Alberta Activitsts Campain to Stop Human Rights Violations and Destruction of the Amazon in Peru
MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
June 12, 2009
Alberta petroleum company asked to cease operations in Peru now: Concerned Albertans demand Petrolifera cease operations after Peruvian police massacre Indigenous protesters
Calgary - Socially conscious Albertans gathered today at the headquarters of Petrolifera Petroleum to demand the company cease all exploration and extraction activities in Peru until the Peruvian government ends its violent repression of Indigenous protesters and consult in good faith with Indigenous communities on their opposition to intensified development on their lands and the free trade agreements with Canada and the United States.
Reports this week confirm that Indigenous led protests against new ‘free trade’ agreements and Peruvian legislation that would liberalize and weaken regulations and allow for the rapid industrialization of the Amazon rainforest have been met with brutal opposition by the Peruvian government which led to violent clashes earlier this week. Conservative estimates indicate that 60 Indigenous people and Peruvian police have been killed. Police are accused by Indigenous leadership, community members, and the international advocacy group Amazon Watch of burning bodies and of removing wounded from hospital to hide the real number of casualties.
“A violent land grab is going on in Peru, and companies like Petrolifera are set up to benefit. The Amazon is being sold off, without any mandate to consult the people who live there, nor assurances to protect the vital ecosystem of the region,” explains Sue Deranger, an activist who has worked with the Awajun Wampis peoples and communities for the last three years in Peru. “It is imperative that companies like Petrolifera halt their investments in Peru. No Canadian company should be allowed to benefit from a system that prioritizes the rights and voices of foreign companies over that of the people who live directly within a region.”
Indigenous leaders in Peru are critical of government decrees, passed in advance of free trade agreements with Canada and the United States, that are designed to accelerate the mining, energy, forestry and massive agricultural projects in the Amazon rainforest. Indigenous people are standing up and demanding that they be meaningfully consulted in any developments or legislation that ultimately affect their land, resources and territories because of the severe impact these agreements will have on the region and its people.
“This is not just an Indigenous issue or a Peruvian issue. The massive presence of Canadian resource companies like Petrolifera in Peru and the fact that laws are being bent or broken to satisfy their bottom line should concern all of us,” says Sheila Muxlow, prairie regional organizer for the Council of Canadians. ”We join with the peoples of Peru in speaking out against a free trade model that will only perpetuate the destruction of the Amazon, the theft of Indigenous lands, and the continued trampling on human rights.”
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For photos of the violence in Peru click here
For more information please contact:
Sue Deranger, Indigenous Rights Activist - 306-545-4536.
Sheila Muxlow, Council of Canadians - 780.233.2528
Eriel Deranger, Rainforest Action Network - 587.785.1558
Ben Powless, Indigenous Environmental Network and Indigenous People's Solidarity Movement - +51 976 999 157, 613.614.4219 (Currently in Peru)
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The Council of Canadians
700-170 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, ON K1P 5V5.
Tel: (613) 233-2773; Toll-free: 1-800-387-7177
Fax: (613) 233-6776
inquiries@canadians.org
www.canadians.org
For Immediate Release
June 12, 2009
Alberta petroleum company asked to cease operations in Peru now: Concerned Albertans demand Petrolifera cease operations after Peruvian police massacre Indigenous protesters
Calgary - Socially conscious Albertans gathered today at the headquarters of Petrolifera Petroleum to demand the company cease all exploration and extraction activities in Peru until the Peruvian government ends its violent repression of Indigenous protesters and consult in good faith with Indigenous communities on their opposition to intensified development on their lands and the free trade agreements with Canada and the United States.
Reports this week confirm that Indigenous led protests against new ‘free trade’ agreements and Peruvian legislation that would liberalize and weaken regulations and allow for the rapid industrialization of the Amazon rainforest have been met with brutal opposition by the Peruvian government which led to violent clashes earlier this week. Conservative estimates indicate that 60 Indigenous people and Peruvian police have been killed. Police are accused by Indigenous leadership, community members, and the international advocacy group Amazon Watch of burning bodies and of removing wounded from hospital to hide the real number of casualties.
“A violent land grab is going on in Peru, and companies like Petrolifera are set up to benefit. The Amazon is being sold off, without any mandate to consult the people who live there, nor assurances to protect the vital ecosystem of the region,” explains Sue Deranger, an activist who has worked with the Awajun Wampis peoples and communities for the last three years in Peru. “It is imperative that companies like Petrolifera halt their investments in Peru. No Canadian company should be allowed to benefit from a system that prioritizes the rights and voices of foreign companies over that of the people who live directly within a region.”
Indigenous leaders in Peru are critical of government decrees, passed in advance of free trade agreements with Canada and the United States, that are designed to accelerate the mining, energy, forestry and massive agricultural projects in the Amazon rainforest. Indigenous people are standing up and demanding that they be meaningfully consulted in any developments or legislation that ultimately affect their land, resources and territories because of the severe impact these agreements will have on the region and its people.
“This is not just an Indigenous issue or a Peruvian issue. The massive presence of Canadian resource companies like Petrolifera in Peru and the fact that laws are being bent or broken to satisfy their bottom line should concern all of us,” says Sheila Muxlow, prairie regional organizer for the Council of Canadians. ”We join with the peoples of Peru in speaking out against a free trade model that will only perpetuate the destruction of the Amazon, the theft of Indigenous lands, and the continued trampling on human rights.”
- 30 -
For photos of the violence in Peru click here
For more information please contact:
Sue Deranger, Indigenous Rights Activist - 306-545-4536.
Sheila Muxlow, Council of Canadians - 780.233.2528
Eriel Deranger, Rainforest Action Network - 587.785.1558
Ben Powless, Indigenous Environmental Network and Indigenous People's Solidarity Movement - +51 976 999 157, 613.614.4219 (Currently in Peru)
--
Sign up to receive Council of Canadians e-Newsletters and Action Alerts --
The Council of Canadians
700-170 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, ON K1P 5V5.
Tel: (613) 233-2773; Toll-free: 1-800-387-7177
Fax: (613) 233-6776
inquiries@canadians.org
www.canadians.org