to account, to ensure that they act in an independent manner, in accordance with their human
rights obligations. Full transparency around all State and corporate engagement in relation to
proposed projects is fundamental to achieving this.
6. A major obstacle in FPIC is the lack of recognition by the State of indigenous peoples’ sovereign
rights over their lands and resources. Even if subsoil minerals are considered public domain,
mining these mineral resources leads to dispossession of the lands and territories of the
indigenous peoples. Thus the recognition of the people’s sovereignty is important.
7. A challenge in operationalizing FPIC is that the laws of the government favour developers.
Rights of mining companies often supersede, or are given precedence over, the rights of
indigenous peoples. There is also inequality in negotiations, in which the company always has
the advantage and enjoys the support of the State. When indigenous peoples want their rights
to be respected, they always have to bargain for it, and inevitably have to do so from a position
of disempowerment.
Making Free, Prior and Informed Consent a Reality
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