On July 18, several leading civil society organizations along with the mayor of San Miguel Ixtahuacán unanimously decided to conduct direct consultations with community members regarding the impacts of the Marlin Project, an operation of Canadian company Glamis Gold, Ltd. in the department of San Marcos. The Guatemalan government awarded Glamis a license to practice open-pit mining for gold and silver and to use up to 250 liters of water per hour from the local aquifer according to the organization, Instancia Maya MAM AJPOP. The consultations will allow Maya Mam community members to voice their concerns to local government officials in the process outlined by International Labor Organization Convention 169 and may give the people leverage to stop the project.
However, indigenous Sipakapense in the neighboring community of Sipacapa conducted similar consultations regarding the Marlin Project one month ago, and have yet to hear from the Guatemalan Ministry of Mines. According to the Resource Center for the Americas, as reported by the Guatemala News and Information Bureau, Sipakapense community leaders have since faced human rights abuses and harassment.
