TONATIERRA
Community
Development Institute
PO Box 24009
Phoenix,
AZ 85074
September 13, 2019
USMCA Working Group, US House of
Representatives
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, (D-Cal)
Representative Richard Neal (D-MA), Chairman Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.)
Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)
Representative Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.)
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, (D-Cal)
Representative Richard Neal (D-MA), Chairman Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.)
Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)
Representative Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.)
Mike Thompson (D-Calif.)
Representative Suzanne Bonamici
(D-Ore.) John Larson (D-Conn.)
Reps. Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) Rosa
DeLauro (D-Conn.)
Good greetings.
Today, September 13, 2019, marks the 12th anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Upon review of the public record of debate
concerning the Human Rights of Indigenous Peoples in the context of the
proposed US-Mexico-Canada Agreement,
the systemic disregard for the
territorial rights and human rights of Indigenous Peoples is blatantly
discriminatory, unacceptable and must be addressed before the agreement
is put to vote before the House of
Representatives.
Specifically,
we call today for a full public hearing before the appropriate committees
and/or Working Group formations of the US Congress for the purpose of informing
the US congressional representatives on the Right of Indigenous Peoples
to Free, Prior, and Informed
Consent (FPIC) regarding projects which impact their collective rights. Such a public hearing must be
realized before the USMCA is approved.
The USMCA has been promoted as a necessary "update" of the 1994 North
American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA). In distinction from NAFTA which was adopted in 1994 thirteen years before adoption
of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the signatories of USMCA must comply with the minimum
standards of FPIC or the corporate
consortia investing in any development project in violation of FPIC will
immediately become financially liable and
exposed to the risk of legal challenges and financial penalties that must be presented before
their constituencies (states)
and shareholders (corporations).
This principle
is now well established, having been the subject of the Soft Woods Lumber Dispute (1982) between the US and Canada which
acknowledged the proprietary rights of
Indigenous Peoples over territories and resources in the international trade
tribunals. Recognizing this fact, the World
Bank has restructured its procedures, protocols and practices regarding
Indigenous Peoples and the right of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent under the
Environmental and Social Standard 7 to
shield its interests.
There can be no approval of USMCA without
recognition, respect, and effective mechanisms for the protection of the
internationally recognized Human Rights
of Indigenous Peoples in the trade zone encompassing the three countries,
specifically the right of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC).
Consultation is not consent.
Without the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples,
as Peoples equal to all
other peoples, there can be no legitimate approval of the USMCA.
“The Indigenous peoples of the Americas possess
the underlying and inalienable title to
their lands. Failure
by settler governments to recognize that title within
USMCA is a violation of
Indigenous rights and the principle of “free, prior and informed consent”
enshrined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples. As a legal violation that infringes on the property rights of
Indigenous peoples, this failure by settler governments creates a massive risk
to the financial interests that rely on the tripartite agreement. Businesses cannot hide behind USMCA and disregard the rights of
Indigenous peoples. Every investor, every corporation, every entity with a
financial interest that crosses the borders between Mexico, the United States
and Canada, must account for this risk when they operate on Indigenous lands.
Failure to account
for the risks associated with Indigenous title will
result in faulty, and possibly fraudulent, valuations.”
Dr. DT Cochrane, Economist
With representation of Indigenous Peoples
from Mexico-US-Canada organized
under the Indigenous Network on Economies and Trade
(INET), we offer to engage with willing members of Congress to bring such a
proposed hearing to effect.
Please contact
me at your earliest convenience to clarify the position of the USMCA Working
Group regarding the issues we have raised in this intervention.
Tupac Enrique Acosta TONATIERRA
Free Prior and Informed Consent FPIC
All Peoples have the right to self-determination. It is a fundamental principle in international law, embodied in the Charter of the United Nations and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
The standard, Free, Prior
and Informed Consent (FPIC), as well as Indigenous Peoples’ rights to lands,
territories and natural resources are embedded within the universal right to self- determination. The normative
framework for FPIC consists of a series of international legal instruments
including the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
(UNDRIP), the International Labour Organization Convention 169 (ILO 169), and the Convention on
Diversity (CBD), among many others.
FPIC is a specific right
that pertains to Indigenous Peoples and is recognized in the UNDRIP. It allows
them to give or withhold consent to a project that may affect them or their
territories. Once they have given their consent, they can withdraw it at any
stage. Furthermore, FPIC enables
them to negotiate the conditions under which the project will be designed, implemented,
monitored and evaluated.
Consultation is not consent.
