Peru: Native Peoples' Right to Consultation on Land Use Enshrined in Law
Written by Milagros Salazar
Tuesday, 01 June 2010 08:41
(IPS) - Indigenous peoples in Peru finally have a law that obliges the state to consult them about any project or provision that affects their territory or communities. But it will be difficult to implement, as the body charged with this task is in need of reforms, and additional legislation is needed before it can be fully enforced.
It took the single-chamber Congress 16 years to pass the law on indigenous peoples' right to prior consultation after the country ratified International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 169, which commits nations to protecting indigenous and tribal peoples.
Native peoples must be consulted in advance on any legislative or administrative measure, development or industrial project, plan or programme that directly affects their collective rights, according to the new law approved by the legislature on May 19.
The Peruvian Ombudsman's Office said the law is a momentous step in recognising indigenous peoples and institutionalising "intercultural dialogue between (native peoples) and state authorities."
The new law comes at a time when private investment projects are mushrooming in ancestral indigenous territories, generating a number of high impact social conflicts. The most serious took place Jun. 5, 2009 in the northern Amazon jungle province of Bagua, where 33 demonstrators and police were killed when the security forces clamped down on indigenous protesters.
More:
http://upsidedownworld.org/main/news-briefs-archives-68/2517-peru-native-peoples-right-to-consultation-on-land-use-enshrined-in-law