Dear friends,

Thank-you for your trust and on-going financial support.  In 2012, we have channeled over $465,000 of your donations and grants to grassroots groups and the struggles we are engaged in with them.  Rights Action depends entirely on individual donors and private foundations in the USA and Canada . 

TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS
(in Canada and USA )
~ See below ~

Below, a summary of some of the struggles and issues we are supporting and are involved with.

WHY?

With tax-deductible status in the USA and Canada , Rights Action is not-for-profit organization that asks: Why are there poor and exploited people?  Why is the environment being destroyed?  Why do governments and wealthy sectors sometimes use repression?  Why do wealthy and powerful countries and sectors sometimes plan and carry out military coups and interventions?  Why do the poor and vulnerable suffer the most when there are “natural disasters”?

WE FUND WORK THAT RESPONDS TO THESE QUESTIONS

We support grassroots groups, mainly in Guatemala and Honduras , as well as in El Salvador and Chiapas , that implement their own projects to remedy the underlying causes of poverty, environmental degradation, repression and the destruction and suffering caused by natural disasters.  We do extensive education and activism work focusing on how Canada and the USA sometimes contribute to and benefit from these very problems and injustices.

Thank-you for your trust and support.  Please send your questions and comments

Grahame Russell and Annie Bird, co-directors

info@rightsaction.org

~~ TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS (in Canada and USA ): See below

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WORK and STRUGGLES SUPPORTED

UNJUST GLOBAL ECONOMIC “DEVELOPMENT” PROJECTS

-versus-

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, HUMAN RIGHTS & the ENVIRONMENT

In Honduras and Guatemala, we fund and work with campesino and indigenous communities to remedy and put an end to environmental and health harms, repression and other human rights violations caused by mining companies, hydro-electric dam projects, African palm and sugar cane production, tourism – all being so-called economic “development” projects

These are complex struggles in favour of community-controlled development and the ending of exploitation and poverty; in favour of human and indigenous rights and justice and the ending of repression and impunity; and, in favour of respect for and harmony with Mother Earth/the environment.  These are struggles against the harms and violations caused by:

• Goldcorp Inc’s open-pit, mountain-top removal, cyanide leaching gold mines in Guatemala and Honduras
• The legacy of Hudbay Mineral’s nickel mining in Guatemala
• Tahoe Resources’ (Goldcorp Inc.) desired new mine in south-eastern Guatemala
• KCA’s (with Radius Gold Inc.) desired new mine near Guatemala City
• African palm and sugar-cane production, in Guatemala and Honduras , for ‘green energy’ (bio-diesel and ethanol) markets
• World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank’s “Chixoy Dam” project in Guatemala
• Global tourism complexes along the Caribbean shore of Honduras

CHOC versus HUDBAY MINERALS

In addition to our work in support of these mining-harmed communities, Rights Action is supporting Qeqchi communities of eastern Guatemala and lawsuits they have filed in Canada, with the Klippensteins law firm, against Hudbay Minerals, for negligence related to: the killing of Adolfo Ich, a community leader, teacher and father; the shooting and paralyzing of German Chub Choc, a farmer and father; and the gang-rape of 11 women as part of an illegal forced eviction of their home community (Lote 8) resulting in the burning and destruction of 100 homes.

From November 23-30, the plaintiffs were in Toronto , undergoing cross-examinations from Hudbay’s lawyers at the Faskens Martineau law firm.  Here, links to two TV news pieces from the CBC’s The National.

• SEEKING JUSTICE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fkT3vLA6qg
• A LONG ROAD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0O2sJtLqiw

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MEMORY, TRUTH & JUSTICE FOR STATE REPRESSION & GENOCIDE

Since the early 1990s, courageous Guatemalans have exhumed mass graves and worked for memory, truth and justice for:  particular massacres;  the genocide;  disappearances;  political assassinations and torture.  Rights Action continues to fund and support:

• mass grave exhumations carried out by the FAFG exhumation team
• justice for the Rio Negro massacre, the Plan de Sanchez massacre, the Dos Erres massacre
• justice for the 2 Guatemalan genocide cases
• reparations and justice for the Chixoy hydro-electric dam harms and massacres

Since the early 90s, these cases had not advanced in Guatemalan courts due to the deeply entrenched legal and political impunity.  In 2010, a crack opened in the wall of impunity, and some important cases began to slowly advance.  This crack is closing now as the (undemocratic) 2011 presidential elections were won by the “genocidal” General Otto Perez Molina who maintains deep, historic links to the military sectors responsible for the genocide and State repression.

CHIXOY DAM REPARATIONS CAMPAIGN

This Chixoy dam campaign is related to both the Unjust Global Economic Order and work for Memory, Truth and Justice.  Mayan-Achi communities, that were harmed and destroyed by the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank-funded Chixoy Hydro-Electric Dam (including the massacres of 440 people in the village of Rio Negro), have been - since 1995 - seeking reparations from the Guatemalan government, World Bank and Inter-American Development bank.

This has been a long, torturous and courageous struggle.  By mid-2010, the government of Guatemala agreed it was responsible and that it owes compensation and reparations to the harmed and damaged Mayan communities.  By late 2012, the government has still not signed the final agreement to release the compensation and reparation funds.  This extraordinary struggle, on the part of the Chixoy Dam harmed communities, hangs in the balance.

Watch a new 16 minute film “CHIXOY DAM: No Reparations, No Justice, No Peace”

• Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/50015125
• Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xF3YI7XMNEE&feature=youtu.be

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HONDURAS’ PRO-DEMOCRACY, ANTI-MILITARY COUP MOVEMENT

A major focus of our work continues to be support for the pro-democracy / anti-military backed regime movement in Honduras .  Since the June 28, 2009 military-oligarchic coup against the government of President Zelaya, we have channeled close to $400,000 to the people’s movement in Honduras – supporting groups that are members of the National Resistance Front, groups that support the goals of the Front, and groups that are providing emergency response funds to victims of repression.

This struggle, against a repressive regime (strongly supported by the governments of the USA and Canada ), continues into 2013 in favor of re-founding the nation and society.  Sadly and predictably, the regime continues to use widespread repression (including assassinations, massacres, torture and beatings) to try and crush the pro-democracy movement.

Despite this situation, there is a chance for positive political change in 2013.  The wife of the militarily ousted President Zelaya has been chosen as leader of a new political party – LIBRE.  Whereas many Hondurans, now in the National Resistance Front, were not Zelaya supporters before the coup, they have been moved by the dignified and courageous positions that both Mel Zelaya and his wife Xiomara took, since the day of the coup.

The 2013 presidential elections will pit corrupted pro-coup, pro-oligarchy parties (likely to be backed openly or indirectly by the US and Canada) against the LIBRE party that has grown out of civil society’s courageous opposition to the military coup and on-going repression and out of the desire of a vaste majority of Honduran people to re-found their State and society and restore a truly democratic order.

LIBRE would easily win truly democratic elections, given the chance.  However, these elections will undoubtedly be characterized by electoral corruption and threats and repression against people aligned with the LIBRE party.  This is at once a struggle for democracy and human rights in Honduras and across Latin America .  It is also, deeply, a struggle for North Americans to hold our governments, companies and investors to account for ‘legitimizing’ the illegitimate, for empowering a repressive and undemocratic regime.

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NORTH-SOUTH EDUCATION & ACTIVISM

The inequalities and injustices our partner groups are working to address are local-to-global, north-south issues by definition – they are not “national” issues.  We focus education and activism work on how the global north – governments, inter-government agencies and companies, investors and banks – sometimes contribute to and benefit from environmental harms, military coups, repression, exploitation and poverty.

In 2012, Rights Action:

• led 9 trips of North American citizens, journalists and donors to Honduras and Guatemala to have community visits and learn first hand about and be in solidarity with struggles related to the issues summarized above
• brought community and indigenous leaders to Canada and the US on speaking tours to educate about resistance to the harmful operations of North American mining companies; resistance to the military coup in Honduras ; etc
• gave dozens of presentations in communities, universities and other public forums across Canada and the US , about the issues and struggles we are working on and how North Americans can get involved in work and struggle for “another world is possible”
• regularly articles and reports on our listserv, website, facebook page and quarterly newsletter

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LINKS TO RECENT news and documentary coverage

SEEKING JUSTICE – CBC TV, Part 1, Nov.25, 2012: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fkT3vLA6qg

A group of indigenous people from Guatemala say a Canadian mining company was behind violent crimes and the destruction of their villages and they have come to Canada seeking justice. Warning, this story has graphic images.

A LONG ROAD – CBC TV, Part 2, Dec.3, 2012: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0O2sJtLqiw

An update on a group of indigenous people from Guatemala who are in Canada seeking justice. They say Canadian mining company Hudbay is responsible for horrific crimes and to get the justice they want, they have a long road ahead.

CHIXOY DAM: No Reparations, No Justice, No Peace

16 minute film, by Lazar Konforti

Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/50015125

In the early 1980s, during the worst years of the US-backed Guatemalan genocide and State repression, the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank invested close to $1 billion in the Chixoy hydroelectric dam project, partnering with a succession of military regimes.  Thirty-two indigenous Mayan communities were forcibly and illegally displaced to make way for the dam, and hundreds of indigenous Mayan Achi people were massacred – mainly in the community of Rio Negro .  Thirty years later, survivors are still struggling for truth, justice and comprehensive reparations.

POVERTY IN PACUX: 30 Years and Counting

4 minute film, by Rachel Schmidt

Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/52439128

From 1975-85, the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank partnered with US-backed military regimes in Guatemala, to build the Chixoy hydro-electric dam "development" project.  30 years later, Rio Negro survivors live in conditions of endemic poverty, discrimination and trauma in "Pacux", a relocation community, still fighting for justice and reparations.  This is the story of one survivor.

GOLDCORP MINING IN GUATEMALA AND THE SHOOTING OF DIODORA HERNANDEZ:

Two Years Later and Still No Justice Done

Al Jazeera, October 25, 2012

http://rightsaction.org/action-content/goldcorp-mining-interests-and-shooting-diodora-hernandez-two-years-later-and-still-no

BROKEN ANVIL - HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS PUSH FOR WASHINGTON INVESTIGATION:

Annie Bird of Rights Action discusses the May 11, 2012, U.S.-D.E.A. “Ahuas” killings of 4 civilians, in north-eastern Honduras , as part of the “war on drugs”

http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=9025

COLLATERAL DAMAGE OF A DRUG WAR:

The May 11 Killings in Ahuas and the Impact of the U.S. War on Drugs in La Moskitia , Honduras

By Annie Bird and Alexander Main, with contributions from Karen Spring

August 2012, http://rightsaction.org/sites/default/files//Ahuas_Report_120815.pdf

DEFENSORA

By Rachel Schmidt, 5 minute trailer: www.defensorathefilm.com

Defensora documents the Mayan Qeqchi people's struggle, in eastern Guatemala , to reclaim their ancestral lands, to promote community development and environmental well-being, and to seek justice and remedy for the murder, shootings and rapes committed against them by Canadian mining companies in Guatemala .

GOLD FEVER

Trailers: http://www.gprojectfilm.org/video

Gold Fever addresses gold mining and global impunity in Guatemala .  In the film, Noam Chomsky asks: Is it proper "to benefit from over half a century of repression, violence, destruction, and elimination of democracy"?  Goldcorp Inc. continues to mine relentlessly in San Miguel Ixtahuacan, despite 8 years of documented health and environmental harms and other human rights violations.  Investors across North America - from public pension funds to private equity capital - profit from their investments, with no apparent concern for how the profits are made.

HOW CANADA HELPED MAKE HONDURAS THE VIOLENCE AND IMPUNITY CAPITAL OF THE WORLD

By Grahame Russell, September 6, 2012

http://rabble.ca/news/2012/09/honduras-violence-and-impunity-capital-world

MILITARIZING THE POLICE AND KILLING NATIVES:

How The US Drug War Is Ripping Honduras Apart

August 29, 2012, By Annie Bird

http://www.alternet.org/world/militarizing-police-and-killing-natives-how-us-drug-war-ripping-honduras-apart?page=0%2C0

MINING, REPRESSION AND THE RHETORIC OF DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW IN GUATEMALA

By Grahame Russell, August 13, 2012

http://rabble.ca/news/2012/08/mining-repression-and-rhetoric-democracy-and-rule-law-guatemala

DRUGS AND BUSINESS:

Central America Faces Another Round of Violence

by Annie Bird, March 2012

https://nacla.org/article/drugs-and-business-central-america-faces-another-round-violence

JUSTICE DELAYED 30 YEARS IN GUATEMALA

By Grahame Russell & Lauren Carasik, January 4, 2012

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/01/20121394150158844.html

Over 440 men, women and children were massacred to make way for the Chixoy dam - a World Bank and IDB “development” project.

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TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATIONS (in Canada and the U.S. )

To support this work, make check payable to "Rights Action" and mail to:

• UNITED STATES:  Box 50887 , Washington DC , 20091-0887
• CANADA:  ( Box 552 ) 351 Queen St. E , Toronto ON , M5A-1T8

CREDIT-CARD DONATIONS can be made (in Canada and U.S. ): http://www.rightsaction.org/tax-deductible-donations

• be a monthly credit card donor ( Canada and U.S. )
• to donate stock, contact: info@rightsaction.org

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THANK-YOU

Grahame Russell and Annie Bird, co-directors
info@rightsaction.org

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