In the geopolitical imagination of the Caribbean, Haiti is often portrayed as a territory with an almost mythical mining potential. From the U.S. occupation of 1915 to contemporary debates about economic development, the narrative of a “country sitting on a gold mine” has been recurrent. However, the current reality is far from this fiction.
When Haiti is showcased on international media, it is almost always associated with the same words: crisis, violence, poverty, or disaster. In the public imagination, the country is often portrayed as a territory condemned to permanent instability.
Yet the historical and political reasons that help explain this image are rarely discussed.
All communities have the right to defend their territories, livelihoods and the wellbeing of the people and the earth.
All communities have the right to say no to mining.
Belém, Brazil – As global leaders prepare to gather for COP30, communities from across the world are calling out the human rights crisis driven by mining. Yes to Life, No to Mining (YLNM) members from the Philippines, Ecuador, and Brazil are standing together to expose the violence, criminalisation, and impunity faced by those who defend their lands, waters, and ways of life.
Belém, Brazil – As governments and corporations rush to brand mining as part of the “green transition”, communities from across the globe are calling it what it is: extractivism, the same colonial system of exploitation repackaged in the language of climate action.