STOP Mining Tibet!

Tibet is situated on a vast, high altitude plateau between India and China. Tibet, roughly the size of Western Europe (covering some 2.5 million square kilometers), existed as a sovereign nation for over two thousand years. In 1949/50 Tibet's independence came to an end when the Chinese government illegally invaded. Since then, Tibetans have struggled under the Chinese government's brutal regime in Tibet, which has claimed over 1 million lives. There are hundreds of political prisoners inside Tibet today and Tibetans who speak out against this state sponsored repression face arbitrary arrest, detention and even execution.

Since the invasion and occupation of Tibet, Tibetans have been denied their internationally recognized right to determine the use of their own natural resources.

The recent rush of Canadian junior mining companies to engage in exploratory drilling and mine operations in Tibet has sounded the alarm bells for Tibetans and Tibet support groups, both locally and around the world. If the currently proposed mines are not stopped, Canadian mining companies will have opened the floodgates for other foreign owned mining companies to strip the country and its people of their resources.

Students for a Free Tibet is calling on Canadian companies to cease operations and exploration in Tibet until the Tibetan people can freely determine the use of their own resources - particularly non renewable resources.

In 1999, the Chinese government launched the "Western Development Strategy", politically motivated plan designed to further consolidate control over Tibet through economic rather than military means. Claiming that the plan will bring "development" and "prosperity" as well as "national unity" to the region, million dollar investments have been made in large scale transportation and communication infrastructure, most notably the construction of the China-Tibet railway and major extractive projects like mine operations and oil pipelines.

The Western Development Strategy is threatening the survival of Tibetan identity and cultural in more subtle but equally destructive ways as overt force. The relocation of millions of ethnically Chinese settlers into Tibet and the exploitation of Tibet's mineral resources to feed China's industrial provinces along the Eastern seaboard are two central components of the plan. The Chinese government has been promoting Tibet to foreign owned mining companies who have the technical expertise and capitol to invest in Tibet's isolated and difficult mining environment. Teaming up with experienced foreign firms is also a way for the Chinese state owned companies to raise their competitiveness in the world markets.

Large scale development in Tibet has rarely benefited Tibetans and mining in this context will likely flood the area with Chinese workers, further marginalizing Tibetans economically, culturally and politically while hastening the plundering of Tibetans natural wealth. Increased investment in resource extraction projects in Tibet places increased pressure on Tibet's fragile eco-system and further assimilates its people and culture.

Canadian companies have no business profiting from China's colonization of Tibet.

Many of the Tibetan communities found near the proposed mining sites rely on agricultural based economy. Mine operations will destroy grazing lands, negatively impacting the livelihood of local residents. In some cases the desecration of lands cause by mine construction will force entire villages to be relocated.

Most concerning is the discovery of gold and copper deposits in areas of intensive land use, in central Tibet and near the Sino-Tibetan border. These regions already support greater concentrations of Tibetans and agricultural practices are intensive, involving steep hillsides and other marginal areas. The increased pressure from a growing non Tibetan immigrant population is likely to have a disastrous effect on the region and lead to potential conflict between Tibetan and non Tibetan residents.

In addition, much of the copper and gold is found in conjunction with arsenic-laden pyrite, a kind of rock formation. The arsenic is released when the desired metals are extracted. Arsenic poisoning caused by human use of groundwater has already become a major health hazard in many areas of Asia. The Tibetan plateau is the source of headwaters of several great rivers of Asia, and contamination of these waters would affect millions of people locally and downstream.

Are Tibetans being consulted about the extraction of their own natural resources? China asserts it gained control over Tibet’s land and natural resources after illegally occupying the previously independent nation in 1949/50.

Since 1959 Tibetans have been denied the right to determine the use of their own natural resources. The United Nationals has recognized the Tibetan peoples' rights to self determination which includes the right to own, develop, and control the use of their land and resources. Tibetans have been routinely denied these rights. (United Nations General Assembly Resolutions 1353, 1723, 2079)

The following conditions must be met before a foreign owned company engages in any form of mining related activity in Tibet to ensure the rights of the local communities are respected.

• Free, Prior and Informed consent is given by communities who would be affected by the proposed development before commencing operations.
• Consultation, on a short and long-term basis, with the Tibetan Government-in-Exile as the legitimate representative of the Tibetan people.
• Continued environmental, social, and cultural integrity of the area affected by mine operations on both a short and long-term basis.

The Canadian companies currently involved in Tibet have failed to fulfill these conditions and should immediately cease operations and withdraw from Tibet.

The Tibetan Government in Exile (TGIE), the true representative voice of the Tibetan people, has developed guidelines for international investment in Tibet. The guidelines state that any project should ensure that Tibetans are fully and freely consulted, with local Tibetan people agreeing that it provides benefit to them. The key aspects of the policy are listed below.

TGIE calls on potential investors in Tibet to ensure:

• That projects have consulted local Tibetan people.
• That projects have fully investigated social, environmental and cultural impacts.
• That projects will benefit Tibetans.
• That the working language of any project is Tibetan.
• That projects do not deplete natural resources with little or no benefit to the Tibetan people.
• That projects do not facilitate the migration and settlement of non-Tibetans into Tibet.
• That projects do not transfer ownership of Tibetan land and resources to non-Tibetans.
• That projects do not facilitate large-scale, capital-intensive and commercial projects.

"Corporate social responsibility" is more important than ever to ordinary Canadians and the global community. Failure to protect the environmental, social and human rights of the local communities where these companies do business threatens the operations, investment climate, economic viability and reputation of participating companies.

The mining industry itself fully realizes its responsibilities to the communities in which they work. These are the principles by which members of the Mining Association of Canada judge a "responsible approach to social, economic and environmental performance". Furthermore, "our actions must reflect a broad spectrum of values that we share with our employees and communities of interest, including honesty, transparency and integrity".

• Respect human rights and treat those with whom we deal fairly and with dignity.
• Respect the cultures, customs and values of people with whom our operations interact.
• Support the capability of communities to participate in opportunities provided by new mining projects and existing operations.

-Towards Sustainable Mining Guiding Principles, Dec 2004

The global mining industries most recent response to these issues was the Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development Project (MMSD) that acknowledged the basic principles that civil society has been demanding of mining:

"Mineral activities must ensure that the basic rights of the individuals and communities affected are upheld and are not infringed upon. These include the rights to control and use land, to clean water, to safe environment, and to livelihood; the right to be free from intimidation and violence; the right to be fairly compensated for loss. The interests of the most vulnerable groups must be protected."

-Breaking New Ground, MMSD (International Institute for Environment and Development)