The Mutilation of San Pedro
The FAO and Optative Theatrical Laboratories are proud to present...
The Mutilation of San Pedro
A Demonstration In Three Acts
Protesting Metallica Resources' illegal destruction of Mexico's environmental and historical patrimony in front of the CIBC Tower
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Key players:
Metallica Resources inc, a mining company registered in Toronto but headquartered in Colorado, is currently embroiled in one of Mexico’s most important legal, social and environmental conflicts, one triggered by its operation of an open-pit cyanide-leached mining operation at the Cerro de San Pedro in the state of San Luis Potosí.
Its Mexican subsidiary, Minera San Xavier, has been accused of influence-peddling and corruption amongst state and national-level politicians. This has allowed the company to operate despite numerous rulings by Mexican courts that have revoked the company’s operating permits. Minera San Xavier has also been accused of orchestrating or abetting the murder, harassment and intimidation of local opposition to the mine, one of whom, Enrique Rivera Sierra, is currently in Canada claiming political asylum.
The CIBC is currently the most important Canadian investor in Metallica Resources. Their internal governance documents concerning ethics and the environment clearly preclude the kind of predatory operations organized by Metallica Resources.
Opposition to the mine is broad and regroups not only the villagers of the Cerro de San Pedro but also civil society and environmental groups (Amnesty International, Greenpeace), intellectuals (Carlos Monsivais, Carlos Montemayor, Lorenzo Meyer), and politicians at the state and federal levels. The core of this opposition is the FAO (Frente Amplio Opositor) that has been organizing at the local, state and national level.
Canadian mining companies are far and away the most important player in Mexico’s mining sector. The struggle between local and national control over natural resources has long been a focal point of Mexican political history. This helps explain why the case of Metallica Resources is one of the key on-going stories in Mexico today. Canadians may be unaware of this story but it concerns them directly since the actions of Metallica Resourcs and other Canadian mining companies are dramatically undermining Canada’s reputation across Mexico.
The Frente Amplio Oppositor (FAO) and OTL invite you to assist in a Mexican “teatro politico participativo” on the afternoon of August 23rd and to ask why the CIBC continues to finance ecocide in Mexico.
