sources that supply the provinces of Azuay, Guayas and El Oro [47].
Panantza-San Carlos: The violence deployed in this project includes the militarization of the territory, declarations of martial law, confrontations with Shuar communities (resulting in the death of a policeman), the persecution of community members, the violent displacement of populations such as Nankintz [48] (This conflict occurred in the midst of the violent evictions of the population), the potential deterioration of 414 water sources, and even greater environmental deterioration than in Mirador [49].

Along with these problems - and in addition to the assassination of José Tendetza- clashes between communities (especially the Shuar community, one of the most affected by projects such as Mirador or Panantza-San Carlos) and State forces have recently led to the deaths of Bosco Wisuma and Freddy Taish [50] among other people. We are also seeing an increase in illegal detentions, like the case of Javier Ramírez in Intag (where the Llumiragua project is located). He was detained for 10 months accused of "rebellion" [51].

If all these social and environmental impacts were not enough, it should be added that environmental remediation expenses are not assumed by the large mining companies, but end up becoming liabilities assumed by the communities; liabilities that, many times, are not even accounted for in an adequate manner (even though such expenses can amount to billions of dollars [52], which makes the economic viability of several mining projects questionable).

We see, in short, that behind the farce of "progress" that mega-mining offers, hides a whole history of "blood and fire."A history where, on the one hand, there are innocent people who are violated, trampled, and criminalized with all the might of State power - only because they struggle to survive. On the other hand, there are transnational investments, particularly Chinese, that, with the support of the State, continue to expand their search for power through the extraction of miserable bits of metal.

An anti-extractivist sentiment wasted (or betrayed?)

On February 4, 2018 the government of Lenin Moreno called a referendum. Question 5 of this referendum asked the following: "Do you agree to amend the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador so that metallic mining in all its stages, in protected areas, intangible zones and urban centers, is prohibited without exception, in accordance with the provisions of Annex 5?"

Within Annex 5 it was basically proposed to modify article 407 of the Constitution to include the prohibition of "all types of metallic mining in any of its phases in protected areas, urban centers and intangible zones".

According to official results, the vote in favor of this question reached 68.62% of the total valid votes [53]. While both the approach to the question and the result obtained at the polls seem encouraging, in reality things are more complex. In fact, Question 5 of the popular consultation of 2018 was just a warmed-over question that really does not strike any new ground [54]. It turns out that Article 407 of the Constitution already indicated that "the extractive activity of non-renewable resources is prohibited in protected areas and in areas declared as intangible zones." In turn, Article 28 of the mining law indicates that mining can not be carried out in urban areas. Thus, Question 5 of the consultation did not accomplish anything.

If it really wanted to address the environmental risks posed by mega-mining, the Moreno government would have included the prohibition of metallic mining near water sources, headwaters of rivers, páramos, protective forests, wetlands and fragile areas, and especially biodiverse areas as proposed by several organizations of civil society and the indigenous movement [55].

In addition, the consultation could have asked about the immediate prohibition of forced displacement of populations caused by mining, as well as demanding the application of Article 117 of the mining law, which imposes the expiration of mining concessions where there is evidence of violation of Human Rights (even the consultation could extend that article to also take into account the violation of the Rights of Nature). Also, why was non-metallic mining - the main problem in the case of urban areas - neglected? And what should happen with rural population centers located within mining concessions?

Evidently, if the consultation had gone beyond the watered-down mining question of February 4 the Moreno government would have guaranteed itself a long battle with the large transnational mining companies operating in Ecuador. The Moreno administration never really wanted stronger mining regulation. Why? Well, remember that it was the government itself that accelerated the mining concessions despite agreeing to the contrary with the indigenous movements in December 2017 (which we mentioned earlier). In addition, note that on October 3, 2017, Ecuador was honored at the Annual Outstanding Achievement Awards of Mines and Money Americas 2017 in Toronto, Canada, as the Best Country of the Year in mining development "for being the most attractive nation for investors in the mining sector"[56]. To that "victory" are added several announcements - with great fanfare - of new investments by transnational miners in 2018 [57].

If the consultation has practically no effect and Ecuador maintains its mining strategy, why was Question 5 included on February 4? Because the purpose was purely electoral: it tried to add incentives to motivate a majority support for the whole referendum.

In addition, it should be added that - paradoxically - a bigger blow to mining interests was achieved through the repeal of the "law of surplus value" (Question 6): it turns out that said law included a reform provision in which mining companies benefited through the exoneration of the payment of taxes for extraordinary income for 48 months after recovering their investment. By repealing the "law of surplus value", this benefit in favor of mining companies was at risk.

The Moreno government ended up demonstrating the level that it would capitulate to transnational mining interests: it proposed, as "compensation", to eliminate the tax on extraordinary income for mining companies, in addition to deeming "temporary" the suspension of concessions that Moreno negotiated with social movements in December of 2017. Such a position, together with the real effects of Question 5 of the popular referendum on mining, show that a popular anti-extractivist sentiment was definitely wasted when it was used for the sole purpose of Morenismo gaining strength in its arm wrestling with Correísmo, but without that popular feeling affecting the transnational mining interests.

To dispute an (anti) mining future

The idea that "the mining sector is the future of economic development for the country" [58] are nothing but a false promise that, in the name of "development", seeks to push us towards an activity that will only be profitable for transnational interests and not for the country. But the question does not stop there, because mega-mining has been imposed in our lands by "blood and fire", completely trampling human beings and Nature. Without doubt, mega-mining is a perverse chimera that still fools the masses even through popular consultations.

Understanding this, there is nothing left but to continue fighting for an anti-mining future. Although the task is very complex, there are rays of hope: the result of the February 2018 consultation may be an indication that there could be a popular anti-extractive sentiment in the country. Sadly such sentiment has been betrayed by Morenismo, which will continue to deliver the country to the big mining companies, just as Correísmo did.

If the political power brokers have fractured anti-mining popular sentiment, it must be recovered and galvanized to publicly expose the real intentions of the perverse mining chimera, which is but one of the many extractive chimeras: those that offer "development" , but in essence are predators. And they have to be, because their father is a predator par excellence: capitalism, a system that survives by preying, through exploitation, on all forms of life, and while killing them slowly - without any remorse - screams progress!

Thus, there is nothing left but to continue fighting for, from below and from the left, alongside the Pacha Mama, an anti-mining future for our country, unless we want it to end up being preyed upon again.

Notes:

[1] Economista ecuatoriano. Ex-ministro de Energía y Minas. Ex-presidente de la Asamblea Constituyente. Ex-candidato a la Presidencia de la República del Ecuador.

[2] Economista ecuatoriano. Profesor de la Universidad Central del Ecuador y de la Escuela Politécnica Nacional.

[3] Algunos datos para el debate sobre el efecto de la “minería” en el “desarrollo” se los puede encontrar en el artículo de Carlos Zorrilla: “La minería y su verdad incómoda”, La línea de fuego, enero 9 de 2018.

[4] Respecto al caso africano, parece existir evidencia estadística del vínculo entre actividades mineras y violencia (desde protestas hasta conflictos armados). Ver al respecto el artículo de Berman et al. (2017): “This mine is mine! How minerals fuel conflicts in Africa ”, American Economic Review, 107(6), pp.1564-1610. De todas formas, dentro de África existen importantes matices sobre el vínculo extractivismo-violencia, como parecería observarse en el caso de Botsuana, como se menciona en el artículo de Gemma Roquet: “ Botsuana: ¿milagro africano? ”, El Orden Mundial en el S. XXI, enero 25 de 2018.

[5] Ver el artículo de South African history Online: “Marikana Massacre 16 August 2012”.

[6] Para algunos detalles adicionales del papel de la minera Lundin se puede revisar el libro de William Sacher (2017): Ofensiva megaminera china en los Andes. Acumulación por desposesión en el Ecuador de la “Revolución Ciudadana”. Quito: Abya-Yala

[7] Ver el mapa de conflictos mineros del Observatorio de Conflictos Mineros de América Latina disponible en: https://mapa.conflictosmineros.net/ocmal_db-v2/conflicto

[8] Ver el artículo de Semana: “Un año después de la tragedia minera más grande en la historia de Brasil”, noviembre de 2016.

[9] Ver el artículo de El Nacional: “Los estragos del Arco Minero”, febrero 25 de 2018.

[10] Algunos breves ejemplos se pueden ubicar en el artículo de Contexto Latinoamericano: “La devastación ambiental de la minería en América Latina”, junio 20 de 2017.

[11] Sobre la corrupción asociada a los extractivismos se puede revisar el artículo de Alberto Acosta y John Cajas Guijarro: “Cruda realidad. Corrupción, extractivismos, autoritarismo”, Rebelion.org, agosto 23 de 2017.

[12] Para una breve reseña sobre los inicios de la minería en el Ecuador -y la reacción de los movimientos sociales anti-mineros- se recomienda el artículo de Alberto Acosta y Francisco Hurtado Caicedo: “ De la violación del Mandato Minero al festín minero del siglo XXI ”, Rebelion.org, julio 30 de 2016. Asimismo, se puede revisar el trabajo de Sacher (2017). También se puede revisar el libro de Alberto Acosta (2009): La Maldición de la Abundancia . Quito: Abya- Yala.

[13] Reiteramos que mayores detalles en estos puntos se los puede obtener del trabajo ya citado de Acosta y Hurtado Caicedo (2016) así como el de Sacher (2017).

[14] Para una evidencia gráfica del apoyo policial-militar que el gobierno de Correa dio a la minería -en particular para desplazar a poblaciones enteras- se puede ver el video publicado por el colectivo Minka Urbana: “¿Qué harías tú si venden tu casa a empresas mineras?”, disponible en: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1mYLAc3wfI

[15] Al respecto se puede ver el trabajo de William Sacher y Alberto Acosta (2012): La minería a gran escala en Ecuador. Análisis y datos estadísticos sobre la minería industrial en el Ecuador . Quito: Abya-Yala.

[16] Para una conceptualización del correísmo se puede revisar el artículo de Alberto Acosta y John Cajas Guijarro (2016): “Dialéctica de una década desperdiciada. Estridencias, orígenes y contradicciones del correísmo”, en el libro Rescatar la esperanza. Más allá del neoliberalismo y del progresismo, Barcelona: Entrepueblos.

[17] Para una comparación de los sectores incluidos en las diferentes propuestas de “transformación productiva” correístas y la inclusión -a última hora- de la minería, se puede revisar el artículo de Pablo Ospina: “Ecuador: el nuevo período de gobierno y el cambio de la matriz productiva”, Informe de Coyuntura, Comité Ecuménico de Proyectos, julio de 2013.

[18] Ver el artículo de El Ciudadano: “‘El mundo nos ha fallado’, dice presidente Correa al anunciar el fin de la Iniciativa Yasuní-ITT”, agosto 14 de 2013.

[19] Ver página 7 de la presentación del Ministerio de Minería titulada: “Ecuador... From Promise to Reality” disponible en: http://www.mineria.gob.ec/pdac-information/

[20] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Las concesiones mineras ocupan 15% del territorio indígena, según dirigentes”, enero 9 de 2018.

[21] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Tras cita con Conaie, Lenín Moreno detiene concesiones mineras”, diciembre 11 de 2017.

[22] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Inscripciones mineras continuaron”, febrero 2 de 2018.

[23] Apenas como ejemplo se puede citar la adquisición hecha por la canadiense Lucky Minerals de casi 55 mil hectáreas conteniendo unas 12 concesiones mineras, tal como señaló el artículo de Yahoo Finance: “Lucky Minerals Establishes a Strategic Foothold in the Heart of Ecuador’s Prolific Mineral District”, febrero 20 de 2018, disponible en: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/lucky-minerals-establishes-strategic-foothold-120000105.html

[24] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Aceptan renuncia del Ministro de Minería Javier Córdova Unda”, enero 30 de 2018.

[25] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Ecuarunari pide extinguir concesiones mineras tras ganar el Sí en la consulta”, febrero 6 de 2018.

[26] Algunos ejemplos de cuán oscura ha sido la expansión megaminera, que van desde atropellos a pequeños mineros informales hasta entregas irregulares de concesiones, se recomienda el artículo de Plan V: “La bomba de tiempo minera”, febrero 20 de 2018.

[27] Ver la presentación del Ministerio de Minería: “ Ecuador... From Promise to Reality ” de octubre de 2017.

[28] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Inversión minera sería de $ 1.000 millones en 2018”, diciembre 16 de 2017.

[29] Ver el artículo de El Telégrafo: “Minería generará $ 8 mil millones en 2025”, septiembre 20 de 2016.

[30] Ver el documento de la Corporación para la Promoción Proactiva de Inversiones INVEC (2012): “ Oportunidades en el Sector Minero a Gran Escala del Ecuador ”.

[31] Ver el artículo de La Hora: “Plantean más críticas a la minería”, noviembre 13 de 2011.

[32] Ver el artículo de Pablo Dávalos en Plan V: “Una élite de 38.700 funcionarios gana más de USD 3000 al mes”, abril 27 de 2016. Dicho sea de paso, en 2015 los autores de este artículo propusimos, entre otras cosas, que para enfrentar la crisis que aqueja a la economía ecuatoriana se podría hacer que “ningún empleado público obtenga un salario mayor a un límite acorde a la realidad nacional de, por ejemplo, 3 mil dólares mensuales; nada descabellado si consideramos que el PIB por persona empleada del Ecuador para 2014 bordea los 1.200 dólares mensuales”; al respecto recomendamos ver el artículo de Alberto Acosta y John Cajas Guijarro: “ Un plan anticrisis desde la izquierda. Elementos para la discusión ”, Montecristi Vive, octubre de 2015.

[33] Ver el artículo de Carlos Zorrilla: “El ABC de la problemática minera en el Ecuador”, La línea de fuego, enero 9 de 2018.

[34] Ver el documento del Ministerio Coordinador de Sectores Estratégicos: “Incentivos tributarios”, disponible en: https://issuu.com/sectoresestrategicos/docs/incentivos_tributarios

[35] Para visualizar cuán graves son los contratos de estabilidad fiscal se puede mencionar un ejemplo: según un informe de prefactibilidad de Aurania Resources, la minera Lundin pagaría impuestos sobre las ganancias extraordinarias solo si el precio de la onza de oro sobrepasa los 2.200 dólares , monto ridículo si se observa que ni siquiera en el mejor momento del boom de los commodities la onza de oro llegó a los 2 mil dólares. Ver el reporte técnico de Aurania Resources disponible en: http://www.aurania.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Aurania- Resources-Technical-Report-2017.pdf

[36] Ver el artículo de Zorrilla, Sacher y Acosta: “21 preguntas para entender la minería del siglo XXI”, Observatorio Latinoamericano de Conflictos Ambientales, octubre 18 de 2011.

[37] Respecto al consumo de agua, solo como ejemplo, se puede mencionar el caso del proyecto Mirador. Según Sacher (2017, p.245), dicho proyecto consumiría 250 litros de agua por segundo, consumo equivalente al consumo residencial de Ibarra.

[38] A manera de ejemplo de tal práctica, se puede revisar el accionar de la transnacional Glencore en Burkina Fasso, recogida en el artículo de Will Fitzgibbon traducido por El Universo: “Los juegos offshore de Glencore en un país minero y pobre”, noviembre 9 de 2017.

[39] A más del libro ya citado de Alberto Acosta (2009), también se puede revisar sobre las posibles patologías causadas por la maldición de la abundancia en el extractivismo ecuatoriano el artículo de Alberto Acosta y John Cajas Guijarro (2016): “Patologías de la abundancia. Una lectura desde el extractivismo”, en el libro de varios autores, Nada dura para siempre. Neo- extractivismo tras el boom de las materias primas. Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar y Universidad de Kassel.

[40] Sobre los diferentes niveles de sustentabilidad, especialmente la “sustentabilidad súper- fuerte”, se puede revisar el artículo de Eduardo Gudynas (2011): “Desarrollo y sustentabilidad ambiental: diversidad de posturas, tensiones persistentes”, en el libro La Tierra no es muda: diálogos entre el desarrollo sostenible y el postdesarrollo. Granada: Universidad de Granada.

[41] Ver al respecto el análisis sobre Fruta del Norte hecho por el Observatorio de conflictos mineros de América Latina disponible en: http://mapa.conflictosmineros.net/ocmal_db/?page=conflicto&id=229

[42] Para más detalles de los estragos sociales-ambientales causados por el proyecto Fruta del Norte se recomienda revisar el libro de María Fernanda Soliz (2018): Fruta del Norte: la manzana de la discordia. Quito: Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar.

[43] Sobre los atropellos que el avance del proyecto Mirador ha provocado a poblaciones locales se recomienda ver el reportaje de Visión 360: “A punto de estallar”, disponible en:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JBbVkVubqY

[44] Sobre todos estos problemas en el proyecto Mirador recomendamos el trabajo de William Sacher, Michelle Báez, Manuel Bayón, Fred Larreátegui, Melissa Moreano (2016): Entretelones de la megaminería en el Ecuador: http://www.accionecologica.org/images/2005/mineria/documentos/entretelones_megamineri%CC %81a_2ed.pdf

[45] Para más detalles sobre el asesinato de José Tendetza y el vínculo con la empresa minera ECSA ver el artículo de PlanV: “¿Quién mató a José Tendetza?”, diciembre 04 de 2014.

[46] Ver el artículo de Sacher, William y Acosta, Alberto (2011): “El agua de Quimsacocha, entre la codicia y la vida”, Rebelion.org, noviembre 3 de 2011.

[47] Para más detalles ver artículo en Observatorio de conflictos mineros de América Latina: “ Defensoras de la Pachamama rechazan licencia ambiental del proyecto minero Río Blanco ”, febrero 29 de 2016.

[48] Sobre los atropellos que el avance del proyecto Panantza-San Carlos ha provocado a poblaciones shuar se recomienda ver el reportaje de Visión 360: “Expulsados de su territorio”, disponible en:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmKEQcxBzNU

[49] Para mayores detalles de este y los demás conflictos provocados por la megaminería, ver el video publicado por el colectivo Minka Urbana: “¿Sabes cómo surgió el conflicto megaminero en Nankints?”, disponible en: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2D99YHGuRU

[50] Para más detalles sobre estos casos ver, por ejemplo, el artículo de Fundación 1000 hojas: “La muerte de Freddy Taish sigue en la impunidad”, junio 15 de 2015.

[51] Más detalles de las condiciones irregulares de detención de Javier Ramírez ver el artículo de El Comercio: “El dirigente antiminero, Javier Ramírez, acusado de rebelión fue sentenciado a 10 meses de privación de libertad”, febrero 10 de 2015.

[52] El caso de Vale y BHP Billiton en el desastre de Minas Gerais es clarísimo respecto a cuán costosa resulta la remediación: a las mineras se les ha planteado juicios por remediación ambiental, donde la suma exigida llega a los 44 mil millones de dólares. Al respecto ver el artículo de CNN Money: “Brazil slaps miners with $ 44 billion lawsuit over dam collapse”, mayo 4 de 2016.

[53] Ver artículo de El Comercio: “CNE difunde datos finales de la consulta”, febrero 8 de 2018.

[54] Esta posición ya la habíamos planteado antes de los resultados de la consulta, como se muestra en el artículo de Alberto Acosta y John Cajas Guijarro (2018): “La reelección indefinida, una traición a la democracia”, enero 20 de 2018.

[55] Para un análisis de los límites de la pregunta sobre minería en la consulta popular se puede ver el artículo de Jackeline Beltrán: “ El país premiado por su desarrollo minero busca limitar la minería con una consulta popular ”, GK city, diciembre 21 de 2017. Igualmente se recomienda el análisis planteado por el Colectivo Geografía Crítica: “ Análisis del alcance de la pregunta sobre minería en el referéndum, Ecuador 2018 ”, enero 19 de 2018. Por su parte, para un análisis

post-consulta puede revisarse el artículo de Belén Páez: “ Minería en centros urbanos: todo lo que la pregunta 5 no tomó en cuenta ”, GK city, febrero 4 de 2018.

[56] Ver el boletín de prensa de la Agencia de Regulación y Control Minero: “Ecuador ganó como Mejor País en desarrollo minero en los Annual Outstanding Achievement Awards”, disponible en:http://www.controlminero.gob.ec/ecuador-gano-como-mejor-pais-en-desarrollo- minero-en-los-annual-outstanding-achievement-awards/

[57] Ver artículo de El Universo: “Mineras ofrecen $ 1.299 millones de inversión”, enero 8 de 2018.

[58] Ver el boletín de prensa de la Agencia de Regulación y Control Minero: “El sector minero es el futuro del desarrollo económico para el país”, disponible en: http://www.controlminero.gob.ec/el-sector-minero-es-el-futuro-del-desarrollo-economico-para-el- pais/

Australian mining under the spotlight

Quite apart from the ecological impacts of mining in forested areas, mining has significant environmental impacts, including long term contamination of soil and water sources, formation of sinkholes, and the production of large amounts of toxic waste, or tailings.

Australia has strict regulatory watchdogs to ensure safe environmental practices. The news items below however, show that even in Australia, what is purported to be best practice, can be at best described as tokenisitic, and at worst, criminal negligence. Many Australian mining companies are happy to privatise profits, but pass on the costs and risks of their abandoned mines to the taxpayer.

If this is the outcome in a heavily-regulated developed country like Australia, what will the future of Ecuador's "investor-friendly mining regime" actually look like?

"Wandering around Australia, you might want to watch your step — the country currently has more than 50,000 abandoned mines. Some represent a significant threat from contamination; others may pose safety risks; and still others may be losing their value as cultural heritage.

Recently experts met in Brisbane for the four day Life of Mine conference to explore how to leave positive legacies from mining. This included exploring the challenges of, and long term solutions for, our abandoned mines."

The Conversation, 23 July 2014

"Recent incidents in Brazil and Australia have once again put the spotlight on the safety of mining operations, and specifically their dams. In February, Brazil’s environment authorities in the eastern Para State asked operators of the Alunorte alumina refinery to reduce operations by 50 per cent due to concerns over potential water contamination.

Barely two weeks later, a section of the northern dam wall at the Cadia mine, located in eastern Australia’s state of New South Wales, collapsed. The incident forced the mine’s operator, Newcrest Mining, to halt operations at the mine."
UN Environment Report: Dam or be damned - Mining Safety under Scrutiny 22 March, 2018

The ICIJ noted in a 2015 report that since 2004, more than 380 people have died in mining accidents or in off-site skirmishes connected to Australian mining companies in Africa.

The ICIJ report further stated: "Multiple Australian mining companies are accused of negligence, unfair dismissal, violence and environmental law-breaking across Africa, according to legal filings and community petitions gathered from South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, Zambia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal and Ghana."

June News

Today, the Mayor of the Cotacachi Municipality in the Imbabura Province of Ecuador, issued a formal denunciation to BHP Billiton over their mining concessions in the area, with particular concerns over their transgressions in protected reserves and conservation areas.

Mining concessions totalling 22,570 hectares were given to BHP in the Cotacachi Canton despite unanimous rejection by the population of the canton, and in direct opposition of the wishes of local council.

The EcoMinga Fundacion, an Ecuadorian conservation organisation, raised concerns to the Cotacachi Municipality on the 16th of July over BHP employees illegally trespassing onto their property despite formal agreements with company spokespeople banning entry by employees without consent. The employees entered between the 7th and 9th of July, clearing an area of forest for a camp, which is sensitive habitat for the Rhaebo Olalai, an extremely rare Andean toad.

EcoMinga is located west of the Los Cedros Biological Reserve, and is dedicated to the conservation of the unique foothill forests, cloud forests, and alpine grasslands (“paramo”) of the Andes, especially those on the edge of the Amazon basin in east-central Ecuador and those on the super-wet western Andean slopes of the Choco region in northwest Ecuador. EcoMinga has established seven reserves in the upper Rio Pastaza watershed in east-central Ecuador between Banos and Puyo. Most of these reserves adjoin national parks, which protect higher-elevation habitats. The reserve extends protection down into the much more diverse middle and lower elevations which are not protected by national park status.

The Parish Government of Cuellaje is one of four affected by the mining concessions in the Intag region. At the meeting attended by 500-1500 people, they voted overwhelmingly to:

* Ask the government to revert all mining concessions in the Parish and the rest of Intag

* Convene an Intag-wide Assembly to ask all mining companies to leave the Intag area

* Change the Teniente político of Cuellaje (an executive appointee that is facilitating mining socialisation)

* Prohibit the presence of government and mining companies employees involved in socialisation in all the communities

* For all of Intag to join forces.

This decision is significant in the wake of the rejection of the socialisation process in the nearby Parish of Peñaherrera.

Note: This is an unofficial resolution. The local government is yet to publish the official one.

Report shows new mining concessions could severely decrease biodiversity and ecosystem services in Ecuador.

Our results reveal the potential losses that mining could cause: eight critically endangered species, including two primates (brown-headed spider monkey and white-fronted capuchin), 37 endangered species, 153 vulnerable, 89 near threatened, and a large number of less threatened species... The short-term national profits from mining will not compensate for the permanent biodiversity losses, and the long-term ecosystem service and economic losses at the local and regional level.

Ecuador's policy of silencing NGOs that question government policies and programs has gotten the world's attention. UN experts on human rights claim it is a strategy to asphyxiate civil society.

Cuban-born Carlos Zorilla has lived for more than 35 years in Ecuador, where he is a leading activist opposing extractivism. He is the co-founder and former President of DECOIN (Defensa y Conservación Ecológica de Intag), which works to protect the environment and promote the sustainable development of the Intag Valley in North Western Ecuador.

CORNERSTONE AND ENAMI ACTING ILLEGALLY, ECUADORIAN ORGANISATION SAYS

COURT WIN FOR LOS CEDROS BIOLOGICAL RESERVE

On June 19th, judges in the Imbabura province ruled in favour to protect Los Cedros, the iconic cloud forest reserve in Ecuador's Western Andes, which is under concession for copper and gold mining to Canadian company Cornerstone and Australian BHP.

MAFIA BATTLE FOR CONTROL OF ILLEGAL MINING OPERATION

A twelve-hour gunfight near Buenos Aires in the north of Ecuador injured 19 people with an unknown number of deaths during the early hours of Sunday 23 June. The illegal mining operation is on a concession owned by Australian mining magnate Gina Rinehart.

NEW MINING POLICY IN ECUADOR COULD OPEN 33% OF THE COUNTRY TO EXTRACTION

The government plans to survey up to 33% of the country for mining

What can we do?

A DIRTY JOB FOR THE PRICE OF GOLD

They have ruined my tranquility, damaged my farm and I am still living in poverty."

Primitivo Andrade, Owner of 60 hectares invaded by miners

The Residence

To the mine!

Market on the hill

Pilgrimage to the mountain

"So that no one takes away our holes, someone from our group has to sleep in the worst conditions."

Juan C., Excavation expert

The steel pulleys

The voices that warn

Invasion and holes

Concession

Control and detentions

Take note

LENIN MORENO AND THE RETURN OF THE LAISSE-FAIRE TAX

"According to CDES estimates, only 17% of what the country loses through the use of these mechanisms is due to corruption, the remaining 83% is due to tax evasion and avoidance; tricks that by their costs and complexities can only be funded by the economic elites."

The International Mining Conference in Melbourne

Mining conference attracts more than its usual share of zombies

THE FALSE HOPE OF A BROKEN PITCHER

BY ALBERTO ACOSTA AND JOHN CAJAS-GUIJARRO

"Wealth is like salt water: the more you drink, the more thirsty you become. The same goes for glory."

Arthur Schopenhauer

The lies behind progress

The mining expansion between neoliberalism, Correísmo and Morenismo

Small profits, selling out, and unacceptable costs

A wild surrender: the pitcher was always broken

Social and environmental costs of the false mining promise

An anti-extractivist sentiment wasted (or betrayed?)

To dispute an (anti) mining future

Notes:

AUSTRALIAN MINING PRACTICES IN THE NEWS

Irresponsible Australian mining companies in Africa

MUNICIPALITY OF COTACHI FORMALLY DENOUNCES BHP OVER CONCESSIONS IN THE AREA

23 JULY 2018

LOCAL PARISH UNOFFICIALLY VOTES TO PROHIBIT MINING IN INTAG REGION

29 JUNE 2018

19 JUNE 2018

ECUADOR'S EXTRACTIVE POLICIES AND THE SILENCING OF DISSENT

RIO BLANCO MINE SUSPENDED

3 JUNE 2018

Activists celebrate around Yaku Perez, Ecuarunari president, on Friday night in Cuenca after a judge ruled to suspend mining activities at the Junefield Rio Blanco site. Photo: Yasunidos

OIL & GAS EXTRACTION IN INDIGENOUS TERRITORIES

SENATOR LEE RHIANNON QUESTIONS AUSTRADE'S SUPPORT FOR MINING IN ECUADOR'S PROTECTED FORESTS

1 JUNE 2018