Human Rights
GOLDEN RULEON Human Rights
Obtain the free, prior, and informed consent of affected communities.
Respect basic human rights outlined in international conventions and law.
Right to Land
Rural communities and indigenous peoples often lack legal title to their lands, even though they may have occupied the same lands for many generations. In many countries the law does not recognize indigenous peoples as owners of their lands. Consequently, they are often vulnerable to eviction when a mining lease is granted.
This may be imposed without prior consultation, meaningful compensation, or the offer of equivalent lands elsewhere.
The forced relocation, physical attacks, and loss of livelihoods that comes with land expropriations are all serious human rights violations.
Free Prior Informed Consent
Local communities around the world are demanding that new mining projects only go forward with their approval.This concept is called "free, prior, and informed consent" or FPIC and is recognized for indigenous peoples under an international convention. FPIC protects the international human right that “all peoples have the right to self-determination” and linked to the right to self determination, “all peoples have the right to freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development”.
A close examination of the social impacts of the mining industry reveals a consistent pattern of disregard for community rights to free, prior, and informed consent as well as other basic human rights.
For more information:
- ICMM Mining and Indigenous Peoples' Roundtable
- Oxfam Guide to Free Prior Informed Consent
- EARTHblog Peru's Community Consulatation Law
- EARTHblog Business Case for FPIC
- EARTHblog IFC Adopts FPIC Standard
- Oxfam International Ghana: Locals learn to defend their rights against companies
- Oxfam International Land Grabs Q&A
- Global Witness Report on increase in killings as tensions rise over land and forests
Tagged with: mining, human rights, fpic
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