Manly: El Salvador's struggle for democratic authority

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MANLY: El Salvador's struggle for democratic authority

http://rabble.ca/news/2014/09/el-salvad ... -authority ]

By Paul Manly | September 29, 2014

I spent ten days in El Salvador this September representing the Council of Canadians on an international delegation examining metallic mining and how it affects communities. During the trip several events highlighted El Salvador's struggle to remain a truly democratic and independent nation.

On September 15, which marked almost 200 years of independence for El Salvador, people were in the streets of cities and towns across the country to celebrate the occasion. September 15 was also the first day of the final hearings for the OceanaGold verses El Salvador investor state lawsuit at the International Center for the Settlements of Investor Disputes (ICSID) in Washington D.C., a suit that is a direct assault on the democratic independence of El Salvador.

On September 17 people took to the streets in front of the headquarters of the World Bank in San Salvador to protest against the suit.

The ICSID is a secretive tribunal housed at the headquarters of the World Bank in Washington D.C. The ICSID arbitrates these investor state disputes based on rules embedded in trade agreements and does not consider the environmental or social reasons for the disputes or their ramifications.

OceanaGold, a Canadian-Australian mining company, is suing El Salvador for $301 million for not issuing a mining license for a project called El Dorado. The project has the potential to contaminate the Lempa River, which provides water for two thirds of the population of El Salvador.

Another Canadian company, Pacific Rim, launched the original investor state lawsuit for $77 million over the El Dorado mine in 2009 after the company failed to meet the environmental requirements of the El Salvador government and the mining permit was not granted.
OceanaGold purchased Pacific Rim for $10.2 million in 2013 and has continued the investor state lawsuit, increasing it to $301 million.

People in El Salvador are understandably angry and want the suit dismissed. They question how OceanaGold could continue suing for $301 million when Pacific Rim, in reality, was worth only $10.2 million.

If El Salvador loses the case the World Bank can enforce the payment of the settlement by seizing the country's assets, including aid, development or disaster relief funds destined for the country and use those funds to pay OceanaGold.

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