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Indigenous groups seek to compel

Quito to reverse oil, mining awards

THE Waorani and A’i Cofan indigenous com- was requesting that Quito enforce a 2018 court
munities of the upper Amazon River have ruling reversing the award of 20 mining con-
petitioned Ecuador’s Constitutional Court to cessions along the Aguarico River. Represent-
enforce previous court rulings rescinding the atives of the A’i Cofan community say that the
award of various hydrocarbon and mining government has only suspended the awards and
concessions. has also failed to uphold pledges to restore the
According to a report from Reuters, delega- environments damaged by mining companies.
tions from both communities appeared in the As of press time, Ecuador’s government had
Constitutional Court on September 6 to request not commented on the indigenous communi-
that Quito abide by decisions handed down by ties’ petition to the Constitutional Court. Both
lower courts in 2018 and 2019. They asked the the Waorani and the A’i Cofan have complained
Constitutional Court to compel the Environ- that they were not adequately consulted about
ment Ministry and the Ministry of Mines and plans for using their land for resource extrac-
Energy to enforce these verdicts. tion. ™
The Waorani community was seeking to
enforce a court ruling handed down in 2019,
in which a judge determined that its rights had
been violated by the government’s creation
of a licence area known as Block 22. The site
has never been awarded to an oil company for
exploration or development, but the Waorani
are looking to prevent their lands from becom-
ing a hub for hydrocarbon operations.
Gilberto Nenquima, the president of the
Waorani nation in Pastaza Province, told report-
ers on September 6 that Quito’s delay in enforc-
ing the 2019 court decision was unacceptable.
“We want answers because it has been years,” he
declared. “They must carry out the ruling.”
Wider Guaramag, the president of the A’i
Cofan community of Sinangoe in Sucumbios
Province, spoke similarly. “It’s been several years
but the sentence has not been carried out at all,”
he said. “The violation of our rights continues.”
Reuters noted that the Sinangoe community Waorani territory was used to create Block 22 (Photo: Amazon Watch)

Trafigura reportedly redirecting

Russian diesel fuel to Ecuador

THE Singapore-based commodities trader Tra- national oil company (NOC). The vessel has
figura Group has started redirecting shipments been loaded with 262,000 barrels of the fuel,
of Russian diesel to Latin American markets sources with knowledge of the matter said.
in the face of a looming EU ban on petroleum The trader has taken this step as Brussels
product imports originating in Russia. phases in a ban on the sale and import of Russian
Bloomberg reported on one such shipment petroleum products. When questioned about
last week, noting that Trafigura had chartered the company’s actions on this front, a spokesper-
the Marlin Aventurine tanker to transport Rus- son for Trafigura told Bloomberg that the trader
sian-made diesel to Petroecuador, Ecuador’s remained in full compliance with EU sanctions.

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