Chile Information Project -- "Santiago Times" -- Political, Environment, Human Rights, Economic News
May 14, 1997
May 14, 1997
*
HEADLINE: TOMPKINS FACES DEATH THREATS
Says He Won't Give Up Pumalin Park Project
KEYWORDS: ENVIRONMENT; POLITICS
SOURCE: LA EPOCA
TEXT: U.S. ecologist/businessman Douglas Tompkins said Tuesday he
will persist in the creation of the Pumalin Park wildlife reserve in
southern Chile in spite of death threats and an orchestrated
campaign against the project.
Speaking at a press conference Tuesday morning and
accompanied by leaders of Chile's most important environmental
groups, Tompkins said he was working very hard to have his park
project approved by Frei administration officials and that he will
meet with Secretary General to the President Juan Villarzu May 21 in
an effort to secure the government's approval.
Tompkins began buying land in Region X about five years ago
with plans to turn the property into an ecological park. He now owns
300,000 hectares. He said he will soon make another request of the
National Monuments Board that the park be declared a nature
sanctuary. His previous requests have been ignored. Once the park
is complete, Tompkins says, he will turn it over to a private Chilean
foundation.
The self-styled philanthropist said Tuesday his efforts have
been subjected to a "campaign of accusations and harassment." He
has been accused of building a hidden landing strip, trying to
purchase the island of Huafo and of pressuring residents in the park
area to sell their land at low prices, accusations he denies.
His attorney Pedro Pablo Gutierrez attributed telephone death
threats against his client and graffiti such as "Get Out Tompkins" and
"Die Tompkins" to nationalist movements with a nazi philosophy.
These groups have also traveled through the southern zone and his
properties attempting to whip up xenophobia against him.
Much of the harassment, however, has come from government
bodies and officials, he said. Tompkins did not name names on
advice from his lawyer, instead limiting his remarks to a prepared
statement. But Sara Larrain, director of the environmental grou
Renace, did not demur. She said Tompkins has been subjected to
frequent reviews of his passport by Investigations Police, pursuit by
the Internal Revenue Service, telephone taps and low flybys by Air
Force jets.
Tompkins' attorney said he has reported the incidents to the
Ministry of the Interior.
Asked why he continues with his plan in face of all the
difficulties, Tompkins said, "It's an accident of my destiny. Various
friends of the ecological movement are interested in preserving the
forest. I fell into this by accident; first I bought some land to
preserve it, then there were other lots available."
*
HEADLINE: CURRENT EVENTS BRIEFS
KEYWORDS: POLITICS; ECONOMY; INTERNATIONAL; ENVIRONMENT
SOURCE: EL MERCURIO
SOURCE: LA EPOCA
TEXT: Today's other headline stories in brief:
-- JUDGE LINKED TO NARCOTRAFFICKING. A Santiago Appeals
Court judge may face prosecution for his alleged collaboration with
Mario Silva Leiva, the drug lord arrested last month for
masterminding an international cocaine sales operation based in
Santiago.
According to accounts leaked to the press, the investigation into
Silva Leiva's drug trafficking ring, which has been on-going for the
past two years, resulted in taped phone conversations between
Appeals Court prosecuting judge Santiago Marcial Garcia Pica and top
leaders of the Silva Leiva organization. Garcia Pica, 90, retired from
the court only last January because of health reasons.
Investigacions police chief Nelson Mery had hinted on at least
two occasions that investigations into the Silva Leiva drug ring could
lead to the prosecution of government and judicial officials believed
to have helped provide protection to the drug lord.
State Defense Council president Clara Szczaranski, in a
statement given to the press Tuesday, would not confirm judge
Garcia Pica's alleged involvement in the drug trafficking operation,
but did lament that secret information from official court files had
been apparently leaked to the media.
Beatriz Pedrals, the lead judge investigating the drug-
trafficking operation, confirmed that the scope of her investigation
had been widened, but would not comment on Garcia Pica's alleged
involvement.
In related news, the Belgium prosecuting attorney and Belgium
police officials working the case from Europe are in Chile to confer
with Chilean police and judicial officials.
-- SENATE COMMITTEE KILLS REFORM PROPOSAL. The Senate
Constitution and Justice Committee Tuesday blocked a bill intended
to repeal the the nine designated senator positions created by the
1980 Constitution passed during the military regime of Gen. Augusto
Pinochet. Three right senators opposed the proposal, including a
current designated senator, while two senators representing the
Concertacion voted in favor.
Renovacion Nacional (RN) Sen. Miguel Otero, who last year
supported the measure, ignored his party's call to approve the bill
and joined the two other senators in rejecting it. The RN's board of
directors had officially asked its members to vote for the proposal.
Interior Minister Carlos Figueroa expressed "frustration" at the
roadblock to government efforts to introduce constitutional reform.
He said the institutions currently mandated to appoint the
designated senators could become prey to highly partisan politics.
The 1980 Constitution provides that Supreme Court will
appoint three senators, the National Security Council (which has
strong participation by the Armed Forces) must appoint four and the
President appoints two designated senators.
Figueroa said the government will re-introduce the measure
eliminating the designated senators, for the fourth time, next year.
-- INTERNAL PDC DISPUTE APPARENTLY RESOLVED. Christian
Democratic Party (PDC) leader Dep. Gutenberg Martinez resolved
Tuesday to continue as a nominee for re-election as deputy from
Nunoa after a personal meeting Tuesday afternoon with the newly
elected PDC president Enrique Krauss.
Martinez only last Friday said he was resigning his re-election
candidacy because of unseemly and unwarranted questioning of the
candidate nomination process by the PDC's newly elected board of
directors.
Martinez and Krauss were both candidates for the PDC
presidency, with Krauss narrowly defeating Martinez May 4 in a run-
off election. The PDC candidate nomination process occurred under
auspices of the outgoing PDC board of directors. The Krauss camp
apparently felt that some of its partisans had been unfairly excluded
from the nomination process by the outgoing leadership and so
raised questions about the procedure.
After meeting with Martinez, Krauss later held a working
dinner with PDC deputies in an effort to resolve difficulties between
the new PDC leadership and its elected public officials. The
conciliatory efforts by Krauss have apparently resolved most of the
difficulties between the two camps.
*
HEADLINE: MINING OPERATIONS FAULTED FOR ARSENIC USE
Health Ministry Report Shows Alarming Incidence Of Cancer In
Region II
KEYWORDS: POLITICS; ENVIRONMENT
SOURCE: LA EPOCA
SOURCE: EL MERCURIO
TEXT: Dep. Guido Girardi (PPD) charged this weekend that Chile's
failure to implement environmental safeguards and to control
contamination is "killing the residents of Chile's northern mining
areas," according to statistical information developed by the Ministry
of Health in the late 1980s but only made public last week.
The data cited by Dep. Girardi, a physician, shows that the
relative risk of contracting lung cancer in Region II is 700 percent
greater than the same risk in Chile's southern regions, while the risk
of contracting bladder and liver cancers are 2,300 percent and 650
percent greater, respectively.
"This is another Chernobyl," Girardi said. "Something is
happening in the Region II mining area, and we all know that it
relates to arsenic." The deputy criticized the Health Ministry for
keeping its health data confidential and charged that the state-
owned Codelco has withheld data concerning the alarming health
consequences of Region II's mining development. The arsenic
content of dust and drinking water samples from northern Chile
exceed internationally accepted norms by alarming amounts, Girardi
said.
In 1995 the government instituted new arsenic control
regulations only to rescind them one week later because of the high
costs of implementation. Arsenic is an essential ingredient to the
processing of copper concentrates. The greatest concern is over
communities closest to mining operations, such as the town that has
been built around the Chuquicamata mine and the nearby
community of Calama. Small truck-farming operations in the area
are also in jeopardy, as well as the health and safety of indigenous
populations.
While arsenic contamination has been building for decades and
the state-owned Codelco's Chuquicamata Division is the
acknowledged worst long-time polluter, Girardi said that more
recently built mining operations are also contributing to the problem.
"Escondida has serious contamination problems, especially
regarding the use of the ocean as a receptacle for its concentrates
and waste products," said Girardi. "El Abra also has problems, and, of
course, Codelco."
In an interview in last Sunday's La Epoca , Girardi
acknowledged that Codelco has made advances in recent years, but
that a long pollution build-up means it is not enough. He blamed
environmental authorities for having no real policy regarding Region
II.
The Health Ministry report dates from 1987 to 1990, and was
authored by Dr. Maria Isabel Rivara and Dr. German Corey. While
arsenic is found naturally in northern Chile, northern Argentina and
southern Peru and Bolivia, the doctors say the increase in cancer
rates sky-rocketed since the 1950s when copper treatment processes
using arsenic were first introduced. The arsenic produced by the
copper treatment process is assimilated by humans either through
the air they breathe or by eating foods irrigated with water
containing arsenic.
In the La Epoca interview, Girardi also commented on the
pollution of the Loa River: "I think it is shameful that the Region II
mayor has the gall to say the contamination came from natural
sources when it is self-evident that it comes from mining sources,
especially Codelco. I have the studies made by the University of the
North about the levels of xanthates in the Loa River. This chemical is
not normally in the water, but it was found in the Loa River in
abnormal amounts..."
In a related matter, Girardi said mining companies are
disturbing the area's fragile water reserves, some of them non-
renewable. This will leave indigenous communities without water
for irrigation, he said.
Mining companies have not responded to the accusations.
*
HEADLINE: HISTORIC FILM PREMIERES TWO DECADES LATE
Filmmaker Patricio Guzman Says His Film Is Feared
KEYWORDS: CULTURE; POLITICS
SOURCE: LA EPOCA
TEXT: (Ed. Note: Filmmaker Patricio Guzman's "La Batalla de Chile"
("The Battle of Chile") revealed the brutal side of the military regime
before the eyes of the world, but 20 years after it was produced the
film still has not been viewed in Chile. Today the film premieres at a
documentary film festival hosted by the Goethe Institute. In the
following interview, Guzman reflects on the status of culture today).
Q: Why couldn't you show "La Batalla de Chile" here?
PG: They are afraid of me. They think that certain people will
get angry if my movies are seen. The forced consensus that sustains
the country hinges on the fact that no one moves and nothing can be
touched so that no one gets mad.
Q: What people might become angry?
PG: Pinochet and the military. In Spain a true transition was
not possible until Franco died and the same appears to be true in
Chile. Just think that filmmaker Ricardo Larrain completed a
documentary on Cardinal Raul Silva Henriquez over a year ago which
National Television will not show. With so much bureaucracy, so
much indecisiveness, nothing can be done in Chile. Not films, or
painting or anything.
Q: Why did you premiere "La Memoria Obstinada" ("The
Obstinate Memory") first when "La Batalla de Chile" still is unknown?
PG: Because "La Memoria Obstinada" makes reference to the
previous film and urges young people to see "La Batalla de Chile."
There is a hunger among young people to know about the recent
past. I think the premiere of "La Batalla de Chile" will be a landmark
event.
Q: Why?
PG: Only by confronting our traumas can we put them behind
us. Our memory cannot be buried. And a country without
documentary film is like a family without a photograph album. "La
Batalla Chile" has been distributed commercially in 35 countries,
received important awards, and it's time it is seen here.
Q: You have a critical perspective on cultural policy.
PG: What hurts me most is that businesspeople fail to
understand that investing in culture is a sure business. For example,
the work of Ricardo Larrain in "La Frontera" is the equivalent of an
entire embassy. Just as Justiniano's "Amnesia" or Perelman's
"Archipielago," comprise a far more effective diplomatic corps than
the official one. We need five or six of these films each year to
create an accurate image of the country abroad.
Q: Why do you think Chile is so far behind in culture?
PG: It's a matter of development. We need a modern state that
understands that film is a country's mirror... It is a great political
mistake not to invest in culture, because no country can forge an
external image with economic figures. It can be said that we are
doing fine and point to the figures, but that is not an image. The
image of Chile abroad is still La Moneda in flames. The government
is blind not to realize this.
*
HEADLINE: MINING NEWS ROUND UP
KEYWORDS: MINING
SOURCE: EL MERCURIO
SOURCE: EL DIARIO
TEXT: Today's mining news, as it appears in the national media:
-- UNITED STATES INVESTS IN CHILE'S MINING SECTOR. After
Canada, the United States is the second most important investor in
Chile's mining sector, according to statistics released by the
government' Foreign Investment Committee. U.S. companies have
invested US$4.5 billion in Chilean mining operations between 1974
and the end of 1996.
Leading U.S. investors in Chile include Phelps Dodge, 80 percent
owner of Candelaria; Cyprus-Amax, 51 percent owner of El Abra and
Exxon Minerals, owner of Minera Disputada de las Condes. Other top
U.S. firms are Homestake, Coeur D'Alene Mines Corp. (CDE).
-- ARGENTINE MINING SECTOR PROJECTS GROWTH. Argentina
expects to see mining exports grow to US$1.2 billion by the turn of
the century, says Argentine Mining Subsecretary Daniel Meilan.
Argentine mining exports totaled US$25 million in 1995, US$45
million in 1996 and are projected at US$275 million in 1997.
Meilan, who is currently in charge of negotiating a cross border
mining development treaty with Chile, said the expected rapid
increase will be one of the results of the successful negotiation of a
mining development treaty with Chile. Foreign investment in
Argentina's mining sector should total US$3.6 billion by the turn of
the century. US$400 million was invested in 1996 alone, he said.
Leading Argentina's mining sector will be the Bajo la
Alumbrera gold and copper mine, a US$1 billion project expected to
produce 20,000 kilos per year of gold and 180,000 mtpy of copper.
Regarding the cross border mining development treaty, Meilan
said negotiations should be concluded in time for the signing by
Argentine President Carlos Menem during his state visit to Chile
August 7 and 8. The treaty aims to eliminate tax, labor, legal and
other restrictions related to developing mining sites close to the
frontier separating Chile and Argentina, and has been three years in
the making. Mining development sites expected to benefit most
directly by the treaty include El Pachon, Pascua (Chile)-Lama
(Argentina) gold mine, Patagonia and Cerro Casale.
While Argentina will arguably benefit most from the new
treaty because of the relatively underdeveloped nature of its mining
sector, Chile will be ready to assist with valuable know-how and
mining expertise.
-- ESCONDIDA BEGINS WORK ON NEW OXIDE PLANT. Work on
the Escondida mine's new US$473 million oxide plant began Tuesday,
said company officials. The project has an expected lifetime of 14
years and will produce 125,000 mtpy of cathodes, pushing La
Escondida's total production close to the 1 million mtpy level.
Production at the new plant is slated to begin in early 1998, with full
capacity reached later that year.
-- DROUGHT CUTS PRODUCTION AT EL BRONCE. Company
officials at CDE's El Bronce gold and copper mine acknowledged
Monday that Chile's continued four year drought will most likely
lower copper production by some 20 percent in 1997. Production in
1997 had been projected at 65,000 ounces of gold.
Officials said that efforts to deepen wells to make more water
available for gold processing were not successful and that production
costs have risen sharply because of the drought. The mine is
currently operating with water rights brought from third parties.
*
HEADLINE: BUSINESS BRIEFS
KEYWORDS: ECONOMY; INTERNATIONAL; NAFTA
SOURCE: EL MERCURIO
SOURCE: EL DIARIO
TEXT: Today's top business stories:
-- FOREIGN CONSORTIUM AWARDED RAILWAY CONCESSION.
The consortium Ecovias 5, led by Spanish company Ferrovial, was
awarded a concession to build a railway line between Temuco and
the Rio Bueno, a section of the proposed Route 5 line which will
connect La Serena and Puerto Montt. Ferrovial has a 70 percent
stake in Ecovias 5. Competing interests for the concession included
the Infraestructura 2000 consortium led by Endesa and Spanish
company Sacyr.
Once the details of the contract offer are agreed upon, Ecovias 5
will start building the line and will have three years to complete the
project. The Temuco-Rio Bueno project is the consortium's second
project. Its first concession in Chile was the Talca-Chillan line of
Route 5, which is presently underway with the involvement of
Chilean construction company Delta and the minimal participation of
CB Infraestructura.
-- ELECTRIC SHUTDOWNS STOP PRODUCTION AT EL ABRA.
Electric shutdowns caused by a rainstorm in northern Chile closed
mining company El Abra for two days at the start of this week.
Production fell for Sunday May 11 and Monday May 12 by 100 tons.
The mine is 51 percent owned by Cyprus Amax and 49 percent by
Codelco.
-- ENAP SEEKING 50% OF TRANSGAS. Tenneco having
announced its decision to keep its share of the Transgas project, the
Empresa Nacional del Petroleo (Enap) said this week it hopes to gain
a majority share by buying the 30 percent owned by British Gas.
The Transgas project involves the construction of a gas pipeline
between Neuquen and Santiago to supply the central zone of Chile
with natural gas. Participants in the project included Tenneco and
British Gas, with a 30 percent share each, Enap (10 percent), YPF (10
percent) and Pluspetrol, Bridas, San Jorge and Astra with 5 percent
each.
In the middle of 1996, the principal shareholders announced
their decision to sell the property. In March of 1997, Enap
announced its intention to acquire a majority share of the property.
Because Tenneco opted to keep its share, Enap turned to British Gas.
-- BEIERSDORF WILL INCREASE PRODUCTION IN CHILE.
German cosmetics company Beiersdorf, makers of Nivea products,
will double its production capacity at its plant in Chile over the next
two years, the company announced Monday. Beiersdorf plans to
make Chile its production center in South America in preparation to
increase its overall presence in Latin America.
Presently, the plant annually produces 1,200 tons of cosmetic
products and between 200 to 300 tons of dermatological or skin-
treatment products.
Nivea is the world's best-selling line of cosmetics.
-- ARICA BOTTLER TO INVEST US$20 MILLION. The Arica
Bottling Company, which distributes the Coca Cola brand in Region I
of Chile and 95 percent of Bolivia, will invest US$20 million to
expand its operations in Bolivia by increasing production capacity
and improving infrastructure.
The company is planning to purchase a Bolivian franchise by
next year in the Trinidad region, which would mean a potential
customer base of 200,000. Coca Cola International, owner of the
franchise, will decide if the transfer will occur. The parent company
announced it is also evaluating the growth potential of markets in
Argentina, southwest Brazil and Paraguay for possible expansion in
those countries.
-- HOLDING COMPANY FORMED FOR SERENA MALL. Falabella
officially formed a consortium this week for the La Serena Mall
project located in the city of the same name in northern Chile.
Falabella sold 50 percent of the mall project to the other three
participants, Almacenes Paris, Tomas Furst and IM Trust in La
Serena. Construction of the mall will start before the end of 1997.
Falabella also increased its share of the Plaza Vespucio mall by
buying 50,353 shares of the project for US$2 million.
-- POLLO ARIZTIA BETS ON SMOKED MEAT. Chilean food
producer Pollos Ariztia predicts that demand for smoked poultry
meat (e.g. turkey sausages) will grown in the next few years. A
company official said that frozen and processed meat will lead the
chicken market while smoked sausages will lead the poultry meat
market.
The official added that poultry sausages represent 10 percent
of the poultry meat market and that Ariztia, with its Montina brand,
has a 50 percent share of the poultry sausage market, as well as a 5
percent share of the packaged meat market. The official added that
price reduction offers are common in the smoked poultry meat
market and that weekly offers are made for five percent to 25
percent discounts.
-- EDEGEL SIGNS CONTRACTS. Peruvian electric generating
company Edegel, an affiliate of Endesa, has signed two contracts
which will earn the company a total of US$135 million in the next 10
years. Edegel signed a 10-year contract with Siderurgica de Peru
(Siderperu) for its installations in Chimbote. The company will earn
US$120 million from the deal. It also signed a 10-year contract with
mining company Minas Buenaventura to provide its Uchuchacua
mine with electricity for US$15 million.
-- PHILIPS PROJECTS SALES OF US$200 MILLION IN 1997.
Electronics company Philips expects sales in Chile to reach US$200
million in 1997. The Chilean affiliate of the company sells
televisions, home appliances and audio and telecommunications
equipment. Philips says it is hoping to maintain the nine percent
sales growth it has had for the last few years.
The company recently launched its line of cellular telephone
products and expects to attain a 15 percent share of this market,
approximately 200,000 units.
-- GAS SUR PROJECT READY TO START. Gasco Concepcion CEO
Teodoro Wigodski said Tuesday that the GasSur gas pipeline project
has sufficient clients to get started. The GasSur project's aim is to
provide the southern area of Chile with natural gas by constructing a
gas pipeline between Concepcion and Neuquen. The project is
estimated to cost US$300 million, US$100 million of which will be
used to develop a distribution network and the rest to construct the
pipeline.
The project is equally owned by Gasco and the Nova
Corporation. The company Servicios de Gas Natural will operate a
distribution network attending to the needs of 50 industries
including refineries, fishing, forestry, paper pulp, glass, cement and
others.
The project's engineering design and environmental study will
be done in 1997 while construction will start in 1998 and operations
will commence in 1999.
*
-- BASIC ECONOMIC INDICATORS :
Dollar's value: Observed, 418.59; Accord, 462.37
Interbank, 418.60
Today's Unidad de Fomento, UF: $13,570.21
Copper Price: US$1.12
Stock Exchange: IGPA, Off 0.54% to 5347.28; IPSA, Off
0.76% to 119.56
*
