Mining, Oil and Gas at MindSpeak Business Club

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On Saturday October 26th Maya Sikand from Natural Justice attended a public forum in Nairobi about the Voluntary Principles and the growing mining, oil and gas sectors in Kenya. The meeting was hosted by business analyst Aly-Khan Saatchu's monthly business club, Mindspeak. The panel featured Cliff Otega, a Kenyan mining analyst, His Excellency David Angell, Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya, Evelyn Samba, Deputy Secretary to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, and Simon Wall, Corporate Affairs Manager of Base Titanium. The meeting drew an audience of over 200 people.

The challenges for the new and growing mining sector in Kenya and the opportunities for guidelines such as the Voluntary Principles were discussed by each of the panelists. Cliff Otega pointed out to a room full of young people hoping to benefit from this new industry, that the extractives industry doesn't actually provide many employment opportunities as it is so capital and machinery intensive. Kenya should not look to this as the sector that will transform the economy for youth. However, all the panelists agreed that the multiplier effects, including infrastructure and services development will bring benefits to the region.

A focus for the meeting was on the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, a multi-stakeholder initiative involving governments, companies and NGOs, that was founded in 2000. It is the only set of principles specifically guiding the extractive industries in respecting human rights. Currently, several countries, including Canada, are participants, as well as a number of corporations and NGOs. High Commissioner Angell, Chair of the Voluntary Principles from 2011-12 spoke extremely positively of the Canadian government's and corporations' efforts to improve Corporate Social Responsibility programs in the extractives sector. Currently, Canadian extractive companies have over $10 billion invested in East Africa alone.

Many audience members as well as representatives from KNCHR raised questions about whether extractives-led development actually benefits local communities. There was also much discussion on redress mechanisms to actually hold international companies accountable to these lofty principles. The issues of benefit sharing, land acquisition and compensation were also raised as matters Kenyans need to be wary of as the extractives sector expands.

The major case for mining in Kenya discussed was Base Titanium Mineral Sands project in Kwale. This is Kenya's first large-scale, world-class mining investment. Simon Wall from Base Titanium spoke about the company's environmental and social performance that adheres to the highest global standards, particularly as signatories to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. In the 13 year lifespan of the project Base Titanium will put over $1.1 billion into the Kenyan economy, $220 million in direct royalties to the government and the rest as operational costs including food, salaries and services.

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Seminar on Human Rights and Environment

The Asia Europe Foundation had its 13th Informal ASEM Seminar on Human Rights from 21 - 23 October 2013 at Copenhagen, Denmark. This year has an interesting theme for discussion on “Human Rights and The Environment”. Around 140 participants including diplomats, members of national human rights institutions, lawyers, journalists and civil society representatives from 49 countries have participated in the three day seminar on human rights and environment. The seminar was inaugurated by the Environment Minister of Denmark. The seminar has four working groups to discuss in detail on the following areas such as

i) The interaction between sustainable development, environment and human rights 

ii) Access to Information, Participatory Rights and Access to Justice, 

iii) Actors, Institutions and Governance, 

iv) Climate Changes and Human Rights Implication 

Sankar Pani of Natural Justice participated in the event and actively contributed in the working group on Access to Information, Participatory rights and Access to Justice. There has been an intensive discussion on integrating environmental rights with human rights and environment defenders/activist to be treated at par with human right activist, so the protection measures available for human rights defenders should be extended to environmental activists. Many points were also emerged in regard to Free Prior Informed Consent and how this can be enforced for every project which has some social and environmental impacts. It is also important to take necessary measures so that the indigenous community can participate actively in the FPIC process and can have a say on the project. There has been also reference to the Aarhus Convention and how the spirit of the convention can be incorporated into the legal frame work in Asian Countries

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Rights-Based REDD+ Dialogue II: Realizing REDD+ Safeguards

Natural Justice together with the Heinrich Böll Foundation and the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Co-ordinating Committee hosted the Rights-Based REDD+ Dialogue II: Realizing REDD+ Safeguards, on 18-19th October 2013 in Cape Town South Africa. This was the second of such dialogues, the first was held in November 2012. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) is a mitigation policy under the United Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The REDD+ safeguards are mechanisms designed to reduce identified risks and prevent undesirable outcomes of REDD+ and some also aim to enhance the positive environmental and social impacts of REDD+. 

REDD+ stakeholders from civil society organisations, Indigenous Peoples, government, United Nations, and REDD+ project developers participated in the dialogues. The dialogues began discussing national REDD+ programmes in Southern and Central Africa, with a country focus on activities in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. A REDD+ project session scrutinised existing REDD+ projects in Africa and heard a project developers perspective on REDD+. Indigenous Peoples engagement in REDD+ was explored and lessons from global case studies discussed. Strategies and tools to engage in REDD+ including the potential of Biocultural Community Protocols as a tool to enhance free, prior and informed consent were considered. The on-going World Bank Safeguards Review process was highlighted and its relevance to REDD+ examined. Governance issues were discussed with a focus on the role of independent monitoring. The final sessions explored ways to positively influence the REDD+ safeguards at the international level and discussed messages for the Warsaw Climate Change Conference UNFCCC COP19.

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GPS Training in Odisha

On the 19th and 20th of October 2013, a community-level workshop was held on the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) device to map community resources, to be claimed under the Forest Rights Act of 2006. The training was held in the village of Niapania in Keonjhar district in Odisha, India. Organized by Keonjhar Integrated Rural Development and Training Institute (KIRDTI), an NGO based in Keonjhar, in collaboration with Natural Justice, the workshop saw the participation of around 40 persons from different blocks within Keonjhar as well as from other districts of Orissa. Stella James and Kishore Kumar Patnaik (Fellows, Natural Justice) participated in the workshop and assisted in the coordination of the workshop. 

Mr Adikand Ojha from Bhubaneswar, who acted as the resource person, started with a brief description of the GPS device to the participants, as well as of the advantages of using it. One of the advantages pointed out to the villagers was that while earlier people used to draw maps freehand, or use complicated manual methods of measurement, with a GPS, measurement of land becomes simpler and much more accurate. Moreover, once measurements are taken, the GPS also allows one to see the roads and other waypoints from any part of the world. 

After this, all the participants divided themselves into three groups and practiced taking measurements with the GPS, in a nearby field. The groups spent around3-4 hours learning different practical aspects of GPS measurement, after which the day closed with a session on clarifications. 

The first day’s training was followed up on the 20th at the office of KIRDTI in Keonjhar. This involved learning how to download the map drawn in the GPS, as well as how to integrate these maps into online satellite mapping portals such as Google Earth, and send the maps to persons in other locations. The participants also learnt how to colour coordinate the downloaded map and also how to mark the locations of resources to be identified under FRA such as play ground, cultivable land, trees, products of forest, hamlets, place of worship, rivers and streams, grazing area, etc. as well as distances from place to place. 

The device will be helpful to villagers and also to government officials for identification of individual and community rights under FRA; it will also speed up the process of FRA implementation. This device is available in almost all electronic shops and can also be availed from the GARMIN website (for devices produced by German company, GARMIN).

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Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) News Digest

Natural Justice's partner, the ABS Capacity Development Initiative, produces a weekly digest that provides you with information on recent developments and publications related to access and benefit-sharing. The News Digest is divided into several categories which makes it easier to filter the information you really need. These include: Intellectual Property, Sustainable Development, Forests, Agriculture, Traditional Knowledge, New Publications, Upcoming Meetings und IISD Meeting Reports. If you are interested in receiving the news digest please subscribe here: http://eepurl.com/E9aAP.

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Second edition of The Living Convention is now available in English and Spanish

The Living Convention provides a range of the most important provisions relating to the linkages between Indigenous peoples and local communities and, among other things, their territories, lands, natural resources, and knowledge systems. It sets them out in an ordered manner, grouping similar provisions under the same heading to enable the reader to quickly assess the extent of international law relating to specific issues. 

The Living Convention is divided into three parts:

Part I sets out the rationale and methodology of the research undertaken to develop the compendium in Part II.

Part II contains a compendium of internationally recognized rights that support the integrity and resilience of Indigenous peoples’ and local communities’ territories and other social-ecological systems. 

Part III sets out a number of key questions concerning, for example, the utility of integrated rights approaches, how international law can be reformed, and how national governments can better uphold their international commitments. It then suggests initial activities that could further deepen the analysis and ways to address the current weaknesses in the development and implementation of international law. 

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Village Meeting on the Forest Rights Act in Odisha

On 15th and 16th October 2013, Stella James (Fellow, Natural Justice) attended a village meeting held at the Bhudabhuin Community Centre in the Sundergarh district of the state of Odisha, India. The meeting revolved around a discussion of the Forest Rights Act 2006 (FRA), a landmark legislation in terms of granting customary rights over resources to adivasis (tribals) and other forest dwellers. The meeting was attended by approximately 60 persons, from different villages, some people travelling many kilometers by foot through thick forests, walking almost an entire day to attend the meeting. 

The meeting was facilitated by Jitendra Sahu, an advocate who has been working in Odisha on successful implementation of FRA in many areas of Odisha. Jitubhai, as he is popularly known, talked about the significant difference between the FRA and previous legislations on forests. In his own words, the crucial distinction is the inclusion of the word ‘right’ between the words ‘forest’ and ‘act’, thus finally marking a departure from the previously parochial understanding of all forest land belonging to the State. He emphasized how adivasis and other forest dwellers are now legally ‘owners’ and ‘right-holders’ of the forests in which they live, and not merely watchmen. Jitubhai also deftly explained some of the main provisions of the Act, without bogging the villagers with too much jargon or technicality, which may have tended to dissuade enthusiastic participation. 

Throughout the meeting, the emphasis was on self-determination by the villagers. To aid the filing of claims, especially for community forest resources (CFR) under the FRA, the villagers began the process of charting out a community resource map. The map indicates locations and boundaries of mountains, forest areas, rivers and streams, villages; and also identifies local flora and fauna. The significance of the resource map is that, when completed, it will be a truly accurate representation of the area, since it is being drafted by the community itself, thus ensuring that claim for CFR is equally accurate. Not only that, such documentation will also help create a greater understanding of community resources both within and outside the community, especially among forest officials; as well as a stronger sense of identity for the community when dealing with outsiders. The second day of the meeting was devoted entirely to chalking out a rough map, which will be finalized in follow-up meetings, after consultation with other villagers, and verified by the government.

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