From January 25-28, our Guatemala Team led a delegation from Switzerland–including representatives from civil society groups and the Swiss Ambassador–to verify conditions in El Estor related to an illegal nickel mine threatening local Indigenous communities. This verification mission was organized by our team which arranged the meetings and connected the delegates directly to Indigenous Authorities and other community organizations in El Estor to hear their experiences first hand. Leaders shared their fears for the future of their communities as runoff from the mine continues to pollute Lake Izabal. The delegation also traveled to verify whether or not mining operations have actually been suspended.
You can read the full report here.