Lula Bows to Wall Street: Brazil’s New “Leftist” President Moves Right to Keep U.S. Happy

By Asad Ismi Forty years after Brazil’s last leftist government was overthrown in a U.S.-backed military coup, the left appeared to have regained power there on January 1 when Luiz Inacio (“Lula”) da Silva, the candidate for the left-leaning Workers’ Party (PT), was inaugrated as President. Lula won the national elections last October in a […]

1. Reckless Lending

Volume II How Canada’s Export Development Corporation Puts People and the Environment at Risk BY THE NGO WORKING GROUP ON THE EXPORT DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION A WORKING GROUP OF THE HALIFAX INITIATIVE COALITION, Ottawa, May 2001 This publication has been a collaborative research effort by: Asad Ismi and five other writers (see author list on page […]

“Toxic Bob” Wastes Burma: Forced Labour and Pollution Rampant at Canadian-Owned Mine

By Asad Ismi According to a recent report, Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., a Canadian company owned by Robert Friedland, is “raping the environment” and using forced labour in Burma. Ivanhoe operates the US$90 million Monywa copper mine, Burma’s largest mining investment, in a 50-50 partnership with the Burmese military dictatorship (known as the State Peace and […]

Profiting From Repression: Canadian Firms in Colombia Protected by Military Death Squads

By Asad Ismi Since 1990, 35,000 Colombians have been killed in a horrific escalation of political violence. An average of ten political assassinations are reported every day. Colombia’s state security forces and their paramilitary allies have been responsible for the vast majority of these killings. Many paramilitary death squads have been created by the Colombian […]