Asunción, Paraguay – On May 11, 2005 Dr. José María Borja, Ecuador’s Attorney General, announced before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of the Organization of American States (OAS) his proposal to maintain the human rights protection measures in favor of the Sarayaku indigenous people. He also plans to reach an agreement between the state and the community regarding specific points within ninety days. The Attorney General stated that the agreement would be signed by Ecuador’s new president, Alfredo Palacios, as a symbol of his willingness to reach a final solution to the conflicts that led to the urgent ordering of the provisional protection measures.
The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, also involved in the hearing, ratified that the situation in Sarayaku is extremely serious, given that the state has not effectively fulfilled the implementation of the provisional measures. Therefore, the Commission recommended that the Court maintain the provisional measures.
Additionally, a statement made by the Attorney General may create an historical precedent for the protection of the collective rights of indigenous people. He indicated that anomalies had been detected in the contract between the oil company CGC and Petroecuador, directly related to the violation of human rights and thus also in violation of the constitution. According to the Law of Hydrocarbons, the state may terminate oil contracts if human rights violations occur, and seek payment for the breech of contract from monies initially fronted by the companies.
According to the statements by Borja, the experience with the oil company CGC points to the need for future oil contracts to specifically consider the respect of the rights of indigenous peoples, particularly their right to be consulted and informed in advance.
