Imperial Canada Inc.: Legal Haven of Choice for the World's Mining Industries

by Alain Deneault, William Sacher

Asks (and answers) the simple question: why is Canada home to more than 70% of the world's mining companies?

Genres: Canada, History

256 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 28, 2012

About the author

Alain Deneault est titulaire d'un doctorat de philosophie de l'Université de Paris-VIII et enseigne aujourd'hui la sociologie à l'UQAM. Il est l'auteur d'une dizaine d'ouvrages qui ont fait débat.

Reviews

[Eviatar · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, I respect enormously the authors' courage and persistence in publishing this book. A previous book of theirs, Noir Canada (in French, there is a Spanish translation but no English)—also about Canadian mining—resulted in lawsuits of $11 million by two mining companies, Barrick Gold and Banro Corporation. The lawsuits have been widely considered to be SLAPPs, strategic lawsuits against public participation, designed to silence and intimidate critics. While the publisher was forced to stop publishing Noir Canada and Deneault had to go through years of exhausting legal procedures, he considers the ordeal a political victory for bringing attention to the issues. (There is a documentary, Silence is Gold , about this episode.)

According to Deneault, this book is a condensed version of Noir Canada, omitting many of the details while retaining its essential arguments. Noir Canada deals specifically with Canadian mining activities in Africa and details human rights abuses linked to them; Imperial Canada Inc. is sparse in descriptions of specific abuses. This is not necessarily a flaw, since whole books could be written about human rights and environmental abuses caused by Canadian mining companies in Latin America, Africa, and even North America, Eastern Europe, and Asia (MiningWatch Canada is a good resource). Imperial Canada Inc. focuses on the question, "Why is Canada home to 75 percent of the world's mining companies?" There are three chapters, "The Argument", "The History", and "A Case Study".

The first gives an exposition of the reasons thought to contribute to Canada being the world's mining capital. This was the most interesting to me, as it discussed the Canadian government's support of the industry through its most terrific crimes, such as obtaining mining concessions from belligerents during the Second Congo War, a conflict which left five million dead. There is information, too, about Canada's anemic legal framework for holding mining companies accountable for abuses they commit abroad, and the institutions through which the government funnels public money to the industry.

The second chapter provides a history of speculation on Canadian stock exchanges. The authors contend that speculation on mining stocks often drove the "real economy" (that is, led to extraction of resources), and that the system was designed to make speculation easy. A litany of cases of fraud and subsequent weak excuses for reform are provided. Despite having no background in economics the chapter was understandable and interesting, especially for contradicting some of the founding myths of Canada and exposing the early political class as speculators in the railroad business.

The third chapter focuses on Quebec, claiming it to have been fashioned to be the exemplar of ultra-permissive mining regulation. Tax evasion is rampant, and it is a shocking fact that there companies can acquire rights to underground mineral resources regardless of who owns the land surface. The provincial and federal government's support for asbestos mining in Quebec, despite being a known carcinogen, is also explored. Shameful cases of damage to First Nations communities are put in a broader context, with the authors claiming that Canada has never truly discarded its colonial institutions.

Overall the book is a bit disjointed. It is a critical book, however, at a time when Canadian mining is wreaking havoc and misery on much on the Third World.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

KKKanada

[AJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

An important story about the injustices perpetretated by the mining industry in its projects outside Canada, particularly in Latin America and Africa. And the complicity of federal and provincial governments, along with investors which include pension funds. The only drawback was the sweeping rhetoric sometimes used whereas a more measured tone might have been more persuasive.

[Brayden Hammond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Important reading for Canadians who are unaware of our country’s imperial relationship with the Global South.