Canada: Embassy in Mexico accused of advocating on behalf of mining company whilst ignoring threats and attacks against opposition leader
“Murder of Mexican mining protester throws spotlight on role of Canada’s embassies”, 24th March 2019
…Opposition to the mine was led by two groups, one of which, the Mexican Network of People Affected by Mining, was led by Abarca…Abarca, along with two members of his family, was beaten at his home in the summer of 2008. The following summer he led a protest delegation to the Canadian Embassy in Mexico City. He was later detained by police following a complaint by Blackfire. In November 2009, he lodged his own complaint against the mining company, alleging that death threats had been made against him by Blackfire employees. Days later he was murdered…The review stems from a submission made…to Canada’s public sector integrity commissioner by the Justice and Accountability Project...The project’s co-lead is Shin Imai… “What we can determine” —…quoting from Imai’s text — “is that the Canadian Embassy acted in ways that appear to be contrary to government policies at that time…The Canadian Embassy ignored warnings that Mr. Abarca’s life and safety were in danger, while actively advocating on the company’s behalf with the government of the State of Chiapas. The second issue is whether the Canadian Embassy knew about, but did not report, suspicious payments made by the mining company into the personal bank account of a local politician.”…