Texaco in Ecuador
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INTERVIEW: ERMEL CHáVEZ
Ermel Chávez, President of the Amazon Defense Front (FDA) in the department of Sucumbíos in northeastern Ecuador, discusses the work of the FDA and its hopes for the future.
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| Portrait of Ermel Chávez, president of the Amazon Defense Front. "We've established a leadership school that is training about 45 community leaders. When these leaders finish the year-long program, they're better prepared to help their communities." By: Coco Laso/Oxfam |
Ermel Chávez has been president of the Amazon Defense Front (FDA) in the department of Sucumbíos, in northeastern Ecuador, since May 2002. In this interview, he discusses the work of the FDA and its hopes for the future.
When and why was the Amazon Defense Front founded?
The Amazon Defense Front (FDA) has been working for more than 10 years in the areas of Sucumbíos and what is now the department of Orellana. It was founded in 1994, when a group of indigenous people and non-indigenous settlers filed a lawsuit against Texaco for environmental and ecological damage caused during the decades that the company worked in that part of the Amazon. The people who had been affected by the damage got together and said, "We need an organization that will represent us." After some discussion and a number of meetings, the FDA was born. It was legally established as a non-profit organization under Ecuadorian law in 1998.
Does the FDA handle only the ChevronTexaco case?
At first, it worked specifically on that case, but over time it began to get into other areas, such as training, environmental monitoring and legal assistance for environmental problems. The Texaco case is still a major part of our work, however.
The membership has also expanded. There are now about 13 organizations under the FDA umbrella, including community and local parish groups.
What do you consider the milestones in the FDA's work?
The key element that has strengthened us as an organization is the Texaco—now ChevronTexaco—case. Throughout the process, the company has tried to divide the communities and create dissent that would weaken the organization. Texaco negotiated with the national government, local governments and some indigenous federations. They said there wasn't really a problem, and they made million-dollar payments to some municipalities and an indigenous federation.
People started to say the FDA didn't represent them, and that's when the group called the Assembly of Delegates, which consists of representatives of the communities, was formed. It represents the four indigenous organizations as well as the non-indigenous communities affected by the damage. The FDA also has a representative to the Assembly.
The FDA also works with other communities and organizations. We've established a leadership school that is training about 45 community leaders. When these leaders finish the year-long program, they're better prepared to help their communities.
We've also been working with people to file complaints about violations of environmental and human rights. We help people with legal advice, we help them file the complaint and we help them throughout the negotiation process. People are seeing that the same thing that happened with Texaco can happen with other companies, and that it's a serious problem.
Is there consistent opposition to petroleum operations, or do some communities see this as a path to local development?
We've found that when communities enter into negotiations with companies, there's often not a good basis for that dialogue. The company's priority is the petroleum. They need permission, so they'll offer a community a few hundred dollars, some zinc sheets for roofs, boots, machetes or other necessities. In some communities, the economic need is so desperate that people will give their approval in return for $500.
We're working with communities that are in that situation, so they'll say, "Just a moment—that's not the issue," and so they can make their own counterproposals. There's a lot more grassroots awareness. In one area, three non-indigenous cooperatives got together and insisted that any negotiation be with them as a group, not with each individually.
There have been two interesting cases in which we've helped the communities draw up their own local development plans to present to the companies, saying, "These are our needs, our projects and the activities we want to implement—what will you help us with?"
These cases help lead to a trend of equitable dialogue. We're still waiting to see results—I can't say how it will work out, because it's a process that's just beginning, but I think it's very important.
What are some of the FDA's strategies for helping communities?
People trust the FDA, and one strategy we use is to get the media involved. There was one community that invited us because they were going to sign an agreement with one of the companies. We took some media representatives along. The company representatives were being very arrogant. They insisted that the community leaders sign without asking any questions or discussing anything. But when the community leaders introduced us as being from the FDA and introduced the reporters from Radio Sucumbíos and other media, suddenly the tone changed to one of respect. The people felt they had support.
How do you see the Texaco case now and in the future?
Now more than ever we need people to help with solidarity and pressure, not only because we're trying to keep the case in the public eye, but because we're concerned about what's going to happen after the Texaco case. It appears to be just a single case, but it will set precedents. The communities are going to say, "If we could take Texaco to court, we can do the same with other companies that don't comply with environmental regulations and environmental management plans. We want to make sure those precedents are set so that the communities will have that support in the future.
How has Oxfam America contributed to the FDA's work?
Oxfam America has supported the entire process. It has specifically supported the Assembly of Delegates of Communities Affected by Texaco, helping to strengthen that organization. Their support has been very important. Even though it's been a long process, they've remained with us and have never pressured us to negotiate with the company. They helped us with a study so we could develop the proposals that we needed. Thanks to Oxfam America, the FDA was able to do an evaluation and a strategic planning process, and it now has a clear vision of how to help its member organizations. Thanks to this support, we have a new structure and are functioning well.