Pan American Silver (formerly Tahoe Resources)
Since 2012, Tahoe Resources - originally a corporate spin-off of Goldcorp Inc., now bought out by Pan American Silver - has been trying to operate a silver and gold mine in the Xinka territories and campesino communities of south-eastern Guatemala. As with each of the mining harms resistance struggles in Testimonio, Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities have suffered: government and company repression, including killings; criminalizations on trumped up charges; health and environmental harms; other human rights violations.
1 June 2012 San Rafael de las Flores, Santa Rosa, Guatemala And the mining issue grows, expands, morphs ... here we are meeting with the local activist priest Father Nestor and the Committee in Defense of Life at the church where Tahoe Resources (a child of Vancouver-based Goldcorp) is starting the Mina San Rafael mining operation Photo: Catherine Nolin
![13 May 2014
COCODE members in turn shared their thoughts about their opposition to the Escobal mine.
Maria in blue said " We live in paradise here and we know it and we want to protect it. What else do they bring [besides some jobs]? Who knows, we m](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60ad5f9747592c2e0dfcf935/073b6b4d-3ce5-4d22-9f05-032193e29aa9/IMG_9365.jpg)
13 May 2014 COCODE members in turn shared their thoughts about their opposition to the Escobal mine. Maria in blue said " We live in paradise here and we know it and we want to protect it. What else do they bring [besides some jobs]? Who knows, we may end up killing each other. There are people on this earth who love the earth and people who love money." Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Juan Bosco carried out a consulta "community consultation of good faith" on 17 February 2013, just a month before the Guatemalan government ordered a state of siege and suspended a range of of rights (right of association, for example) and sent in the security forces to intimidate, capture, and imprison people opposed to the mine. 99% voted against mining. Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Rafael las Flores, El Escobal Mine GOLDCORP MAKES US SICK! Merle (second from right) brought this banner from the Mining Injustice Network in Toronto. This is the Canadian-owned Tahoe Resources El Escobal mine but Tahoe is a 'child' of Goldcorp (former CEO of Goldcorp Kevin McArthur stepped down from Goldcorp and started Tahoe - of which Goldcorp owns some 40% of the shares). Photo: Catherine Nolin
22 May 2016 La Cuchilla, San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa Tahoe Resources' Escobal Mine: Homes devastated by underground explosions and mining operations Photo by James Rodríguez, MiMundo.org
22 May 2016 La Cuchilla, San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa Tahoe Resources' Escobal Mine: (L-R) Steven Schnoor, Catherine Nolin, Grahame Russell, Cole Chapman overlooking the tunnel entrance from the community of La Cuchilla Photo by James Rodríguez, MiMundo.org
'If we're attacked, we'll die together,' a 16-year-old anti-mining activist told her family. But when the bullets came, they killed only her By Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, Dec.27, 2017, http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-environmental-activists-guatemala-20171227-htmlstory.html
Cracks and fissures opened under the homes and village of La Cuchilla, due to use of explosives underground in Tahoe's extensive tunneling system. Photo: CODIDENA
5 May 2018 Casillas, Santa Rosa, Guatemala The Permanent Peaceful Resistance / Roadblock that has refused to let any mining-related vehicles or equipment through for several months Photo: Catherine Nolin
1 June 2012 San Rafael de las Flores, Santa Rosa, Guatemala And the mining issue grows, expands, morphs ... here we are meeting with the local activist priest Father Nestor and the Committee in Defense of Life at the church where Tahoe Resources (a child of Vancouver-based Goldcorp) is starting the Mina San Rafael mining operation Photo: Catherine Nolin
1 June 2012 San Rafael de las Flores, Santa Rosa, Guatemala Padre Nestor (in navy blue shirt), by raising his voice of concern, had a case brought against him for speaking about the need for a consulta/community consultation at mass, saying he is against development, progress business, etc. Sound familiar? Photo: Catherine Nolin
1 June 2012 San Rafael de las Flores, Santa Rosa, Guatemala These brave men with the Committee in Defense of Life argue that they can't be called "anti-mining" since they don't know a thing about mining. They said that "our struggle is just. Our resources are our own." They recounted the many ways in which they are being criminalized for this just work. Indirect death threats, phone calls to family, criminal charges pending .... And for the charges to be dropped, these men had to agree not to be in groups of 10 or more. So, they looked around and said our meeting violated that stipulation. Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 COCODE members in turn shared their thoughts about their opposition to the Escobal mine. Maria in blue said " We live in paradise here and we know it and we want to protect it. What else do they bring [besides some jobs]? Who knows, we may end up killing each other. There are people on this earth who love the earth and people who love money." Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Juan Bosco carried out a consulta "community consultation of good faith" on 17 February 2013, just a month before the Guatemalan government ordered a state of siege and suspended a range of of rights (right of association, for example) and sent in the security forces to intimidate, capture, and imprison people opposed to the mine. 99% voted against mining. Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Rafael Las Flores, El Escobal mine Private landowners adjacent to the Tahoe Resource's mine are sympathetic to the concerns of Oscar Morales (white shirt, middle) and others opposing this form of "development." They let us come on their property to view the mine site from their farm. Oscar Morales is clear in his statement that "Tahoe Resources does NOT have a social license here." Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Rafael las Flores, El Escobal Mine GOLDCORP MAKES US SICK! Merle (second from right) brought this banner from the Mining Injustice Network in Toronto. This is the Canadian-owned Tahoe Resources El Escobal mine but Tahoe is a 'child' of Goldcorp (former CEO of Goldcorp Kevin McArthur stepped down from Goldcorp and started Tahoe - of which Goldcorp owns some 40% of the shares). Photo: Catherine Nolin
13 May 2014 San Juan Bosco, near Tahoe Resources' El Escobal silver mine Oscar Morales requested that we visit with the local COCODE (community development association) of San Juan Bosco which is situated in a ridge above the Tahoe Resources’ Escobal mine site (about 12 km from the silver mine). Goldcorp had concessions for this territory and two adjacent communities (Scorpion & Andres) and it is now in the hands of Tahoe Resources. Photo: Catherine Nolin
22 May 2016 La Cuchilla, San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa Tahoe Resources' Escobal Mine: (L-R) Homes devastated by mining operations Photo by James Rodríguez, MiMundo.org
22 May 2016 La Cuchilla, San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa Tahoe Resources' Escobal Mine: (L-R) Jackie McVicar, Steven Schnoor, Oscar Morales, and Grahame Russell overlooking the tunnel entrance from the community of La Cuchilla Photo by Catherine Nolin
22 May 2016 La Cuchilla, San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa Tahoe Resources' Escobal Mine: (L-R) Steven Schnoor, Catherine Nolin, Grahame Russell, Cole Chapman overlooking the tunnel entrance from the community of La Cuchilla Photo by James Rodríguez, MiMundo.org
5 May 2018 Casillas, Santa Rosa, Guatemala The Permanent Peaceful Resistance / Roadblock that has refused to let any mining-related vehicles or equipment through for several months Photo: Catherine Nolin