ENVIRONMENTAL BILL THREATENS HUMAN RIGHTS

Dear Luis Rolando Redondo Guifarro,

I am writing to you to share my concern about the Special Bill for the Promotion of Investments through the Efficiency of Environmental Licensing Processes, presented to Congress in early May.

This bill, which seeks to ease the granting of environmental licenses for a large number of investment projects, makes no reference to the State’s obligations to guarantee human rights in line with international human rights law and standards; it does not address the implications of this simplified mechanism for the right of individuals and groups to participate in decision-making processes that may affect their rights, nor the safeguards envisaged to guarantee the right to a healthy environment. Similarly, the current text does not reflect the requirement to conduct robust human rights due diligence that assess the risks and impacts that the project may have, as well as an adequate plan to prevent these risks from creating adverse impacts. This must be done prior to any licensing.

Although it was announced that amendments to exclude mining projects from this mechanism, and to guarantee the right to free, prior, and informed consultation are being discussed, these have not yet been made public and therefore remain unclear. Furthermore, no references to other human rights, such as public participation, have been announced.

I urge you to ensure that any changes of legislation with regards to the environment do not pose a risk to human rights and to abstain from passing the bill until clear safeguards for human rights are included, in particular with regards to public participation and the right to a safe and clean environment.

Yours sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]