Rights Ignored
No commentsSkeptical but cautiously accommodating over the inclusion of forests as a mitigating tool for climate change, indigenous communities were dealt a serious blow when their rights as forest-dependent people were not upheld at the annual climate talks. Their request for an expert group to represent their views in the meeting was ignored.
The relatively large meeting room was packed to its capacity. Latecomers had to content with just sitting on the carpeted floor, or standing.
It was to be the first event on the sidelines of the recently concluded climate talks in Poland that dealt with the negative effects of the proposed forestry solution to climate change called the Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD).
Speaking in Spanish and aided by an interpreter, Victor Hugo Vela told the crowd of the problems faced by the Chiquotano tribe in Bolivia with the controversial Noel Kempff Mercado Climate Action Project.
Into its 11th year, the project is one of the earliest carbon sequestration schemes initiated by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) together with the government of Bolivia. It is projected to avoid emissions of 25 to 36 million tonnes of carbon dioxide during its 30 year period.
The buyers of the carbon credits are three United States energy companies — American Electric Power, PacifiCorp and BP Amoco. It is the largest project of its kind in the world and serves as a showcase for an innovative and cost-effective approach to abating greenhouse gas emissions.
Vela, however, said local communities were not allowed to practice their traditional way of life within the 1.5 million hectare tropical forest in the Santa Cruz province, northeast of Bolivia.
Vela was responding to TNC’s official defence that the project had benefitted indigenous people, including securing land titles for them.
“There are many problems with the project. We still have yet to see a cent though on paper we are supposed to get 20 per cent of the fund administered by TNC,” revealed the head of the Coordinating Body of Indigenous Organisations of Bolivia.
But more importantly, Vela said the 14,500 indigenous peoples that were affected were not consulted when the deal was signed with the previous government.
“We only found out two months ago about the contract and we tried to renegotiate the term but now we just want it to be cancelled. Our new president Evo Morales is of the opinion that there exists a historical ecological debt owed by developed countries that cannot be calculated by NGOs based on the carbon value in our forests,” he said to applause from the floor.
The controversial project is just one of many experiences shared by rural communities around the world that are facing increasing pressure created by the burgeoning carbon market in the 12-day meeting.
Skeptical but cautiously accommodating over the inclusion of forests as a mitigating tool for climate change, indigenous communities were dealt a serious blow when their rights as forest-dependent people were not upheld at the annual climate talks. Their request for an expert group to represent their views in the meeting was ignored.
On the penultimate day of the summit, the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand objected to the inclusion of recognition for indigenous rights in the official text of the REDD mechanism although most governments agreed that it is vital to avoid the anticipated problem of land-grab. These are the same countries that did not rectify the United Nations Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in 2007.
The decision sparked off an immediate protest denouncing REDD amid chants of ‘No Rights, No REDD’.
Witnessing the way indigenous peoples’ rights are undermined by the very States who took the lead in formulating and adopting the UN Declaration on Human Rights, 60 years ago, is a tragic thing, said Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
“These states are very keen to include REDD as part of the agreement on mitigation, which will be agreed in Copenhagen in 2009. However, they obstinately refuse to recognise the rights of indigenous peoples and other forest peoples, who are the ones who sacrificed life and limb to keep the world’s remaining tropical and sub-tropical rainforests.”
Tauli-Corpuz was advocating for indigenous communities to seize the opportunity to shape the design of the REDD mechanism from the onset and appealed to negotiators to respect UNDRIP.
