The First Protests
On 30 April 2005, just two months after President Vazquez and his government took power in Uruguay, a large group of 10,000-20,000 people (residents of Gualeguaychú and nearby, as well as environmental groups from Argentina) blocked the international Libertador General San Martín Bridge (between Gualeguaychú and Fray Bentos) protesting the installation of the pulp mills.
The protest gained importance and diplomatic weight, when the governor of Entre Ríos, Jorge Busti, stated his support for it, and in July the Argentine chancellor Rafael Bielsa went personally to Gualeguaychú to meet the residents.
In September 2005, the Center for Human Rights and Environment CEDHA, filed a complaint to the Compliance Advisory Ombudsman (CAO) of the World Bank (which oversees IFC project compliance with social and environmental norms). The CAO eventually released two reports Preliminary Report and Audit, the audit report was critical of the procedures the IFC followed pertaining to the project.
A draft cumulative impact study of the two mills by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank was released on 19 December. According to it, the technical requirements of the mills had been fulfilled and the quality of the water and the air in the region should not be harmed. The IFC said it would wait for further consultations to be made before finalizing the study and thus before financing the projects.
On 23 December, about 50 Gualeguaychú residents again blocked Route 136 and the General San Martín Bridge, using rubble, logs and vehicles. The block, slated for 8 a.m., started at 5 a.m., angering many drivers who were forced to take a detour to the next bridge, which goes from Colón to Paysandú. Later this bridge was blocked as well. Many Argentinians usually travel to Uruguay in the summer, beginning immediately before Christmas.
Read more about this topic: Pulp Mill Dispute
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