Final Verdict Protects a Half-Million Acres of Amazon Rainforest from Oil Drilling
This article by Amazon Frontlines appeared in Intercontinental Cry on July 13th, 2019.
After a hard-fought appeal, the Waorani people of Pastaza won a historic and final appellate ruling in Ecuadorian court protecting half a million acres of their territory in the Amazon rainforest from being earmarked for oil drilling. The decision by the three-judge panel of the Pastaza Provincial Court permanently voids the consultation process with the Waorani undertaken by the Ecuadorian government in 2012, indefinitely suspending the auctioning of their lands to oil companies. The now final verdict also jeopardizes the contemplated auctioning of 16 oil blocks that cover over 7 million acres of indigenous territoryby providing an invaluable legal precedent for other indigenous nations across the Ecuadorian Amazon.
“This victory is for my ancestors. It’s for our forest and future generations. And it’s for the whole world,” said Nemonte Nenquimo, President of the Waorani Pastaza Organization (CONCONAWEP) and plaintiff in the lawsuit. “We have shown that life is more important than oil and that united we can protect our way of life, the Amazon rainforest, and our planet from destruction.”
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