ACTION ALERT

Action Alert
Ask the Ecuadorian Government to protect the rights of Environmentaland Human Rights Defenders who participated in recent Anti-MiningDemonstrationsThe Ecuador Solidarity Network, an organization based in Canada andthe United States joins human rights and indigenous peoplesorganizations in calling on Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa torecognize campesino and indigenous groups opposed to a new mining lawand large scale metal mining as acting in defense of their economicand social rights as recognized by international treaties and inEcuador's constitution. In particular, we are asking the government ofEcuador to review various criminal charges that a number of people arefacing as a result of their participation in nationwide protests inthe highlands and Amazon between January 5th and 21st.Earlier this month in the Southern provinces of Azuay, Loja, ZamoraChinchipe and Morona Santiago, protests against large-scale metallicmining were met with police violence and repression. A number ofactivists were beaten and detained, and one leader was criticallyinjured after being shot in the head. Following from these events,three men remain in jail facing serious charges with the possibilitythat others have orders out for their capture.On January 20th, the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities ofEcuador (CONAIE) in cooperation with a variety of environmental,campesino and indigenous organizations protested congress' recentapproval of a mining law, opening the country to large-scale metalmining. The CONAIE and other organizations contend that the new lawwill violate the new constitution and allow large-scale mining inprotected areas, as well as jeopardize critical community watersupplies.Following recent statements from the Ecumenical Human RightsCommission (CEDHU), the Regional Human Rights Advisory Foundation(Inredh), the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights (APDH), theChristian Youth Association (ACJ), the Peace and Justice Service(SERPAJ), and the Centre for Economic and Social Rights (CDES), theEcuador Solidarity Network calls on activists around the world tosupport the human rights of protesters against large-scale metalmining in Ecuador. These Ecuadorian based human rights organizationsrecognize thatcampesino and indigenous populations opposed to largescale metal mining are acting in defense of their economic and socialrights as recognized by international treaties and in Ecuador'sconstitution.Ask that the government review current detentions and legal proceedingto ensure that protesters' human rights are respected.We also denounce any attempt by right-wing organizations in the U.S.and Canada to opportunistically use the upcoming mobilizations toattack President Correa for motives that have nothing to do withindigenous rights or environmental protection.SAMPLE LETTER: (English precedes Spanish copy)President's Office of the Republic of EcuadorPresident Rafael Correa<Rafael.CorreaDelgad o@presidencia. gov.ec>;presidencia@ presidencia. gov.ecYour excellency President Rafael Correa,Based in the US and Canada, the Ecuador Solidarity Network cametogether to show to oppose North American economic, political andmilitary intervention in Ecuador and to show solidarity with itssocial movements. As a result, we would like to express our concerngiven various detentions and imprisonment of indigenous and campesinoactivists taking place during recent protests against the new mininglaw and large scale metal mining from January 5th and 21st, 2009.Various Ecuadorian human rights organizations including the EcumenicalHuman Rights Commission (CEDHU), the Regional Human Rights AdvisoryFoundation (Inredh), the Permanent Assembly for Human Rights (APDH),the Christian Youth Association (ACJ), the Peace and Justice Service(SERPAJ), and the Centre for Economic and Social Rights (CDES),maintain that campesino and indigenous populations opposed to largescale metal mining are acting in defense of their economic and socialrights as recognized by international treaties and in Ecuador'sconstitution.We also recall that the National Constituent Assembly recognized thesegroups as environmental and human rights defenders on March 15th 2008when they granted amnesty to hundreds of community leaders in variousprovinces across Ecuador such as Imbabura, Pichincha, Cotopaxi,Manabí, Esmeraldas, Bolívar, Azuay, Morona Santiago, Zamora Chinchipe,Sucumbíos and Orellana.Further considering that indigenous peoples in Ecuador claim not tohave been previously consulted about the mining law approved by thecurrent administration, in accord with disponsitions in theInternational Labour Organization Convention 169 and the UnitedNational Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, we are alsoconcerned that these arrests might represent violations of articles 12and 13 in the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders(Resolution approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations53/144), a kind of situation identified by the Inter-AmericanCommission on Human Rights as an attack against democratic principlesin the Western Hemisphere: "Another particularly worrisome aspect is the use of legalactions against defenders, including criminal or administrativeinvestigations or actions that are pursued to harass and discreditthem. In some cases, the states use criminal laws that restrict orlimit the means used by defenders to carry out their activities....In other cases, criminal proceedings are instituted without anyevidence, fort he purpose of harassing the members of theorganizations, who must assume the psychological and economic burdenof facing a criminal indictment. ...These proceedings generallyinvolve charges of rebellion, attacks on public order or statesecurity, and the formation of illegal groups." (Organization ofAmerican States, Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders inthe Americas, OEA/Ser/L/V/ II.124, 2006, paragraphs 178-180)We respectfully ask you to:1. Review the criminal proceedings taking place against human rightsdefenders in light of what the Human Rights Commission of the OASdescribes, especially proceedings concerning the following people:Vicente Zhunio Samaniego from the province of Morona Santiago (beingprocessed for alleged sabotage in the Superior Court of Macas); MiguelCriollo from the province of Azuay; Miguel de la Cruz from theprovince of Azuay (being processed for alleged terrorism and for beinga threat against state security).2. To examine the judicial investigations against the following socialleaders: Hernando Pereira, Ernesto Pereira, Wilmer Montenegro, LeninRosero and Lenin Alvear from the province of Imbabura; as well as JoséEsteban Cuascota Quilumbaquín, Gavino Cabascango Cabascango, José JuanCastillo Pujota, Francisco Farinango Ulcuango and Alfredo Cabascangofrom the province of Pichincha.3. As well, to make a timely assessment of the health and safety ofthe following indigenous people detained on January 21st in theprovince of Zamora Chinchipe: Germán Naikiai, Giovanni Ullaguari,Kléver Lalbay, and Carlos Rumipuglla.Attentively,