"The Secretary-General’s Panel’s New Set of Recommendations on CETMs: An Opportunity to Ensure the Respect of Indigenous Peoples' Rights and Avoid Repeating the Mistakes of the Past", 11 September 2024

" The SIRGE Coalition welcomes the document's conclusion with its strong call to all actors to “uphold the rights of Indigenous Peoples, on whose lands much of the global reserves of critical energy transition minerals are located. Only by cooperating in good faith with Indigenous Peoples, treating them as equal partners in development, acknowledging their indispensable role in biodiversity protection, and respecting all of their rights, including as articulated in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and to obtain their free and informed consent prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources, will it be possible to resource the energy transition successfully, and with equity and justice.” (Conclusion, Para 67)

The panel’s recommendations rightly acknowledge the individual and collective rights of Indigenous Peoples, stating that “States shall consult and cooperate in good faith with the Indigenous Peoples concerned, through their own representative institutions in order to obtain their free and informed consent prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources” (Principle 1, Para 17). This aligns with Article 19 of UNDRIP, and we commend this alignment. However, the subsequent text (“while taking into account national specificity and legal context”) compromises the language by allowing for potential loopholes or weakened enforcement of FPIC, undermining Indigenous Peoples' rights when national legislations are weak as to their rights and access to those rights.  The SIRGE Coalition regrets the inclusion of this vague language and calls for the Secretary-General to clarify and fully protect these rights in the implementation phase.

Furthermore, we welcome the panel’s recognition that “specific measures should be implemented to ensure that Indigenous Peoples are recognized as equal partners and benefit equitably from these opportunities, with benefit-sharing schemes aligned with their right to self-determination” (Principle 4, Para 38). This recognition is crucial, as self-determination is at the core of Indigenous Peoples’ rights. We encourage the development of concrete mechanisms to ensure Indigenous Peoples have the final say on how their lands and resources are used, fully aligning with UNDRIP.

We also commend the panel’s recognition of the need to protect environmental and human rights defenders (Principle 1, Para 7), which is particularly important for Indigenous defenders who are often targeted for protecting their lands. However, we recommend that the implementation phase of the principles highlights the need for the inclusion of stronger protections, including legal frameworks and rapid response mechanisms, to ensure their safety.

The critical role Indigenous Peoples play in protecting biodiversity, which is vital for preserving global ecosystems, is also well acknowledged (Principle 2, Para 21 and Actionable Recommendation 1, Para 56). We appreciate this recognition, as it is a key to preventing further environmental degradation from mining and safeguarding ecosystems.

However, there is a glaring omission in the panel’s recommendations - the lack of a specific actionable recommendation focused on Indigenous Peoples. Actionable recommendations are where principles are translated into enforceable steps and are crucial to turning vision into reality.

Given that over half of CETMs are located on Indigenous Peoples’ lands, the absence of one dedicated actionable recommendation addressing Indigenous Peoples’ rights is incomprehensible and weakens the entire proposal. The implementation phase must include enforceable actions prioritizing Indigenous Peoples—such as governance, FPIC, benefit-sharing, and human and environmental protections.

In addition, while the recognition of self-determination is welcome, we recommend that the principles be further strengthened with a call for clear enforcement mechanisms. Article 3 of UNDRIP asserts that Indigenous Peoples freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development. To truly honour this, there is a strong need for binding commitments that ensure Indigenous Peoples have the final authority over their lands and resources.  

We also recommend the inclusion of culturally appropriate grievance mechanisms to address rights violations, in line with Article 40 of UNDRIP.  These mechanisms should be designed with the participation and input of Indigenous Peoples and tailored to their specific legal traditions and needs. 

SIRGE regrets that water is mentioned only once in the recommendations, with no accompanying protections, despite its critical importance in CETMs mining. ..."

SIRGE coalition full press release can be accessed here.