The World Bank considers a Canadian company
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This week [May 3], hearings began at the World Bank in a case that pits the community of San Isidro, El Salvador against the powerful Canadian mining corporation Pacific Rim. After seeing the effects of mining on other communities in their country, the people of San Isidro began waging a campaign against Pacific Rim, committing acts of civil disobedience like blocking the roads so the vehicles and equipment couldn’t enter the El Dorado gold mine. And after five years of grassroots organizing, the community successfully pressured their government to revoke the company’s mining permit. But Pacific Rim had a backup plan. They purchased a shell company in Reno, Nevada so that theycould sue El Salvador under the Central American Free Trade Agreement for loss of profit. Alice Ollstein has more.
