Tag Archives: colombia

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For those of you who want to know what the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) will look like, particularly for countries in Latin America, you might want to read The Profits of Extermination: How U.S. Corporate Power is Destroying Colombia. Written by the president of a miners union in Colombia, this book looks at how multinational corporations have used the political process, the courts and military repression to siphon off some of Colombia’s natural resources. Equipped with maps, photos, analysis, and a first hand experience the author provides an excellent case study for anyone who wants a better understanding of what trade policies like NAFTA, CAFTA and the FTAA mean for the majority of those living in the Americas.

First Cuellar looks at what role international agreements have played in rewriting the mining laws of Colombia. The IMF and the World Bank both played a major role in changing the mining laws in the late 1990′s. These international financial institutions were acting on behalf of governments (primarily the US) and corporations like Occidental Petroleum, by offering the Colombian government certain incentives if the law was changed. The ultimate result was what the US/Colombia governments now call Plan Colombia, which despite the claim that it is an anti-terrorism plan, it is primarily a policy to benefit US-based multinationals. It is perhaps best summed up by Bill Richardson, Energy Secretary in the Clinton administration from 1998-2000, “The United States and its allies will invest millions of dollars in two areas of the Colombian economy, in the areas of mining and energy, and to secure these investments we are tripling military aid to Colombia.”

One of the major changes in the mining law was to extend mining concessions to corporations from the original 25 years to 90 years and granting foreign mining companies exclusive mining titles. The author then goes on to explain how miners organized to fight these changes. The result was massive military repression from both the Colombian army, but mostly through the paramilitary forces, which are fundamentally an extension of the government army, what Human Rights Watch calls the “Sixth Division.” Cuellar provides several specific examples of military repression in communities either resisting economic exploitation, or in some cases, communities that happen to be in close proximity to mineral extraction locations. In almost every instance the author claims that the military or paramilitary forces justify their actions by claiming that the villagers were guerillas or collaborating with the guerillas. In addition to outright massacres and assassinations, thousands of people have been displaced from mineral rich areas of the country.

The last part of the book talks about a specific campaign organized by the miner’s union (Sintramienergetica), a campaign that included a lawsuit against one US mining company Drummond. This Alabama-based company was “sued for conspiring with paramilitary groups to exterminate the union.” The campaign is very similar to the Stop Killer Coke Campaign, in that they seek to educate people about what Drummond is doing in Colombia and to gain support to hold Drummond accountable for its actions. The Profits of Extermination is a great resource for those who care about economic justice and want to participate in solidarity work in the Americas.

Aviva Chomsky and Francisco Ramirez Cuellar, The Profits of Extermination: How U.S. Corporate Power is Destroying Colombia, (Common Courage Press, 2005).