“Indigenous peoples around the world have suffered negative, even devastating consequences from extractive industries.” — United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2013)
Many Canadian mining companies carry out projects on Indigenous lands, leaving their people vulnerable to environmental contamination, loss of traditional culture and other negative impacts.
The Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability advocates for the rights of Indigenous peoples to be respected by Canadian mining, oil and gas companies operating abroad. The principle of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) is key to the right to self-determination of Indigenous peoples.
What We Want:
- A corporate human rights ombudsperson with real powers to independently investigate and report on the respect of the rights of Indigenous peoples by Canadian mining, oil and gas companies operating abroad.
- All Canadian government support to companies (including political and commercial support by embassies and financing through Export Development Canada) to be conditional on respect for international human rights and environmental standards, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
- The corporate sector to adopt the UN Declaration as a reconciliation framework, as recommended by Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Call to Action #92), which includes the free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) safeguard.
- Promotion and implementation of Indigenous rights and the UN Declaration in all of Canada’s international relations, including activities undertaken through its CSR Strategy for the extractive sector.
