CONSEJO INTERNACIONAL DE TRATADOS INDIOS

The following is a reproduction of the letter of Achim Steiner, IUCN Director General, in response to the letter of Joji Carino, Tom Goldtooth and Victoria T Corpuz on the IUCN-ICMM partnership and the statement United Outcry Against Mining Greenwash.

17 September, 2002

IUCM-ICMM Partnership on Mining and Biodiversity

Thank you for your letter dated 4^th September and the attached statement “ United Outcry Against Mining Greenwash.”

In responding to you today – both in my personal as well as formal capacity as Director General of the IUCN – I want to begin by emphasizing that I respect the right of any organization to scrutinize the work of IUCN or indeed any other body operating in the public domain. However, I also want to express my dismay at the way your sign-on letter has prejudged and indeed condemned an initiative of the IUCN. I am sorry that our public statement on this initiative you has referred as this may have given signatories some context, and that any offer to meet in Johannesburg to discuss our intent and approach for this initiative on mining and biodiversity was not taken up.

While I accept that our initiative may have come as a “surprise” as you say in your letter, I do not accept that this puts the IUCN at fault.  We are a Union of almost 1,000 members worldwide. Our members approve a global work programme which all components of the Union implement. This particular dialogue with the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) is but one of hundreds of different activities we develop and implement. Our engagement on mining, protected areas and biodiversity issues is a long-standing one supported by a resolution of our members at the Amman Congress, namely Resolution 257 entitled “Preparation and Adoption of Guidelines for Oil, Gas, and Mineral Exploration and Exploitation in Arid and Semi-arid Zones’” and has often brought us into contact and repeatedly conflict with mining interests.

Our decision to open a new door for dialogue with ICMM is thus, a small, but potentially important step in a decade long effort to challenge the mining industry’s poor record in addressing the environmental and social impacts of its operations, through a process of enhanced dialogue.

Why did we agree to work with ICMM on mining and biodiversity? The decision was a deliberate one based on the following considerations:

·        In May 2002 the MSSD (Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development) project presented its final report in Toronto. Initiated by 20 of the largest mining companies, this process signaled willingness by some of the major players in the mining industry to address long-standing socio-economic and environmental controversies associated with their operations.

·        At Toronto, 22 companies announced the creation of the ICMM to extend their collective engagement on these issues beyond the report. Two decisions associated with the establishment of ICMM struck us as important. First – the Council would be composed of CEOs – not just line staff of the companies. Second – the appointment of Jay Hair (former Head of the National Wildlife Federation and former IUCN President) as Director of ICMM, in our opinion, indicates a commitment to tackle real issues rather than just establishing a trade association.

·        ICMM approached IUCN with a request for assistance in addressing the findings and questions the MSSD report raised on mining, protected areas and biodiversity. After a series of contacts, we concluded that ICMM offered a genuine opportunity for a substantive dialogue with these companies on biodiversity related issues. In view IUCN’s long standing concerns with the impact of mining on biodiversity and local communities and the Union’s ability to convene a broad spectrum of perspectives and expertise, we decided to open the door to a dialogue.

·        IUCN’s terms of engagement have been made clear from the outset. IUCN would use its own resources to fund IUCN’s staff time and input. ICMM would have to finance, through its own resources, any costs that would arise from any consultations, studies and workshops with experts and stakeholders as we consider this an investment on the part of the mining industry to address its issues and challenges.

·        Initial work would focus on the World Parks Congress (Durban, September 2003) as a milestone and platform for reviewing the results of this dialogue on mining and biodiversity with a particular emphasis on the issue of protected areas which has been a key issue of concern among IUCN’s constituency and membership. Durban would provide a public and transparent platform for a broad range of actors to determine if the results of this dialogue would merit further engagement.

This is the basis on which IUCN made its announcement with ICMM in Johannesburg. While we recognize that such initiatives are complex and have no guarantee of success, IUCN has always been a platform for dialogue. While we are very aware of the track record of the mining industry in the past, we do not believe that this precludes a dialogue about how to influence the future. In making this a matter of public record – as we did in Johannesburg – we do not aspire to “greenwash” the mining industry. Rather than engage in “secret talks,” we believe that ICMM’s public commitment will make it more difficult for its membership to walk away from its commitments made in Toronto.

By announcing our intention to develop this initiative with ICMM, explaining what its objectives are and submitting its interim results to public review at the World Parks Congress in September 2003, I believe IUCN has demonstrated that it neither seeks to marginalize or greenwash anyone.

I repeat once again our interest in working with representatives of indigenous peoples on this, and other issues. I do believe that our Union needs to further develop its sensitivity and understanding of the perspectives, interests and rights of indigenous people. Working together on the challenges posed by the mining industry maybe one concrete activity we can pursue together along with other programmes.

I hope that based on the information shared with you today, many of the signatories of your letter will see our efforts in a different light. We welcome working with you on our efforts to engage with the mining industry through ICMM and other avenues.

With my best wishes.

SGD: Achim Steiner

Director General

Attachments:

·        Letter from Tebtebba Foundation signed by Joji  Carino, dated 4 September 2002

·        Statement entitled “United Outcry Against Mining Greenwash” version dated 12 September 2002 *

·        IUCN Press Release entitled Mining Industry and IUCN – The World Conservation Union Announce Partnership on Mining and Biodiversity dated 31 August 2002

* the updated version dated September 30 2002 is instead attached herewith.