CANADA: Gov't Urged to Rein in Mining Sector
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40353

by Am Johal, IPS News
December 7th, 2007

Canadian mining companies continue to come under scrutiny from civil society organisations for international human rights violations and environmental damage that critics say the Canadian government has done little to check.

Canada is a leader in the global mining industry, with almost 60 percent of the world's listed exploration and mining companies. The government supports some foreign mining activity through Export Development Canada, a federal agency.

For Immediate Release – November 7, 2007

International Appeal for the Publication of the Final Report of the Ministerial Commission on the Review of Mining Contracts in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Tapping the Veins of the World

McGill Daily
Thursday, October 4th, 2007 | Volume 97, Number 10

By Arthur Phillips and Dave Schecter

In a recent speech at McGill University, former Canadian Prime Minister Joe Clark proclaimed that the world needs more Canada. Which version of Canada was he talking about - the romantic view of Canada as a benevolent force in international affairs, or the overseas extractive industry?

People’s Tribunal Examines World Bank Influence in India
Over sixty social movements, unions, academics, and local NGOs gathered for four days in New Delhi to examine how decades of World Bank policies and projects have affected the country’s economic and social landscape. Testimony, evidence, and research were heard by a 15 member jury of prominent activists, community leaders, retired justices, and academics in an effort to comprehensively assess the costs and benefits of World Bank assistance.

Mining Abroad 'Morally Wrong': MPs

■ Alexa McDonough and British MP Steve Pound try to resurrect the call for Canada to enact social responsibility requirements.

By Chris Gillcash

NDP MP Alexa McDonough is calling on Canada to enact standards of corporate social responsibility in overseas mining operations following a trip to Honduras last week to investigate concerns that some Canadian companies working in Honduras are taking advantage of weak regulations and endangering local residents through environmental contamination.

Stop 'rogue' Canadian mining operations abroad, MP urges

Mike De Souza
CanWest News Service

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

OTTAWA - The federal government should immediately crack down on the unethical and destructive practices of Canadian mineral extraction companies that profit from weak laws and regulations in developing companies, NDP foreign affairs critic Alexa McDonough said Wednesday.

Wolfowitz Swept “Climate Change” Under the Rug at Bank
Documents released by the Government Accountability Project (GAP) reveal that Paul Wolfowitz, then World Bank President, personally intervened to remove the emphasis on climate change from a 2006 Bank report requested by the G8. The original report, entitled “Climate Change, Energy and Sustainable Development: Towards an Investment Framework” and endorsed by Bank vice-presidents, was later changed to “Clean Energy and Development: Towards an Investment Framework”.

Selecting a New IMF Director: Another One-Man Race?
Following the recent, controversial appointment of World Bank President Robert Zoellick - who was hand-picked by the US, despite calls for a more democratic selection process - all eyes are on the International Monetary Fund as it prepares to select a new Managing Director in September. At this early stage, US and EU support for the candidacy of former French Finance Minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn reveals their intent to preserve a selection process that all but guarantees the appointment of a European to the top post.

SELECTED ISSUES on INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

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Wolfowitz out, Zoellick in; Bank credibility AWOL

Speculation around Paul Wolfowitz’s successor as World Bank President quickly faded, as the US nominated Robert Zoellick, former US Deputy Secretary of State under Condoleeza Rice.

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