So what's the feeling about mining amongst Ecuador's indigenous population, Otto?

Weeeeell...things could be better, has to be said.



Here's an excerpt from IKN43 out yesterday. In the subscription weekly there's a whole analysis of the situation that follows the translation bit here, but that's not going on the open blog. You have Ecuador exposure in your portfolio? Take a good read of this:

Ecuador: CONAIE agrees and makes its final declaration

As reported last week, Ecuador’s indigenous umbrella group CONAIE has been in extraordinary general meeting to decide its position vis-á-vis the Correa government. On Friday it issued its final declaration (11) which is currently only available in Spanish but I hear an English version will be available soon. The declaration has 21 points, from which I’m selecting the ones that matter to us interested in the extraction industries.

1) End the dialogue with the National Government due to its lack of political will, disrespect for the rights of indigenous nations and peoples and for showing no type of result in the dialogue process to date.

2) Invoke a plurinational uprising in Ecuador coordinated with distinct social sectors and preceded by protests and concrete actions, against the neoliberal and extractive policies applied by the government of Rafael Correa.

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14) Prohibit the entry and interference of governmental authorities in indigenous territories, as a show of our collective rights, indigenous justice and right to freedom

15) Declare null and void the adjudications, concessions and authorizations for mining, petroleum, forestry, environmental service, pharmaceutical, hydroelectric and mangrove industries made by the Ecuador state in our lands and ancestral territories.

16) Demand that the constitutional court answers our petition of unconstitutionality and other actions made public by CONAIE concerning the Mining Law, the executive decree on intercultural bilingual education, Codenpe, the environmental licence for (petroleum) block 31 and other demands made by CONAIE.

17) Expulsion of national and international mining and petroleum companies located in indigenous lands and territories.

18) The defence and of non-admission of mining, petroleum or forestry exploitation by national and international companies in the Wuaorani territory made up of 32 peoples, including the voluntarily isolated peoples (Tagaeris, Taromenane, Oñamenani and others) that hold an ancestral possession of more than two thousand hectares where block 31 and ITT is located.