To be globally simply and sustainable, the Essential Uncooked Supplies Act should guarantee efficient social, environmental and governance safeguards and supply significant participation to native communities, Indigenous Peoples, and civil society in resource-rich nations.
17 July 2023
Pricey Commissioners,
Pricey Honourable Members of the European Parliament,
Pricey Ministers,
We, actions, Indigenous Peoples, and Civil Society Organizations, notably however not solely from resource-rich nations within the International South, are very involved as a result of lack of sturdy due diligence terminology and safeguards for the sourcing of uncooked supplies within the Essential Uncooked Supplies Act and different associated laws.
We, in resource-rich nations, are already experiencing the double impacts of the local weather disaster, on one hand through the consequences of local weather change itself and alternatively from the rise in mining and renewable applied sciences infrastructure ensuing from decarbonisation plans of wealthy nations. The EU’s decarbonisation ambition is laudable, however to be simply and truthful, it has to observe the rule of regulation and its related legislations have to stick to the best requirements, together with the respect of human
rights, Indigenous Peoples’ rights and environmental safety, not solely inside the European Union, however in different resource-rich nations – together with our lands and communities.
The Essential Uncooked Supplies Act and different associated laws, such because the Company Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, amongst others, may have a direct influence on our well being and well-being, cultural practices, traditions and values, livelihoods, and surroundings. Individuals are frequently killed trying to safeguard the surroundings we depend on.
For that reason, we ask you to take a human rights-based strategy to decarbonisation and be certain that all rights holders and stakeholders in resource-rich nations, not solely governments and the non-public sector, are concerned within the course of in a full and significant method. Extra particularly, we ask you to set the next minimal circumstances for strategic initiatives and the sourcing of uncooked supplies from resource-rich nations:
1) Respect human rights, Indigenous rights and cling to worldwide human and environmental rights laws, agreements, and requirements, together with the UN Guiding Rules on Enterprise and Human Rights, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, ILO Conventions as properly as the complete Aarhus conference, the Escazú settlement in addition to the EU Company Sustainability Reporting Directive. The CRMA ought to be certain that firms adhere to strict necessary Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence.
2) Make sure that strategic partnerships are fashioned and run in a democratic method
Negotiations for strategic partnerships must be introduced in a well timed trend and agreements with resource-rich nations must be disclosed previous to approval. The CRMA ought to handle the excessive corruption threat within the mining sector.
3) Significant participation and accountability
Rights holders, particularly Indigenous Peoples, civil society organisations and native communities, should have a stake within the governance of the CRMA and will be capable of take part within the definition and monitoring of strategic initiatives and partnerships.
4) Minimal necessities for strategic initiatives
The environmental and social impacts of mining and different initiatives associated to the vitality transition must be assessed in the course of the allowing course of and initiatives can not go forward with out involved Indigenous Peoples’ Free, Prior Knowledgeable Consent.
Firms taking part in strategic initiatives ought to have in place a transparent, simply accessible, and protected grievance mechanism and a historical past of human rights abuses or environmental destruction ought to result in the exclusion of firms. There must be a mechanism to facilitate entry to justice for victims of company abuse and strict
sanctions for firms that fail their due diligence obligations. As a substitute of utilizing self-regulation via certification schemes, firms should be monitored by governments and a impartial third get together.
5) Respect our cultural practices, traditions and values, our existence, and the environment
Strategic initiatives ought to respect no-go zones, together with protected areas, the deep-sea, and sacred websites. Laws on battle minerals and minerals extracted via compelled or little one labour should be enforced and adopted respectively.
6) We must always not simply be handled as uncooked materials suppliers
Set clear objectives and make clear what it means so as to add worth via strategic partnerships. Moreover, assist the event of our nations via local weather finance, data and expertise switch, the supply for native procurement and making certain that firms pay taxes in host nations and create respectable jobs.
7) Take duty for lowering the EU’s personal consumption
In flip, this can scale back the demand for uncooked supplies from our nations. Taking these issues into consideration can be essential to make sure local weather and useful resource justice on a world scale. The CRMA could possibly be a chance for the European Union to advertise a simply vitality transition that pays off the historic ecological debt owed to the nations of the International South and respects their
growth fashions.
We urge you to take these suggestions into consideration, because the coverage selections concerning the Essential Uncooked Supplies Act may have a big influence on our lives.
Sincerely,
Signatories:
– AbibiNsroma Basis
– Motion Mines Guinée
– African Assets Watch (AFREWATCH)
– Aksi Ekologi & Emansipasi Rakyat (AEER), Indonesia
– Alliance Voahary Gasy (AVG)
– alterNativa Intercanvi amb Pobles Indígenes
– Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM)
– Asia Dalit Rights Discussion board (ADRF)
– Bench Marks Basis
– Cadre de Concertation de la société civile de l’Ituri sur les Ressources Naturelles
– CartoCrítica (México)
– Centre congolais pour le droit du développement sturdy (CODED)
– Centro de Análisis Socioambiental (CASA}, Chile
– Christi – Perú
– Coalition des Organisations de la Société Civile pour le Suivi des Réformes et de l’Motion Publique
(CORAP)
– Coalition Nationale de Plaidoyer Environnemental (CNPE)
– Coalition Publiez Ce Que Vous Payez-Mali (PCQVP-MALI)
– Comité Nacional professional Defensa de la Fauna y Flora
– CooperAcción
– Cordillera Girls’s Training Motion Analysis Middle (CWEARC)
– Company Europe Observatory
– Crudo Transparente
– Cultural Survival
– Debt Observatory in Globalisation (ODG)
– Derecho Ambiente y Recursos Naturales
– Ecosistemas
– Engenera, A.C.
– Enginyeria sense Fronteres
– Focus Affiliation for Sustainable Improvement
– Forest Peoples Programme
– Forests of the World
– Fundación Ciudadanía y Desarrollo – TI Ecuador
– Fundación Foro Nacional por Colombia – Capítulo Suroccidente
– Fundación Terram
– Funprosperiti Guatecivica
– Future-Prenuers Zambia (FPSZ)
– International Witness
– Grupo Propuesta Ciudadana
– Indonesia for International Justice (IGJ)
– Interamerican Affiliation for Environmental Protection -AIDA
– Lafede.cat – Organitzacions per a la Justícia International
– Legisladores x el Ambiente ALC
– Pure Useful resource Governance Institute (NRGI)
– Observatoire d’Etudes et d’Appui à la Responsabilité Sociale et Environnementale (OEARSE)
– Observatorio Petrolero Sur
– Pakistan Improvement Alliance
– Perkumpulan HuMa Indonesia
– Philippine Rural Reconstruction Motion
– Pole Institute (DR Congo)
– Coverage Discussion board Guyana
– Publiez Ce Que Vous Payez Madagascar
– Publish What You Pay Zambia
– Purple de Información y Acción Ambiental de Veracruz, México
– Réseau panafricain de lutte contre la corruption “UNIS”
– Useful resource Issues
– Satya Bumi
– Securing Indigenous Peoples Rights within the Inexperienced Economic system (SIRGE) Coalition
– SETEM Catalunya
– Solidaritat Castelldefels Kasando
– Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Community
– Areas for Change
– TAFOMIHAAVO
– Transparency Worldwide Initiative Madagascar
– Transparency Worldwide Zambia
– Pattern Asia
– Universidad nacional de Colombia, Facultad de minas Medellín, Centro de pensamiento responsabilidad y sostenibilidad minera
