The Collective for China Investment, Human Rights and Environment (CICDHA), a non-governmental organization (NGO) promoting social, environmental, political and cultural rights in Latin America, reviewed some of China’s largest supported projects in Latin America and presented some conclusions on their environmental and human rights impact.
“Things are not moving forward and we identified new problems,” said Julia Cuadros, a member of the board of directors of the Peruvian NGO CooperAcción, which belongs to CICDHA. dIALOGUE on July 14. “One of them is that China’s foreign policy continues, with diplomatic missions, embassies and the Chinese government itself not communicating with civil society.”
Cuadros pointed out that among the 26 projects analyzed at the end of June, the right to live in a healthy and sustainable environment was violated in 24 cases; violations of the collective rights of indigenous peoples occurred in 18 cases; Violations of civil, political and economic rights were registered in 10 cases; and in eight cases labor rights were violated.
Two projects
In the case of the Ecuadorian Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric project, built by the Chinese company Sinohydro Corporation, the Chinese environmental impact study did not take into account the seriousness of the accelerated regressive erosion in the rivers caused by the hydroelectric plant, causing the disappearance of the 150-meter San Rafael Falls , the highest in the country, on February 2, 2020.
To mitigate the effects of erosion, in December 2021, Ecuador and the United States signed a memorandum of understanding to protect the Coca Codo Sinclair watershed, which covers 30 percent of Ecuadorians’ electricity demand, according to Ecuadorian Electrical. Corporation.
In Peru, the Marcona Mine project, developed by the Chinese company Shougang Hierro Perú SAA, is one of the most controversial in the country, with lawsuits accumulating for labor law violations. During the pandemic, the company forced workers to stay in the mine for 30 to 60 days, leading to the deaths of 24 people infected with COVID-19 who could not leave, the report said.
The case of Guyana
“Any alliance with China […] it’s very dangerous,” said Daniel Pou, director of the Dominican Republic’s Civil Security Data Analysis Center. dIALOGUE. “China emerged as a new colonizer to choose in its favor strategic points, such as sea routes, telecommunications, raw materials and a whole series of fundamental elements for its development – not ours.”
Addressing China Railway Construction Corporation Limited’s $260 million project set to build a new floating bridge over the Demerara River in Guyana’s capital, Pou noted that “this is not an adequate technology, much less for a The 2-kilometer bridge spans a river, with a very high maintenance cost, risks and uncertainties.” Guyanese environmentalist Simone Mangal-Joly denounced it Guyana News every day the lack of an environmental impact study for the project.
Balsa wood
The CICDHA report points out that another serious problem present in many Chinese projects in Latin America is deforestation, such as for logging, building works and access roads to infrastructure, including the illegal exploitation of balsa wood in the Amazon.
“China […] it is implementing wind energy fields, and the blades of each module are made of balsa wood because it is light. That wood is in our Amazon forests. Chinese companies are raiding the forests and sending third parties to cut down the trees,” Cuadros said. “They are deforesting one of our main capitals in Latin America.”
China is doing everything it can to occupy territories not only with infrastructure but also by seizing natural resources, Pou said. “Latin America has become their pantry for minerals, soy, meat, fish, even for their energy transition,” Cuadros added.
Strengthening alliances
Latin America and the Caribbean cannot rely on China, as there is no Chinese project that does not have conflicts, Cuadros stressed. People are being directly affected, and as long as they do not change these behaviors, their operations will continue to have conflicts.
“Alliances with other continents, with organizations that are suffering the impact of Chinese funding and investment, must be strengthened. It’s not just Latin America,” she said.
In October 2023, CICDHA will submit its fourth full report on the impact of Chinese activities in Latin America to the United Nations Human Rights Council, Cuadros said. The third report was presented in 2018.
“China should look at the behavior of its public, private or mixed companies when they operate […]that is, they must do everything possible so that their projects do not affect civil, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental rights”, concluded Cuadros.
