Public meeting in Thessaloniki, Saturday 1
November: Mining in Skouries: Does Eldorado Gold really
generate income for Greece?
On Saturday 1 November, SOMO and Hellenic
Mining Watch will organize a public
meeting to present the preliminary findings of SOMO’s report, titled Eldorado Gold: The role of Dutch mailbox
companies in tax avoidance and human rights violations in Greece. Canadian
company Eldorado Gold has plans for mining projects in Northern Greece that are
of pharaonic proportions. But who benefits and who loses from mining in Greece?
SOMO’s research shows that Eldorado Gold’s profits are most Iikely shifted out
of Greece to Barbados.
Since 2011, local communities around the Skouries
mine have been actively protesting against the contamination of the soil and
ground water with toxic heavy metals and the deforestation caused by open-pit
mining. While mining will provide some jobs, many more jobs will be lost in the
tourism, farming, fishing, beekeeping sectors that communities rely on - all of
which depend on a clean environment. Communities have not been consulted before
the project approval was granted and have systematically been denied information about the
company's operations. Eldorado seems to be a classic example of how the
private sector gains, whilst the public loses out from the current tax and
investment framework.
This triggered an
investigation by Amsterdam-based research centre SOMO on possible tax avoidance
by Eldorado Gold, a common issue in other parts of the world as well. In Zambia
for example, campaigners have exposed that only two of eight foreign mining
companies have reported any profits for years. What does this mean for the
legitimacy of the presence of mining companies in the area? Thereby, the report
also looks at the human rights impact of Eldorado Gold in Greece. Both direct
civil rights violations, such as repression by the police, and potential
environmental impacts are taken into account.
Speakers
will present and debate with the audience different elements of the report.
After a presentation of the key preliminary findings, Jamie Kneen from
MiningWatch Canada will give a presentation on Canadian mining companies and
human rights, and Patrick Kryticous Nshindano from ActionAid Zambia will give a
presentation on the impacts of extractive industry and their lack of financial
contribution to the countries of the South. During the afternoon, workshops on
public loss of the extractive industry, how to fight mega mining projects and
how to use research to fight corporate misconduct will be hosted.
Practical Information
Date: 1 November 2014
Time: 10am - 3pm
Place: City Hall, Vasileos Georgiou &
Tritis Septemvriou str., Thessaloniki.
Languages:
Greek/English (translation will be available)
Free
Entrance
Εvent
supported by SOSTE TO NERO.
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