October 23, 2006

CANADIAN MINING COMPANY in ECUADOR - Repression against local leader

BELOW: An urgent action, from Mining Watch, about repression in Ecuador
related to opposition to the Canadian ASCEDANT Mining Company whose
operations are linked to enviro-destruction and HR violations.

PLEASE SEND YOUR OWN LETTERS to the people listed below. To get on/ off
this elist: info@rightsaction.org

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ECUADOR, CANADIAN MINING COMPANY & REPRESSION

URGENT ACTION: POLICE RAID HOME OF ECUADORIAN ENVIRONMENTALIST INVOLVED IN
STRUGGLES TO RESIST HARMS ASSOCIATED WITH CANADIAN ASCENDANT MINING COMPANY.

http://www.miningwatch.ca/

According to reports from the Intag Solidarity Network and CEDHU, the
Ecumenical Human Rights Commission of Ecuador, on October 17, 2006, police
raided the home of environmental activist Carlos Zorrilla and that of his
neighbour Roberto Castro in an unprovoked and unjustified show of force,
intimidating his family and Mr. Castro. Mr. Zorrilla was not present at the
time and his whereabouts are still unknown, although we understand he is
alive and well.

At about 6:15 am, about 10 persons identifying themselves as policemen, some
in uniform, two with black ski masks, and all armed with handguns and/or
machine guns, arrived at the home of Carlos Zorrilla. Twenty minutes later,
another individual, who claimed to be the prosecutor from the city of
Cayambe, appeared with a search warrant. They searched both the Zorrilla
home and that of Roberto Castro, who has worked on the Zorrilla farm for
years and who lives nearby. As far as we can ascertain the Castro house was
not included in the search warrant.

Mr. Castro asked to see identification. His request was not granted. Mr.
Zorrilla's wife Sandy and son Martin were home and watched the policemen
burst into the house and search. They tore apart Mr. Zorrilla's
bedroom/study. According to Martin, one member of the group was particularly
aggressive, pushing and shouting at Martin, Sandy, and Roberto.

The apparent leader announced after an hour that there was nothing to be
found, they had other places to go to, and suggested that they be on their
way. At that point, the aggressive individual walked outside with a bag of
marijuana he claimed to have found in the living room and a gun he said he
had found in Martin's bedroom. At that point the search ended and the
policemen left.

Other witnesses say that the police arrived in Santa Rosa that morning in a
number of vehicles, none with police insignias, all without licence plates,
and one, a red vehicle, identified as belonging to the mining company. They
also state that the day before, two Ascendant Copper employees had spent
most of the day in Santa Rosa. The police apparently acted on a complaint by
an American, Leslie Brooke Chaplin, filed July 23 regarding an assault and
robbery that had supposedly taken place during the peaceful rally against
Ascendant Copper's Junín project in Quito on July 13, 2006. Eyewitnesses
have reported that there was no violence at any point during the rally and
that the complainant had been distributing leaflets on behalf of Ascendant
Copper in the midst of the rally.

We are also informed that Ms. Chaplin is or was an employee of the company,
making the circumstances of the complaint and the unverifiable allegations
it contains highly questionable.

***

PLEASE WRITE TO THE PEOPLE LISTED BELOW, expressing your concern that
questionable and unverified accusations are being used to intimidate and
defame a reputable and upstanding community leader, and urging that the
circumstances of both the complaint and the police raid be fully and
expeditiously investigated.

Embajada de Canada
Av. 6 de Diciembre 2816 y Paul Rivet
Quito, Ecuador
P.O. Box 17-11-6512
Tel: +593 2 2232-114/2506-162
Fax: +593 2 2503-108
E-mail: quito@dfait-maeci.gc.ca

Gary E. Davis
President and CEO
Ascendant Copper Corporation
10920 West Alameda Avenue, Suite 201
Lakewood, CO 80226
USA
Tel: (303) 824-0271
Fax: (303) 297-0538
www.ascendantcopper.com
e-mail: info@ascendantcopper.com

Sasha Angus, Director, Enforcement Division British Columbia Securities
Commission
701 West Georgia Street
P.O. Box 10142, Pacific Centre
Vancouver, B.C. V7Y 1L2
Canada
Tel: 604-899-6500
Fax: 604-899-6506
www.bcsc.bc.ca
e-mail: inquiries@bcsc.bc.ca

FOR MORE INFO:
Jamie Kneen
1 (613) 569-3439
MiningWatch Canada
jamie@miningwatch.ca
www.miningwatch.ca

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For more info about this case: www.miningwatch.ca