Access to justice and corporate accountability: a legal case study of HudBay in Guatemala

Abstract

This case study looks at the avenues open for addressing serious allegations of murder, rape and assault brought by indigenous Guatemalans against a Canadian mining company, HudBay Minerals. While first-generation legal and development policy reforms have facilitated foreign mining in Guatemala, second-generation reforms have failed to address effectively conflicts arising from the development projects. The judicial mechanisms available in Guatemala are difficult to access and suffer from problems of corruption and intimidation. Relevant corporate social responsibility policies and mechanisms lack the necessary enforcement powers. Canadian courts have been reluctant to permit lawsuits against Canadian parent companies; however, in Choc v. HudBay and Yaiguaje v. Chevron Corporation, Ontario judges have allowed cases to proceed on the merits of the case, providing an important, if limited, avenue toward corporate accountability.

Résumé

Cette étude de cas examine les stratégies qui s'offrent pour traiter les allégations de meurtre, de viol et d'agression formulées par des autochtones guatémaltèques contre une compagnie minière canadienne, la HudBay Minerals. Alors que les réformes légales et institutionnelles de « première génération » ont facilité l'extraction minière par des compagnies étrangères, les réformes de « deuxième génération », qui s'intéressent aux droits sociaux et aux droits de la personne, n'offrent pas encore de mécanismes fiables pour résoudre les conflits résultant des actions des entreprises. En effet, les règles qui définissent la responsabilité sociale des entreprises et les jugements des mécanismes internationaux qui interviennent lors de plaintes ne sont pas contraignants pour les états. Or, il est très difficile d'accéder aux mécanismes judiciaires du Guatemala, sans compter qu'ils sont affligés par des problèmes de corruption et d'intimidation. En outre, les cours canadiennes ont jusqu'ici été réticentes à autoriser des actions légales contre les compagnies mères canadiennes. Cependant, dans Choc v. HudBay et Yaiguaje v. Chevron Corporation, la Cour supérieure ontarienne a permis ces cas a procéder, s'il pourraient s'avérer une voie intéressante pour bien établir la responsabilité sociale des entreprises.

Keywords:

• mining
• Latin America
• Chevron
• HudBay
• corporate social responsibility

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the following students for research assistance: Justin Dharamdial, Sarah Molyneaux, Sara Rohani and James Roundell. This article is an initiative of the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project at Osgoode Hall Law School.

Notes

1 See also North and Young (2013) and Keenan (2013).

2 This section is based in part on Imai, Mehranvar, and Sander (2007), section II.

3 At the time it was called International Nickel Company. It officially changed its name to INCO in 1976 (see McFarlane 1989).

4 Carlos Arana Osorio was elected as president in 1970, in what was referred to by McFarlane as a “fraudulent election”. Upon his election, Arana stated that he would, if necessary, “turn the country into a cemetery in order to pacify it” (McFarlane 1989, 130).

5 For example, Oliverio Castañeda de León, a member of the University Student Association, was machine-gunned to death in broad daylight in front of hundreds of witnesses, including police. The police did not attempt to chase or arrest the shooters (Gerardi 1998).

6 Note that the first evictions in November took place without a court order, which is required by Guatemalan law (Paley 2007).

7 HudBay Minerals has indicated that the Canadian dollar is the company's functional currency. See Audited annual financial statements – English, HudBay Minerals, dated 19 February 2014. All references to dollar amounts in relation to HudBay Minerals, unless otherwise specified, refer to Canadian dollars.

8 The recent conviction at first instance of Ríos Montt, Guatemala's former military leader, in Guatemalan Courts for genocide and crimes against humanity during the civil war represents an important step in Guatemala's fight against impunity (UN News Center 2013a). However, the verdict was annulled by the Constitutional Court a few days later (UN News Center 2013b).

9 For photos of Lote 9 see University of Northern British Columbia (2008).

10 Fontierras or “Fondo de Tierras” is a state entity responsible for keeping a registry of land titles.

11 The courts of first instance, or trial courts, are referred to this way, so that the Ninth Judge of the Civil Trial Court refers to a judge at the Civil Trial level.

12 For a description of litigation in Canada and the Interamerican system, see North and Young (2013).

13 Much of the conflict in and around Junin between farmers, the security forces, and the mining community has been filmed by Malcolm Rogge in his documentary film, Under Rich Earth (see the website at http://underrichearth.ryecinema.com/?page_id=114).

14 There is significant support for legislation in Canada that would provide accountability for the activities of extractive industries in other countries, but attempts at a legislative solution have not been successful. For a full discussion, see Kamphuis (2012).

15 Author's translation. Original: “Appliquer notre droit à des situations à l'extérieur de notre territoire est contraire à nos conceptions; mais il y a des actes tellement répugnants qu'ils doivent nous forcer à revoir nos conceptions du droit. Au XVIIIe siècle, la piraterie posait une telle menace qu'on pouvait juger les pirates sans égard au lieu de leurs crimes”.

Additional information

Biographical notes

Shin Imai is counsel to the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project, which attempts to make Canadian mining companies accountable for human rights abuses in Latin America. He practised at Keewaytinok Native Legal Services in Moosonee, and with the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General in Toronto before joining the faculty of Osgoode Hall Law School in 1996.

Bernadette Maheandiran is a board member of the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project. She is presently an associate with Swadron Associates, a social justice firm located in Toronto.

Valerie Crystal is a third-year law student at Osgoode Hall Law School. She works as a research assistant with the Justice and Corporate Accountability Project. In August 2014, she will begin a clerkship at the Ontario Court of Appeal.