From the Editorial Office
Newspaper La Jornada
Tuesday, April 19, 2022, p. 4
It is positive that the Executive Power seeks to stop the dispossession of land and the privileges of mining companies, but the proposal to modify the mining law approved in the Chamber of Deputies is very limited, since it does not correct the content that violates various articles that have led to the handing over of territories to private parties, warned organizations from the Cambiémosla Ya collective.
Among the aspects that must be eliminated from this legislation are the nature of public utility and preference for mining, and the same should not be given to lithium, since it will lead to this activity being prioritized over the use of the land they carry out. communities in their territories, he said in a statement.
The group called on the legislators of both chambers to make effective the right to decide of the communities and peoples before the granting of mining concessions in their territories; to change the scheme and the abusive regime of the concessions that are granted for up to 100 years; remove the privileges of access to land and water that are granted to companies, and shield Protected Natural Areas, sacred and archaeological sites and those established in the Ramsar Convention against this activity.
In addition, the mining of precious metals with open pit techniques should be prohibited, as well as the use of cyanide and mercury in leaching processes, he said.
It is It is urgent that the Mexican State address structural discrimination in depth, comply with its obligations to respect, protect and guarantee human rights, and reverse the imbalance of power between the extractive sector and society
said the group, made up of CartoCrítica, the Sonora River Basin Committees, and Educa, among other organizations.
