“Outside the country, Colom recognizes himself as a social democrat, but we know that he represents the right wing and that his economic policy is focused on favouring the interests of transnational corporations”, said Daniel Pascual, member of the Mayan Waqib Kej National Coordination, one of the organizations that opposes Perenco´s license.

In an interview with Real World Radio, Pascual warned that the activities of the corporation, present

in the country for decades, will have an impact on “one of the lungs of the world” and on the sacred temples of the Mayan civilization.

“President Colom had said that he wasn´t going to grant new exploitation licenses, but he decided to ignore his promises and give in to the demands of transnational companies”, said Pascual. In addition, he said that only 1 per cent of Perenco´s profits will stay in the country.

The indigenous organization supports the legal actions brought by environmentalist groups to stop Perenco, and stated that they will also take legal actions to make the government respect international recommendations to suspend Marlin mine´s operations.

Photo: http://www.viacampesina.org