AIM of Colorado Press Statement-Newmont Mining Protest
Tuesday, 04 April 2006
Colorado AIM will stand in solidarity with indigenous peoples from around
the globe on APRIL 25, 2006 at the Newmont International Headquarters,
1700 Lincoln St., Denver, CO, in a vigorous protest at Newmont's annual
shareholder's meeting.
Representatives from indigenous communities that have been adversely affected
by Newmont will be arriving in Denver from Peru, Ghana, Western Shoshone,
the Colville Indian Reservation in Washington State,
and perhaps other locations.
Colorado AIM condemns the actions of Newmont that destroy the water, earth
and air through its operations in places such as Peru, Nevada, Ghana and
Indonesia, but also in the territories of indigenous peoples in Mexico,
Canada, Australia, Bolivia and the Philippines.
Equally, we deplore and condemn the explorations and proposed operations of
Newmont in the Black Hills of South Dakota, an area sacred to several
indigenous nations of the Great Plains region.
We also call on Newmont immediately to fulfill its responsibility to clean up
radioactive uranium waste on the Colville Indian Reservation in
Washington State.
Indigenous peoples have been protecting their territories and water over
the past several years, and they continue actively to confront the destructive
practices of Newmont.
Last week, in Sumbawa, Indonesia, community members expressed their
opposition to Newmont's operations by setting ablaze a number of pieces of
Newmont's machinery, forcing the corporation to close its Batu Hijau Copper Pit
until further notice.
Tens of thousand of indigenous people marched on Newmont's operations at
Yanacocha, Peru. These actions forced Newmont to cancel plans to expand
its open pit mines to the sacred mountain of Quillish.
The Western Shoshone Nation (Nevada) recently received a victory at the
United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
The decision called for an end to the collusion between the United States
government and corporations such as Newmont, in the theft of Western
Shoshone resources in violation of the 1863 Ruby Valley.
The courage and integrity of native peoples around the world in resisting
the eco-terrorism of Newmont is an inspiration to us in Colorado AIM.
When representatives of these struggles
come to Newmont's international headquarters here in Denver, the source
of the misery in their communities, we will welcome our relatives, and we
will show them that they are not alone in their quests for environmental
justice. We will call on local and state officials to demand responsibility
from this corporate criminal in our midst.
We will stand shoulder to shoulder in support of our indigenous relatives,
and any people who choose love of earth and love of life, over love greed
and love of profits.
We intend to shine a bright light on Newmont and its destructive operations.
We intend to hold Nemmont accountable for what it has done, and for what
it continues to do.
Colorado AIM Blog
Contact Colorado AIM by phone at: 303-832-2544
Special thanks to Bear for sending this on.
Contents
April 2006 Reports
Last updated on April 16, 2006