Photo: DAR
As part of the 27th anniversary of the Regional Coordinator of Indigenous Peoples of San Lorenzo (CORPI-SL), Derecho, Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (DAR) developed a workshop to strengthen the capacities of more than 80 leaders of its grassroots federations on issues such as: impacts of road and energy infrastructure, energy transition, transparency in extractive industries and risks of the carbon market for indigenous peoples.
The workshop entitled Towards a sustainable, transparent Amazon with socio-environmental governance was held on June 11 and 12 at CORPI-SL’s community headquarters in San Lorenzo, within the framework of the II Congress of Indigenous Women Leaders and CORPI-SL’s General Assembly. This event was attended by the different representatives of the Autonomous Territorial Governments of Indigenous Peoples, public entities and other civil society allies of the organization.
Reactivation of infrastructure and hydrocarbon projects by local authorities
This workshop addressed the problem of the expansion of road infrastructure projects in their territories, which without proper planning could enhance illegal and informal activities, such as illegal logging and mining, land invasion and trafficking, illicit economies, among others, affecting the indigenous communities surrounding road projects, with special emphasis on women.
This is especially relevant given the reactivation of the Iquitos-Saramiriza road project in Loreto, for which, in recent months, the Subregional Management of Datem del Marañón of the Regional Government of Loreto (GOREL) has been promoting work meetings without timely and prior invitation to the indigenous peoples, despite the serious environmental, social and economic risks that could generate to the indigenous territories, and in particular, to the communities within the scope of CORPI-SL. Thus, working meetings have been held where their leaders have been invited without prior notice. On the other hand, the president of the Autonomous Territorial Government of the Shawi People expressed his people’s concern about the Balsapuerto-Moyobamba highway and denounced that, in this case, the district and provincial authorities have been promoting this project excluding the participation of the peoples concerned and without respecting the right to prior consultation, for which they issued a statement to the authorities.
In view of this, DAR shared a series of recommendations that are being developed jointly with indigenous peoples, in order to propose guidelines for a sustainable infrastructure from the perspective of indigenous development, which respects their rights, protects defenders and contributes to their wellbeing.
Likewise, leaders were trained on the importance of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which promotes socio-environmental transparency, as well as on the income and expenses involved in extractive activities, as in the case of oil extraction in Loreto. In this context, CORPI-SL’s rank and file considered it essential to clarify where the revenues obtained by the State from royalties and surcharges from extractive companies are going. In addition, CORPI-SL’s territory is currently one of the regions with the most promoted areas for oil extraction, which makes transparency and access to information even more important for CORPI-SL.
It is worth mentioning that Loreto currently has a regional EITI Commission, made up of public entities, private companies, academia and civil society organizations. In this sense, within the framework of the assembly, they agreed to request their incorporation in the commission, in order to have more information and tools to help them face the reactivation of hydrocarbon exploitation activities that are coming up in their territories.
A just energy transition that respects collective rights
Along the same lines, the workshop reflected on the economic, environmental and health impacts generated by hydrocarbon extraction in Loreto, where there are also limitations to access energy. In this sense, there is a need to migrate towards other cleaner energies and change production methods, without affecting human rights. Currently, in Peru there are private and public initiatives to use non-conventional renewable energy sources to contribute to diversification and to stop relying on fossil fuels, such as the installation of solar panels to support community economic initiatives.
However, it was emphasized that these new energies must be conceived within a framework of human and collective rights, so as to generate the infrastructure for access to energy with governance in a sustainable and equitable manner and within the framework of initiatives such as the Escazú Agreement, such as access to environmental information, participation, access to justice in environmental matters and protection of the work of environmental defenders. Although Peru has not yet ratified this human rights treaty by the Congress of the Republic, it is urgent that it does so due to the increase in murders of indigenous leaders in the Amazon.
Entry of companies negotiating carbon contracts in the absence of community knowledge and government oversight
As part of the prioritized topics, information was shared on the risks derived from the implementation of carbon projects, in a context without defined rules and with legal loopholes, which increase the risks of violation of the rights of communities by organizations and companies dedicated to the commercialization of carbon credits.
In relation to this, several leaders mentioned the increase of companies and entities that have been approaching the communities offering carbon projects. reiterated its demand to the State to implement effective supervision and oversight mechanisms for these interventions, and to accompany the indigenous peoples in the negotiation processes for this type of project. He also reiterated the urgency of establishing the guidelines of the National Registry of Mitigation Measures (RENAMI), which will provide clarity on the procedure for the registration and transfer of emission reductions to the carbon markets, so that indigenous peoples can be direct participants in this activity and not through intermediaries.
Women leaders revalue their traditional knowledge for a participatory construction of a new Biodiversity Policy
In turn, within the framework of the II Congress of Indigenous Women of CORPI-SL, held last June 11, information on the importance of biological diversity was disseminated with the objective of strengthening the value of natural resources and the traditional knowledge practiced in the communities. The aim is to promote their informed and strengthened participation in the construction of national and subnational policies and strategies on biodiversity conservation in Peru, as well as the defense of their rights in different relevant spaces.
This workshop was carried out with support from the Project: «Strengthening transparency and good practices in the extractive sector activity» with support from USAID, Rainforest Foundation Norway, Publish What You Pay (PWYP) and the Platform for Sustainable Reactivation (PLARS).
Finally, DAR renews its commitment to continue supporting the empowerment agenda of CORPI SL leaders to defend their collective rights, especially in the current context of the reactivation of investments that could affect the indigenous population.