Honduras: Mining reform under threat

Keith Hill MP visits open-cast mines in Honduras [Carlos Alberto Ramos O.]

Keith Hill MP backs CAFOD’s call to the Honduran government not to water down new mining laws, which have reached a critical stage of debate in its Congress

Former minister Keith Hill has stepped up his support of the need for new mining laws in Honduras, as the debate over their future hots up.

This law is currently being debated by the Honduran Congress and, after being first proposed in 2000, it has now reached a critical stage.

Last year, Keith Hill saw for himself the problems faced by communities displaced by open-cast mining when he visited CAFOD partners in Honduras.

He also met with Honduran political leaders as part of a delegation of UK and Canadian MPs, and joined CAFOD’s Tom O’Connor lobbied Honduran ambassador Ivan Romero Martínez in London last month.

“There is no doubt about the rightness of the cause we are here to promote,” he says.

”The existing law essentially allows for the exploitation of the entire country without exception, unlimited use of water by mining companies and access to private land without permission.”

Campaign progress now at risk

Caritas Honduras, with support from CAFOD’s Unearth Justice campaign, have been pressing for law reform for eight years. Campaign actions and solidarity from campaigners in England and Wales have added strength to these calls for change.

But this progress is under threat.

Vital sections of the proposed law have been dropped by the president of the parliamentary commission overseeing the reform, despite earlier promises that these areas would definitely be included.

Sections on banning open-cast mining, the most environmentally damaging mining method, and on using toxic chemicals such as cyanide and mercury have been deleted.

These changes fly in the face of public opinion: a recent poll shows that 70% of the Honduran population would support a ban on open-cast mining.

Pressure from the UK is particularly important now, so that years of campaigning do not go to waste.

Ambassador’s support for campaign

Ambassador Martínez agreed with the points raised by Keith Hill MP and CAFOD and expressed a desire to work together in future.

He promised to raise the concerns at the highest level – with the Honduran President and Foreign Minister.

Caritas Honduras will also be using the positive results of this meeting as they try to gain the backing of individual congress members for mining reform that puts people and the environment above business interests.

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