Tonight, September 28, Canada’s first-ever foreign policy election debate will be held at Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto, with Harper, Trudeau, and Mulcair in attendance. Here are just a few reasons why mining injustice should be on the agenda for this debate, and the broader election campaign.
1. 75% of the world’s mining and mineral exploration companies are based in Canada.
And 60% of the world’s publicly traded mining companies are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
2. Canadian mining companies have the worst human rights record.
Not only are there more mining companies that are Canadian than any other nationality, but Canadian mining companies are known for having the worst practices globally on human rights. This is backed up by a global study commissioned by the mining industry itself which was never supposed to go public (but was leaked).
These abuses include targeted assassinations, persecution of activists and union leaders, the militarization of entire communities, massive displacement, and environmental devastation that goes unchecked and uncleaned.
3. Colonization continues through Canadian mining.
Did you know that Canadian corporations mine Indigenous land all over the world without consent or even consultation? 50% of newly mined gold is taken from native lands. in 2007, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination off Racial Discrimination issued a formal recommendation to Canada to better regulate and monitor its mining corporations operating on Indigenous land – a recommendation which has been completely ignored.
4. Canada’s foreign aid and diplomatic missions are being used to support Canadian mining at any cost.
The interests of Canadian mining companies are being used to push investor rights agreements globally at the expense of both Canadians and and citizens of other countries. Meanwhile, Canadian ambassadors regularly go to bat for Canadian mining companies, even working with and defending these companies as they are embroiled in human rights scandals. There are many examples of this behaviour.
5. Canadian companies operate with complete impunity.
According to a 2005 report from the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, “Canada does not yet have laws to ensure that the activities of Canadian mining companies in developing countries conform to human rights standards, including the rights of workers and of indigenous peoples.” This is still as true today as it was the day that report was written.
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Help us make sure that mining injustice gets discussed at the historic foreign policy election debate: Here are some messages to tweet out and we would love to have you join us outside Roy Thompson Hall!