OTTAWA,
ON, April 30, 2024 /CNW/ - Surging
violence surrounding Canadian mining projects in Ecuador should raise red flags for the
Canadian government as it commences trade talks with the Ecuadorian
government, MiningWatch Canada, the Canadian Centre for Policy
Alternatives, and Amnesty International Canada said Tuesday.
The organizations are concerned that a free trade agreement
could exacerbate a dire human rights situation in Ecuador. They shared their concerns and
recommendations in testimony to a study by Parliament's Standing
Committee on International Trade.
Canada has been clear that a
goal of the negotiations is to promote more Canadian mining
investment in Ecuador through a
"modern, ambitious and inclusive trade agreement." Yet community
organizations and Indigenous peoples in Ecuador who will be impacted have not been
consulted.
Human rights and Indigenous organizations in the South American
country are sounding the alarm about human rights violations linked
to existing Canadian projects.
On March 19, Ecuadorian human
rights organizations alleged police used rubber
bullets and tear gas to quell protests against Canadian mining
company Atico Resources' La Plata project, in Ecuador's central Cotopaxi
province. According to the Alianza de Organizaciones por los
Derechos Humanos (Alliance for Human Rights in Ecuador), at least 15 people were injured and
one remains in a coma. Over 70 people were charged on accusations
of terrorism to criminalize their legitimate protest.
The Indigenous-led protests stem from the Ecuadorian
government's attempt to revive a controversial environmental
consultation into the La Plata project. The consultation process,
which aims to extend mining exploration in the area, has been
widely denounced by local and national Indigenous organizations for
being a rubber stamp to permit mining, imposed by executive decree
amid militarization, intimidation and police violence.
Indigenous and human rights defenders in Ecuador have appealed directly to the
Canadian government to intervene in escalating violence surrounding
another Canadian-owned mining project, the Warintza copper-gold
mine on the territory of the Shuar Arutam Indigenous Nation.
A new report by Amnesty International expresses
concern about the infringement of Indigenous people's rights in
Ecuador by extractive projects in
their territories, as well as serious human rights violations
committed by security forces during protests, and attacks on
defenders of land, Indigenous territory and the environment.
Amnesty International Canada's Human Rights
Agenda for Canada calls
for guarantees that no free trade agreement will advance without
meaningful consultation with affected Indigenous Peoples and their
organizations and their free, prior and informed consent. The
organization is also calling for credible, independent human rights
and environment impact assessment of any proposed trade
agreement.
BACKGROUND:
- The Interprovincial Federation of Shuar Centres has called out
Solaris Resources for causing community divisions that have erupted
in violence. A complaint has been filed at the BC Securities
Commission against Solaris for failure to disclose to investors the
long-standing opposition by the Shuar Arutam to the project.
- Canada lacks mandatory human
rights and environmental due diligence legislation. In the 2023
report of a country visit to Canada, the UN Special Rapporteur on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples identified shortcomings of the
Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE): its
placement within Global Affairs Canada and accountability to the
Minister of International Trade; lack of protective mechanisms for
individuals filing complaints, gender-based analysis and cultural
sensitivity; and lack of authority to compel companies to provide
both witnesses and documents.
- Canada and Ecuador are contemplating including strong
investor protections and an investor-state dispute settlement
(ISDS) process in the deal. Ecuador has faced at least 29 investor-state
lawsuits under various investment treaties, including several cases
from Canadian mining companies under a treaty with Canada that was terminated by Ecuador in 2018. In a 2023 report, UN Special
Rapporteur David Boyd found that Investor State Dispute Settlements
(ISDS) posed a "catastrophic" threat to the achievement of human
rights and environmental protection. Ecuador's Supreme Court ruled a recent trade
deal with Costa Rica
unconstitutional since it included an ISDS process, which was
removed by the Noboa government to allow passage of the deal. In a
referendum in Ecuador on
April 21, more than 60% of voters
said no to ISDS. Canada and
Ecuador may still seek to get
around this limitation in their free trade negotiations, given that
Canadian mining industry stakeholders have requested ISDS.
SOURCE MiningWatch Canada