In the weeks following the murder of Berta Cáceres, leader of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organisations of Honduras (Copinh) and leader of the resistance against the Agua Zarca hydroelectric dam on the Gualcarque river, there has been international outcry for justice for Berta and security for her colleagues.
The Agua Zarca dam threatens to disrupt the livelihoods and access to water of local indigenous communities. According to a recent opinion piece in the Guardian,
The Agua Zarca dam is financed by the Dutch development bank FMO, the Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation (Finnfund), and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (Cabei), among others. FMO and Finnfund have committed themselves to respect human rights in relation to the projects that they support. Both have publicly condemned Cáceres’s killing and have called for a thorough investigation…And, following reports of García’s murder, FMO suspended all of its activities in Honduras pending consultations with communities in the area and an investigation of its activities in the country.
The violence in Honduras reflects a broader need to defend space for civil society and protect activists who oppose investment projects. As well as national governments, development banks also have an essential role in reviewing human rights risks and requiring human rights due diligence.
How can such risks be better anticipated and prevented? The starting point is a strong set of environmental and social safeguard policies with clear due diligence requirements. Policies anchored in an explicit commitment that the lender will respect internationally recognised human rights standards and take all necessary measures to avoid supporting projects that may put a borrower in breach of its social, environmental and human rights obligations.
Click here for the full article by Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.
Read more about development finance safeguards on BIC’s World Bank Safeguards page and AIIB Safeguards page.