PASCUA LAMA: loosing an heritage
Natural resources are a big part of South Americas’ budget. Historically, many countries in South-America have based their economy on exportation. In Chile, president Salvador Allende tried to nationalize all the natural resources to permit a gain of profit to the nation. When Pinochet took the power with his army, all the nationalization’s project was thrown to the garbage. In decade that fallowed, we have seen that the country was getting poorer and poorer. Today, there is a big amelioration of the economy due to the new government who has adopted more protective economic law. The north-American company who wants to build a mine in Pascua Lama should not be allow by the Chilean government to execute the project. First, it would displace many families who need their land to survive and second, because it would not profit to the Chili’s population.
First, the project should not be accepted by the government because it would put many families in a precarious position. When Pinochet left the power, many North-American companies were forced to leave Chili and stop exploiting the population. The government that has fallowed Pinochet’s one gave back a hugh part of the cultivate land to the population. Since there is not many well remunerate work in Chili, all those families need their land to have food. The salary that a person wins in one week is not enough to survive in the rural part of Chile. If the miner company is has the permit to build the mine, all those families will be force to find a new house and a new cultivable land. They could also work for the miner company, but the salary they would get would never help them to feed all their family. We can also think that those families are attached to their land and it would be unethical to force them to leave.
Secondly, the miner company should not apply their project because it would not help the population. Has we have seen in the past, north-American companies are really good to take advantage of the naturals resources of «rising» countries. Of course, the investment of the company in the infrastructure of the mine would help the Chile to exploit their resources, but in that case the miner company would benefit of almost all the profits of the project. The richness of the country should belong to the country’s government would redistribute to all the population. We can also think that it would be unfair because the company is richer then the Chilean company. A Chilean company cannot invest as much as a north-American company in such a project. Chilien Companies have no chance to pierce the market if their government doesn’t give them priority. How can Chili’s economy be healthier if all the company are from stranger countries and are draining all the money out of the country?
To conclude, I’m against the project of the north-American miner company. A stranger company should not have the right to displace a population that does not consent. This project would put many families in a starving position. Secondly, the benefit of such a project should go to the Chilean government or at least to a Chilean company. Would Canada accept that a Frech company exploits its water? I don’t think so.
549 words.
