#Ecuadorian Legal Framework

[lexiai]

Navega las Leyes Sudamericanas con los Chatbots Legales IA de LexiAI

[allthecanadianpolitics]

The Canadian and Ecuadorian governments continue to forge ahead with free trade agreement (FTA) plans, despite opposition from social movements and Indigenous Peoples within Ecuador, along with rampant instability. In these negotiations, the spotlight is on the Canadian mining industry. Canadian mining investments in Ecuador are valued at $1.8 billion, with Canada’s trade commissioner noting that Canadian companies are “leading investors” in Ecuador’s mining sector. The trade commissioner also praises Ecuador’s “mining-friendly legal framework.” On March 5, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa met with Justin Trudeau in Ottawa. Both leaders welcomed “the imminent launch of negotiations toward a Canada-Ecuador free trade agreement.” The day before, Noboa spoke at the 2024 convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), an annual event that promotes Canadian mining interests globally. March 4 was “Ecuador Day” at PDAC, and Noboa used the opportunity to promote his country as a “mining destination” to Canadian investors. This is despite what MiningWatch Canada calls “serious human rights violations [that shed] light on the state of conflict over mining projects in peasant and Indigenous territories” in Ecuador.

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @newsfromstolenland @allthegeopolitics

[bidotorg]

Ecuador legalized same-sex marriage on July 8, 2019.

On June 12, 2019, The Constitutional Court of Ecuador ruled in favor of same-sex marriage, overturning the previous ban. The decision was made in response to lawsuits brought by two gay couples who were denied marriage licenses. The court's ruling was based on the principle of equality and non-discrimination, as enshrined in the Ecuadorian Constitution and international human rights treaties to which Ecuador is a party.

July 8th marks the publication of the Constitutional Court's ruling in the Official Register, making it official and enforceable. The publication is a crucial step in the legislative process, as it signifies the formal adoption of the court's decision into the country's legal framework.

From this day forward, same-sex couples in Ecuador could legally marry, marking the full implementation of the court's June 12 decision. #LoveWins

[colitcomediasblog]

Challenger Gold Secures Strategic Investment Protection in Ecuador

Game-Changing Agreement with Ecuadorian Government

Challenger Gold Limited has fortified its position in Ecuador’s mining sector by signing a landmark Investment Protection Agreement (IPA) with the Ecuadorian Government. This critical legal framework secures up to US$75 million in historical and future investments associated with the company’s 100%-owned El Guayabo Project, a high-potential gold-copper-molybdenum deposit in southwest Ecuador.

The agreement grants Challenger Gold an initial eight-year term, with options for renewal, offering a long-term horizon for development and commercial success. This move underpins the company’s confidence in Ecuador as a viable, mining-friendly jurisdiction.

[thenewwei]

Hello Everyone,

I'm having a free promotion today on Amazon of all my four previous books, but I would really like to ask that you purchase the 4 story eBooks from my mixed novel/story collection Bad Americans for $0.99 that are out today. You don't need a Kindle to download or read these eBooks, you just need to download the free Kindle app on your preferred electronic device.

Two (On the Frontlines, Immigrants Unite!) are already published and two (Corona Chaos, Black Boy's Ballad) are available for pre-order. If people buy a bunch of them at once, it raises them on Amazon's list and likely puts them #1 on multiple genre lists, increasing their visibility (and sales) during the promotion and possibly for days after. So your purchasing these cheap eBooks would help in the overall campaign to get readers interested in this important book which I've slaved away at writing and researching since 2020. Plus you'll get to own and read some fantastically entertaining realistic fiction!

Here are the specific URLs and brief descriptions of the stories/eBooks:

On the Frontlines

Filipino-American nurse Andrea Mendoza, a frontline/first responder, tells this harrowing tale about the fight to battle Covid at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens. Told from multiple perspectives, including nurses, doctors and patients, the story is both dramatic and exhausting, just like the pandemic at its height.

Immigrants Unite!

21 year old Taiwanese-American social work student Cathy Wei Quan weaves this hilarious yet moving Spoken Word story about an illegal Chinese immigrant embroiled in Asian-American racist discrimination in Queens.

Corona Chaos

Conservative financial analyst and Army vet Taylor Williams counters Cathy's story with this taut, dark crime tale about legal Ecuadorian immigrants accosted by illegal Mexican drug cartels and the BLM protests.

Black Boy's Ballad

Possibly the best story in the book, this is an epic novella about a gay black librarian named Stephen from Bed Stuy who falls in love with the son of a Montana rancher and struggles to fit into "hipster" Brooklyn. Plus he needs to grapple with the imprisonment of his former Black Panther father, which ultimately turns into an intense mystery/thriller conspiracy involving the NYPD, Nation of Islam and various politicians.

Other free books (whole):

Good Americans (The Human Tragedy, Book 1)

The first book in The Human Tragedy, modeled on Balzac's Human Comedy, is this raw, highly provocative story collection of realistic fiction set mostly in America before and during The Great Recession. Including 6 short stories, a 3-part novella and an Introduction which sets the framework for the innovative short story collections that portray American society to follow, including the Bad Americans books. Kirkus Reviews called it "a solid collection of rare caliber" that "speaks volumes about the human condition and modern life in America."

The Brotherhood (The Brotherhood Chronicle, Volume 1)

Niral Solanke is a failed writer from Queens is living a dissolute life with his worthlessly wealthy Brooklyn buddies when his childhood friend, promising NYU financial student Priya Mehta, commits suicide in Union Square. Would a devout Hindu kill herself? Everyone is shocked in The Brotherhood religious community and Niral tries to right his life by helping Priya's brother Amrat find her killer. He reconnects with his rich financier friend Vishal Patel but as he investigates further, he realizes everyone is a suspect and no one is innocent in this intense noirish mystery thriller widely praised for its lively rendering of gritty Great Recession NYC. Amazon #1 bestseller in various categories and winner of two awards.

The Run and Hide (The Brotherhood Chronicle, Volume 2)

After the cataclysmic events of the first book, Niral Solanke has been banished to Thailand and is working for a diamond merchant front for a criminal gang when he is sent to India on a mission that reconnects him with The Brotherhood's new corrupt leader Bhai. Niral and a wide range of colorful characters become embroiled in multiple dramas centered on a terrorist plot against The Brotherhood by a bitter Muslim scarred by the Godhra riots. Widely praised for its vivid settings and locations particularly in Thailand and India, this is my personal favorite book and probably the most profound when considering issues of the Hindu/Buddhist ideological dichotomy and social justice.

The Dance Towards Death (The Brotherhood Chronicle, Volume 3)

Winner of 15 literary honors and an Amazon #1 bestseller, The Dance Towards Death is a relentless, kaleidoscopic international thriller set in NYC, Thailand, India, and Australia, and the culmination (for now) of Niral's unforgettable journey.

Thanks again, let me know if you have any questions.

#bookstagram#books#booktok#BadAmericans#blackfiction#UrbanFiction#gayfiction#romance#gayromance#novella#novelas#thriller#thrillerbooks#shortreads#kindle#kindleunlimitedbooks#preorder#preordernow#preordertoday#PreOrderHere#mystery#mysterybooks#gaylove#lovestory#blackexperience#urbanromance#noir#Crime#conspiracy#blacklivesmatter

Tejas Desai

[coprelawland]

The Role of The Non Conveniens Doctrine in the Aguinda v. Texaco Case

By Summer Lee, University of Colorado Boulder Class of 2023

November 21, 2023

The Aguinda v. Texaco caseis an example of how applications of the non conveniens doctrine can contribute to complex litigation scenarios. While the motion to non conveniens was approved and Ecuador’s courts provided a final decision, the case was further complexified by a reassessment of Ecuador’s legal framework and the evidence that was used to provide the final decision. The lawsuit began in 1993 when the plaintiff, Aguinda, accused Chevron of producing environmentally harmful toxic waste and lacking sufficient environmental controls on pollution produced during the oil extraction process. The plaintiff also filed a lawsuit on the grounds that accidental oil spills during the extraction process have affected the local communities’ access to fresh, clean water [1].

After nine years of litigation in U.S. courts, there was a motion by the defendant party, Chevron, to apply the non conveniens doctrine to the case. The non conveniens doctrine is defined as a court's ability to transfer the case to the jurisdiction of another court if it would promote convenience and be adequate enough to conduct the legal process. While determining requests for non conveniens, courts perform a balancing test and an adequate alternative inquiry test to determine whether or not the request should be accepted. During a balancing test, a court considers the different and conflicting interests of the parties involved in the lawsuit. It takes into account private and public factors, such as the different, competing interests of the parties involved in the lawsuit, and how juries are relevant or connected to the case. In an adequate alternative inquiry test, the court considers the alternative courts that the defendant suggests, and whether or not the alternative court can provide legal remedies to the plantiff (e.g., injunction, equitable rescission, subrogation, etc.) [3, 6].

  In response to Chevron’s request to implement the non conveniens doctrine, the plaintiff argued that the case should remain under the jurisdiction of U.S. courts, and that the request for non conveniens should be rejected because Ecuador’s courts may not exercise legal impartiality [1]. The Southern District of New York also questioned the ability for Ecuador’s courts to engage in due process, arguing that the request for non conveniens should ultimately be rejected. Despite these objections, however, the U.S Courts viewed forum non conveniens as an appropriate next step because they argued that the motion to non conveniens passed the balancing test and that Ecuador’s courts were a sufficient alternative court to the U.S. District Courts [2].  In the context of Aguinda v. Texaco, legal scholars have also argued how the defendant’s use of the non conveniens doctrine was used as a way to obtain a strategic advantage during the case, rather than solely for the sake of convenience. As Ecuador’s government generates significant revenue from oil extracting industries, Chevron assumed that Ecuador’s final decision would rule in the company’s favor [2].  Other scholars have noted how Chevron possibly attempted to gain a strategic advantage through interactions with the local officials involved in the lawsuit [1]. 

Although Chevron's request to transfer the case to the jurisdiction of Ecuadorian courts was accepted, the company did not find the court’s final decision acceptable. In the final decision, Ecuador’s courts held Chevron liable for damages in the lawsuit [4]. In response, Chevron asserted that the court’s decision was unreliable because the evidence used during the case was obtained via fraud, coercion and bribery, which influenced the court’s final decision [2]. Chevron appealed to an international tribunal under the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague to review the final decision and seek compensation for the damages it faced as a result of the decision [5]. Throughout the appeal process, Chevron’s expenditures on legal costs and compensation for damages were worth millions of dollars, and the company has requested the tribunal to further assess these damages [5]. On August 30, 2018, the international arbitration tribunal ruled in favor of Chevron and lowered the compensation amount for damages [7]  

______________________________________________________________

Summer Lee is pursuing a B.A. in International Affairs at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is planning to graduate in the Fall of 2023 and pursue a J.D. in international law.

______________________________________________________________

[1] Kimerling, J. (2013). Lessons from the Chevron Ecuador Litigation: The Proposed Intervenors’ Perspective. Chevron Ecuador Litigation: The Proposed Intervenors’ Perspective, 1(2), 241–291. https://doi.org/https://law.stanford.edu/publications/lessons-from-the-chevron-ecuador-litigation-the-proposed-intervenors-perspective/ 

[2] Erichson, H. (2013). The Chevron-Ecuador Dispute, Forum Non Conveniens, and the Problem of Ex Ante Inadequacy. Stanford Journal of Complex Litigation, 1. 

[3] Cornell Law School. (n.d.). Forum Non Conveniens. Legal Information Institute. https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/forum_non_conveniens 

[4] Chevron. (2014, March 14). U.S. Court Declares Ecuador Judgment Against Chevron Corporation Fraudulent. Unenforceable. Press Release . https://www.chevron.com/ecuador/press-releases/archive/u-s-court-declares-ecuador-judgment-against-chevron-corporation-fraudulent-unenforceable 

[5] Nagarkatti, K., & McWilliams, G. (2018, September 7). International Tribunal Rules in Favor of Chevron in Ecuador Case. Reuters: Environment. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-chevron-ecuador/international-tribunal-rules-in-favor-of-chevron-in-ecuador-case-idUSKCN1LN1WS/ 

[conchavalentina]

GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS

In this blog, I found an interesting topic, this is the “Galápagos Islands”. Is such an interesting topic as the people that live there have different ways to save water, because they live near the ocean. I’m going to talk about the systems they created, who created them or get the idea, and other things. So continue reading if you’re interested in this theme!

The Galapagos Islands were discovered in 1535 by father Tomas Berlanga. They were known around the world as the “Enchanted Isles”. They are located about 1,000 km from Ecuador and are composed of 127 islands, of which 19 are large and 4 are inhabited. 97% of the total surface was declared National Park in 1959. In the past, the Galápagos National Park struggled to enforce the law that protects the reserve from harmful fishing activity.

In 1986, the Galapagos Marine Reserve was created and extended to its current area in 1998, making it one of the largest marine reserves in the world. Also, in 1998 the Ecuadorian government enacted the Galápagos Special Law, a legal framework to protect the Galápagos with which they could keep to be involved in the management process that helps the reserve succeed. The government is one that keeps telling different ways to conserve water apart from the people that live there.

Right now, we can see that there is an impact but not all the people follow what they have to do, so they can save more water. The cause of this is because the population keeps increasing and there is a pressure on water supplies.  Few of the Galapagos Islands have fresh water, and those that do, get water from rainfall or groundwater. Floreana and Isabela Islands have to import their drinking water and groundwater supplies. Another one is San Cristobal, this has a scarce supply but it is good quality because it comes from surface water. 

There’s not that many options that they have as they are limited because they live around the ocean and there’s more salt water. They only can save water from the rains or from their groundwater, but the groundwater is not in all the islands; there's also a limited amount of islands that have groundwater. However we still do both of them, for different reasons like: in agriculture, for things in the house, for energy, for drinking water and other things.

To summarize, we learn that in Galápagos Island there exist limited ways to save water. The history of them and how they were known before.  The connection between how they save water even if they don’t have many ways and the ways that we also use those and for different things.With this we can have an idea, that is difficult living there and that if we have more ways to conserve, why we don’t do it?.

[reportstores]

Ecuador Telecom Services Market Outlook, 2023-2027

In recent years, the telecom services market in Ecuador has experienced significant growth and development. This article aims to provide an overview of the Ecuador Telecom Services Market Outlook from 2023 to 2027. It will explore the current state of the market, key players, emerging trends, and future growth prospects.

1. Overview of the Telecom Services Market in Ecuador

The telecom services market in Ecuador has witnessed remarkable growth in recent years. This growth can be attributed to several factors, including increasing internet penetration, rising smartphone adoption, and a growing demand for advanced communication services. The market is characterized by the presence of both domestic and international telecom service providers.

To gain more information on Ecuador telecom services market forecast, download a free report sample

2. Major Players in the Ecuador Telecom Services Market

The Ecuadorian telecom services market is highly competitive and comprises several major players. Some of the key telecom service providers in the country include Telefonica Movistar, CNT EP, and Claro Ecuador. These companies offer a wide range of services, including mobile telephony, fixed-line services, internet connectivity, and digital TV.

3. Growth Drivers and Opportunities

The telecom services market in Ecuador is driven by various factors that present significant growth opportunities. One of the key drivers is the increasing demand for high-speed internet and data services. With the rise of digitalization and the growing popularity of streaming services, there is a need for reliable and fast internet connections across the country.

Additionally, the increasing adoption of smartphones and the availability of affordable data plans have further fueled the demand for telecom services. The rising trend of e-commerce and online banking has also contributed to the growth of the market, as individuals and businesses require secure and efficient communication channels.

4. Technological Advancements in the Telecom Sector

Technological advancements have played a crucial role in shaping the Ecuadorian telecom services market. The deployment of 4G networks and the ongoing development of 5G infrastructure have improved network speeds and enhanced connectivity. This has enabled consumers to access data-intensive applications and services seamlessly.

Furthermore, the expansion of fiber-optic networks has significantly improved internet connectivity, particularly in urban areas. These technological advancements have not only benefited individual consumers but also facilitated the growth of various industries, such as e-commerce, fintech, and telehealth.

5. Market Challenges and Potential Risks

While the Ecuadorian telecom services market offers immense growth potential, it also faces certain challenges and risks. One of the primary challenges is the need to bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas. Despite the progress made in expanding telecom infrastructure, there are still regions with limited access to reliable internet and telecommunication services.

Moreover, the market is susceptible to regulatory changes and government policies. Frequent modifications in regulations can impact the operations of telecom service providers and introduce uncertainties. Additionally, the increasing competition in the market poses a challenge for existing players to differentiate themselves and maintain market share.

6. Regulatory Environment and Policies

The regulatory environment and policies play a crucial role in shaping the telecom services market in Ecuador. The Telecommunications Law of Ecuador provides the legal framework for the sector and establishes the roles and responsibilities of regulatory bodies. The National Telecommunications Corporation (CNT EP) oversees the industry and ensures fair competition among service providers.

The government of Ecuador has also implemented policies to promote investment in the telecom sector and encourage the expansion of telecom infrastructure. These policies aim to bridge the digital divide and enhance connectivity across the country, particularly in underserved areas.

7. Emerging Trends in the Telecom Services Market

The Ecuadorian telecom services market is witnessing several emerging trends that are expected to shape its future trajectory. One of the prominent trends is the increasing demand for digital and over-the-top (OTT) services. As consumers seek convenience and personalized experiences, there is a growing preference for services like streaming platforms, online gaming, and video conferencing.

Another notable trend is the convergence of telecom services with other sectors such as finance and entertainment. Telecom service providers are partnering with financial institutions to offer mobile banking and digital payment solutions. They are also collaborating with content providers to offer exclusive entertainment packages, including music and video streaming services.

8. Market Forecast and Projections (2023-2027)

Based on the current trends and growth drivers, the Ecuadorian telecom services market is projected to witness substantial growth from 2023 to 2027. The increasing demand for high-speed internet, the expansion of 4G and 5G networks, and the rising adoption of digital services are expected to drive market growth.

Furthermore, the government's focus on improving telecom infrastructure and bridging the digital divide is likely to create new opportunities for market players. The market is anticipated to witness increased competition, leading to innovative service offerings and competitive pricing.

9. Conclusion

The Ecuador Telecom Services Market Outlook from 2023 to 2027 is promising, with significant growth opportunities on the horizon. The market is driven by the increasing demand for high-speed internet, technological advancements, and the convergence of telecom services with other sectors. However, challenges such as bridging the digital divide and navigating regulatory changes need to be addressed.

As the market evolves, telecom service providers need to focus on delivering reliable and innovative solutions to meet the evolving needs of consumers and businesses. By leveraging technological advancements and capitalizing on emerging trends, the Ecuadorian telecom services market can unlock its full potential and contribute to the country's digital transformation.

[planetaryawarenessproject]

Forest Law (2014)

Ursula Biemann & Paulo Tavares 2-channel video installation, maps, documents, objects, publication

Nicole Horgan 

Forest Law (2014) is an exemplary illustration of the artist, researcher and video essayist Ursula Biemann’s pluralistic practice which examines and confronts planetary concerns such as asymmetries of wealth, unequal ecological exchange and climate change by interweaving experimental video, interview, text, photography, cartography and materials. For this particular piece Biemann collaborated with architect and urbanist Paulo Tavares, whose own practice deals with the visual and spatial politics of territorial conflicts and climate change in the Amazon and other frontiers across the third world. Through Forest Law’s two-channel video installation and accompanying documentation including publications, photographs, maps and wall texts, Biemann and Tavares broach the frontiers of the Ecuadorian rainforest to bring to light the work of indigenous lawyers and experts whose work in amending the country’s constitution led to the establishment of fundamental rights to natural eco-systems. 

Where the Amazon floodplains meet the Andean mountains, the Ecuadorian rainforest is not only home to indigenous nations and great ethnocultural diversity but also one of the most biodiverse and resource-rich regions of our planet. It is also as a result under extreme pressure from large-scale mineral and oil extraction and exploitation, despite the region being considered the sovereign land of indigenous nations. Forest Law focuses on a series of landmark legal battles held in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights where claims were made for the rights of nature in the face of this thereat of human destruction. A pertinent case that is included within the piece was won by the Sarayaku people, whose legal argument centred on the centrality of the ‘living forest’ in their community’s cosmology, modes of being and ecological survival. For the Sarayaku people, nature is not a passive background against which our human political and economic disputes play out, but instead should be an active legal subject bearing rights of its own. Forest Law brings together various narrative voices to re-tell these cases through personal testimonies and by mapping the historical, political and ecological dimensions of the trials. By doing so, the Forest Law enters into a conversation concerning the entanglements between a plethora of pertinent issues and conflicts such as environmentalism, post-colonialism, social justice, and of the human and the post-human. 

Biemann and Tavares’ theoretical intervention narrates a changing planetary reality while figuring and reconfiguring human-planetary relations. Throughout Forest Law, Biemann and Tavares refer to Michel Serres’ text Natural Contract in which he proposes that humans should adhere to a contract with the Earth and its other inhabitants ‘in restitution for and recognition of climate change’. Echoing Donna Harraway’s multi-species concept, the interlocutors within Forest Law imbue this ‘natural contract’ by espousing a move away from an anthropocentric point of view towards a geocentric one in which an approach of radical connectedness serves to deconstruct the hegemonic notion of the human and promotes a unique model of equality. Further to this, in Jennifer Gabrys’ compelling text Becoming Planetary she posits the forest as a form of planetary media on account of it acting as a proxy that records and registers the effects of climate change. For Gabrys, the forest has the potential to enact a crucial role in transforming human-planetary relations as ‘it at once resists a universal and singular view, while also bringing into focus a multiplicity of subjects and inhabitations’. This notion of the forest as a site through which planetary inhabitations are manifested is particularly powerful when one considers the rendering of the forest as a physical, legal and cosmological entity in the cases represented in Forest Law. 

Crucially, Forest Law urges us to reconsider our position in the world and of being with the planet. One could argue that the Sarayaku and other narrators featured within Forest Law embody the planet-wary; their planetary perspective is manifest through a greater capacity for empathy and response-ability for our living planet and has resulted in a direct and active confrontation of the dominate globalist and problematic political frameworks.

[sknews7]

Ecuador, Italy sign agreement to foster private investements — MercoPress

Double taxation: Ecuador, Italy signal settlement to foster personal investements

Wednesday, December 14th 2016 – 15:24 UTC

Ecuador’s overseas minister Guillaume Lengthy signed the settlement with Italy on behalf of his authorities

Ecuador signed an settlement with Italy to outline the tax obligations of the residents of the 2 international locations, to be able to keep away from double taxation on revenue taxes and fairness and stop tax evasion, the Ecuadorian International Ministry mentioned.

 “This protocol modifies the settlement signed in Ecuador and Italy in 1984 and permits to outline the taxes to which the mentioned settlement will apply, Ecuador would be the revenue tax of pure individuals and, on the a part of Italy, the private incometax, the company tax and the regional tax on productive actions,” mentioned the official assertion.

Upon signing the settlement, Ecuador’s International Minister Guillaume Lengthy mentioned that this “is a vital settlement that permits us to favor the residents of each international locations and traders who want this type of devices to not tax twice and develop their enterprise actions.” Signing the accord on behalf of Italy was its ambassadot to Quito, Marco Tornetta, who harassed that that is “an settlement that’s signed throughout the framework of creating financial, monetary and commerce cooperation between the 2 international locations.”

Italy expressed its “full endorsement” to the commerce settlement between Ecuador and the EU within the new doc, which was brokered by the Ecuadorian Inner Income Service, throughout the framework of worldwide cooperation with Italy in tax issues, and is linked to the current signing of the Protocol of Accession of Ecuador to the Commerce Settlement with the European Union. Final 12 months each international locations have signed agreements on debt swaps, cooperation in legal issues, cooperation on extradition, air providers and human mobility, amongst others.

In a separate foeign coverage transfer, “Nationwide Meeting President Gabriela Rivadeneira and her United Arab Emirates accomplice Amal Al Qubaisi signed an interparliamentary settlement to strengthen ties between the 2 establishments by the change of knowledge on legislative procedures, publications, official visits, amongst others. Others,” a press release from the Ecuadorean authorities indicated. The 2 parliamentary leaders met within the framework of the Summit of Girls Presidents of Parliaments that takes place in Abu Dhabi. Al Qubaisi thanked Rivadeneira for her presence and “highlighted her position as a job mannequin for each younger folks and girls,” the assertion mentioned.

For her half, the pinnacle of the Legislative Department of Ecuador introduced some initiatives to advertise girls’s political participation, “such because the Beijing + 20 agreements, and youth in politics, in addition to the formation of the Youth Parliamentarians Community.” The Beijing + 20 discussion board was an initiative that emerged from the Nationwide Meeting and UN Girls Ecuador in 2014 with the goal of producing a parliamentary mechanism to comply with up on the Platform for Motion of the Girls’s Summit held within the Chinese language capital in 1995.

Rivadeneira confirmed “the opening and disposition of Ecuador”, by the Alternate Presidency of the Caribbean and Latin American Parliament (Parlatino), which she holds, “to coordinate joint actions within the area.” He additionally emphasised the rules adopted by the Meeting, “which have allowed the promotion of private and non-private investments in strategic sectors”. Along with gender parity, the parliamentary presidents’ discussion board, which brings collectively lawmakers from greater than 50 international locations, is debating points resembling local weather change, new geopolitical threats and a know-how panorama.

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[lexiai]

Navigate South American Laws with LexiAI’s Legal AI Chatbots

[khalilhumam]

Ecuador's transgender community decries lack of government aid during pandemic

Register at https://mignation.com The Only Social Network for Migrants. #Immigration, #Migration, #Mignation ---

New Post has been published on http://khalilhumam.com/ecuadors-transgender-community-decries-lack-of-government-aid-during-pandemic/

Ecuador's transgender community decries lack of government aid during pandemic

Interview with LGBTIQ+ rights activist Rashell Erazo

“I DON'T WANT TO DIE FOR BEING TRANS”: Rashell Erazo during a march for LGBTIQ+ rights in 2018. Photo used with permission.

This article is part of our special coverage of LGBTQI+ pride.  In Ecuador, the transgender community is surviving the pandemic thanks to solidarity from their peers, as LGBTQI+ advocates claim the State is failing to respond sufficiently – or respond at all. At the time of writing, Ecuador has approximately 74,000 confirmed cases and over 5000 people have died from COVID-19 as the country tries to restart economic activity. Ecuador's legal framework has protected people of all sexual orientations and gender identities since 2008. However, the trans community is being faced with a dire situation, as Rashell Erazo told Global Voices. Erazo is the president of the Ecuadorian LGBTQI+ organisation ALFIL and the national representative for Redlactrans (the Latin American and Caribbean Trans Network). The lockdown has affected the trans population disproportionately, due to the community's vulnerability in terms of labor in the services sector and discrimination in public health. For this reason, Erazo believes that the LGBTQI+ community should be classified as a “priority population” according to the definition in several rulings by the Ecuadorian Constitutional Court. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) also called on its Member States in April 2020 to guarantee LGBTQI+ people's rights as part of their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Erazo condemns the fact that Ecuador is not helping this group and she is now looking to take legal action against the State. She describes the State's lack of response as essentially trying to force the Ministry for Economic and Social Integration (MIES) to deliver humanitarian aid to the transgender community. She reveals that NGOs have presented a list of 100 people within the transgender community who are living in extreme poverty to MIES so that the government could provide them contingency payments in response to the pandemic – which consist of a transfer of $120 for 950,000 people. Yet, none of the trans people have received assistance. In Ecuador, solidarity is coming first and foremost from the trans community itself. Rashell Erazo discussed the situation and the actions planned by the trans community in Ecuador via Whatsapp with Global Voices author Carlos Flores. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity. Carlos Flores (CF): What is the situation facing the trans community during this pandemic?

Rashell Erazo (RE): Desde el 16 de marzo que comenzó el estado de excepción (vía decreto ejecutivo) se podría decir que la pandemia ha venido a visibilizar más la invisibilización de la población trans. Esto en todos los contextos que nos engloban como la pobreza extrema y la supervivencia laboral (el subempleo), alrededor de lo que nosotras transitamos que son el trabajo sexual, la peluquería y labores manuales. Por decreto ejecutivo han sido consideradas como no esenciales y esto ha vulnerado cada uno de los espacios de supervivencia de la población trans, obligándonos a violar el decreto ejecutivo porque no era posible continuar [acatando al decreto], al cabo de un mes del estado de excepción, sin tener el sustento diario. Es dramático. Hay personas que dicen que todos estamos siendo comparados, pero no se puede comparar una población con un perfil de alta vulnerabilidad y exclusión que vivimos con el resto de población cisgénero y heterosexual.

Rashell Erazo (RE): The state of emergency was introduced on 16 March (by executive degree), and since then it has been clear that the pandemic is bringing to light exactly how invisible the trans population is. This is without mentioning the other struggles that we face, like extreme poverty and workplace survival (under-employment), which for us often involves sex work, hairdressing or manual labour. As a result of the executive decree, these have been deemed non-essential and this has put the trans population's safe spaces at risk, forcing us to violate the executive decree because it was impossible to carry on, a month into the state of emergency, without a livelihood. It's dramatic. Some people are saying that we're all in the same boat, but you can't compare a community that is as highly vulnerable and excluded as ours with the rest of the cisgender, heterosexual population.

CF: At the end of March, Guayaquil was hit by the pandemic. How did the trans community deal with this?

RE: Nosotros hemos tenido contactos fraternos con los grupos LGBTI, como Plan Diversidad o Casa de las Muñecas. Creo que la situación de las compañeras ha sido dramática. En principio tuvieron que resistir con todas sus fuerzas para acatar el Estado de Excepción por la gravedad que implica el azote de la pandemia y la proyección brutal de la curva de contagio. En Guayaquil hubo formas de solidaridad entre nosotras, ya que esperar que el Estado reconozca los convenios internacionales, como el exhorto de la CIDH indicando que en esta pandemia el Estado debe considerar a las poblaciones LGBTI como atención prioritaria, eso no ha ocurrido. No tenemos conocimiento que se haya registrado un alto número de compañeras que se hayan afectado. De hecho no podemos ni siquiera saber cuántas compañeras trabajadoras sexuales, no solo en Guayaquil sino en las principales ciudades, puedan estar contagiadas con Covid. El acceso a las pruebas es prácticamente nulo para la comunidad LGBTI.

RE: We've had messages of support from LGBTI groups, like Plan Diversidad or Casa de las Muñecas. The situation for sex workers has been dramatic, I think. First, they had to fight with all their strength to comply with the State of Emergency because of the gravity pandemic and the serious predicted contagion curve. There were signs of solidarity among us in Guayaquil, since waiting for the State to recognise international conventions, like the appeal from the IACHR that the State must consider LGBTI groups a priority for assistance during this pandemic, has come to nothing. We aren't sure if they've recorded a high number of sex workers affected. We actually can't even be sure how many sex workers could be infected with COVID in Guayaquil or in the bigger cities. The LGBTI community have practically no access to tests.

CF: What actions are going to be taken against the State to fight for a specific policy, now that the pandemic is expected to continue for several more months?

RE: Se hacen acciones paliativas como entregar un kit de alimentos que a veces soluciona temporalmente el problema de alimentos de las compañeras, pero esa no es responsabilidad nuestra como organizaciones de la sociedad civil sino del Estado. Hay que estar muy claros que es el Estado el que tiene la responsabilidad por velar en el tema de ayuda humanitaria y de facilitar la subsistencia de las personas. Tenemos un alto índice de desempleo entre las que nos contamos las mujeres trans y que el Estado limite el derecho de poder realizar el trabajo sexual callejizado, pues, lógicamente estaríamos pensando en juntarnos con organizaciones que manejan el tema legal. Podríamos estar articulando algún tipo de acción contra el Estado, primero, por mantener en la indefensión total a las poblaciones de atención prioritaria, no atenderlas, especificados en los lineamientos nacionales e internacionales. Si por estos 60 días que ha decretado el gobierno puede volver a recrudecerse el tema de la limitación de derechos, de movilidad y demás, nosotras creeríamos que podríamos optar por una demanda internacional ante la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos porque es una evidente violación del derecho al trabajo, al alimento, a la movilidad. El Estado, y concretamente el Gobierno de Ecuador, no puede seguir ignorando a las poblaciones históricamente maltratadas y que seguimos en resistencia. Hay instrumentos legales que nos amparan.

RE: Palliative actions are being taken, like delivering food parcels, which sometimes temporarily solve problems like the sex workers’ lack of food, but this shouldn't be our responsibility as civil society organisations; it should be the responsibility of the State. We have to recognise that it's the State who should be responsible for providing humanitarian aid and ensuring everyone has provisions. There is a high level of unemployment among trans women and the State limits our right to solicit sex work on the streets, so it makes sense that we're thinking about joining forces with organisations who would handle the legal aspects. We could take some kind of action against the State, first for the way they have left these high-priority populations totally helpless and provided none of the assistance specified in national and international guidelines. If, during the 60 days that the government reserves the right to limit rights of mobility etc., we believe we could bring a case before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights because it's an obvious violation of our right to work, to food and to movement. The State, specifically the Government of Ecuador, cannot continue to ignore these historically mistreated communities and we will continue to resist. There are legal instruments that support us.

Erazo is continuing to fight with other organisations to ensure that the State fulfills its obligation to help the LGBTQI+ community. “We aren't inherently vulnerable; it's the State that makes these populations vulnerable,” she concludes.

Written by Carlos Flores Translated by Eleanor Weekes · · View original post [es] · comments (0) Donate · Share this: twitter facebook reddit

[neptunecreek]

Activists Worldwide Face Off Against Face Recognition: 2019 Year in Review

We’ve all heard the expression, “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” We might hope that what we do and where we go will only be known to those who were there in person. Yet maintaining such anonymity and privacy in public spaces is becoming ever more difficult. 2019 has marked the year where a growing digital rights network around the world is pushing back against governments and companies’ use of face recognition technologies in public spaces. This year, in an attempt to prevent people from having their movement and actions meticulously tracked, these activists took action against face recognition in countries all over the world.

Ban on Mass Use of Face Recognition

Digital rights activists have long argued that face recognition constitutes mass surveillance when used to track the movements of entire populations in public spaces by matching faces obtained from CCTV cameras, drones or other devices against existing databases. In October, more than 90 NGOs and hundreds of experts gathered in Albania at the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners and called for a global moratorium on mass surveillance by face recognition. The Public Voice coalition urged countries to review all face recognition systems “to determine whether personal data was obtained lawfully and to destroy data that was obtained unlawfully.” In addition, the Fundamental Rights Agency of the European Union (FRA) has also published a paper recognizing that “given the novelty of the technology as well as the lack of experience and detailed studies on the impact of facial recognition technologies, multiple aspects are key to consider before deploying such a system in real-life applications”. It further said that “[f]orms of facial recognition that involve a very high degree of intrusion into fundamental rights, compromising the inviolable essential core of one or more fundamental rights, are unlawful.” And the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, David Kaye, called for an immediate moratorium on the sale, transfer, and use of surveillance technology, including face recognition, until legal frameworks are established that meet human rights standards.

In Russia, Roskomsvoboda launched a campaign calling for a moratorium on government mass use of face recognition until the technology’s effects are studied and the government adopts legal safeguards that protect sensitive data.  In the United Kingdom, 25 NGOs including Big Brother Watch, Article 19, Open Rights Group, and Privacy International called on U.K. police and private companies to immediately stop using live face recognition for public surveillance. In 2016 and 2018,  face recognition trials in London erroneously identified individuals as potential criminals in 96 percent of scans, a pervasively high rate of false-positive matches. Also this year, Big Brother Watch launched a legal challenge against the London Metropolitan Police and the Home Secretary to demand an immediate end to the police’s use of live face recognition. In France, La Quadrature du Net (LQDN) called for a  ban on the mass use of face recognition to identify protesters. In the last six years, the French government has adopted several decrees—without any public debate—that allow for automatic identification of protesters.  And in the United States, local activists took up the fight against face recognition by successfully passing face recognition bans at the city level. Oakland, San Francisco, Berkeley, and Somerville, Massachusetts all passed bans on government use of face recognition technology. Earlier this year, California prohibited the use of face recognition on law enforcement body-worn cameras, causing San Diego to end its long-running mobile face recognition program.

La Quadrature du Net and other French NGOs also filed an action to ban the use of face recognition in two high schools in Nice and Marseille. Those actions led CNIL, France’s data protection authority, to conclude that the use of face recognition at the entrance of the schools to target mostly minors is not “necessary or proportionate,” and that the goals of the program could "be achieved by much less intrusive means in terms of privacy and individual freedoms." In a similar case in Sweden, the Swedish Data Protection Authority (DPA) imposed a General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) fine of approximately 20,000 euros on a municipality after a school conducted a pilot using face recognition technology to track students’ attendance. The Swedish DPA rejected the municipality's argument that the school had consent to process sensitive biometric information, as required under the GDPR, indicating that “consent was not a valid legal basis given the clear imbalance between the data subject and the controller.” Unfortunately, only a few months later, the same Swedish DPA issued another decision allowing police departments to use face recognition to compare face images from CCTV footage to criminal biometric databases. The decision clarified that police must set a retention period for biometric information collected from cameras. 

Ending the Culture of Secrecy

This year, Latin American NGOs have been fighting back against a deeply rooted culture of secrecy surrounding face recognition providers’ identity, data sources, data collection methods, applications, and customers. TEDIC, the main digital rights organization in Paraguay, filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a Ministry of the Interior resolution that denied TEDIC’s public records request for further details about the Ministry of Interior and the National Police’s use of face recognition technology. Face recognition has been used in Asunción’s downtown area, airport, and bus stations since 2018, and is now planned to be expanded throughout Asunción.

In Argentina, Asociación por los Derechos Civiles (ADC)  filed a lawsuit against the Government of the City of Buenos Aires challenging the constitutionality of Resolution 398/19, which introduced a face recognition system linked to the city’s security camera infrastructure and monitoring centers. ADC filed the lawsuit after receiving responses to two information requests about the face recognition system.

Access Now, in collaboration with ADC and the Observatorio de Derecho Informático Argentino, sent an information request to the Argentine province of Córdoba related to the October 2019 announcement of a test of a biometric recognition system linked to video cameras that use artificial intelligence. In Peru later that month, Access Now and Hiperderecho sent similar information requests to La Victoria, San Martín de Porres, and Miraflores, municipal districts of Lima. Among the information requested are the technology provider’s identity, the system’s technical specifications, and the procedures for identification and apprehension of suspicious persons. 

Latin American NGOs also launched advocacy campaigns against face recognition. Derechos Digitales launched an advocacy campaign to shine a light on the different face and biometric recognition proposals being considered in Latin America. And in Brazil, inspired by the images Gu Da Cei received through an information request, the artist carried out human intervention campaigns at bus stations in Brasilia to expose photos taken by a bus face biometrics system and reinforce the right of public transport users to their own image. 

Role of Private Companies In The Use of Face Recognition for Surveillance

This year, reports have also come to light about the role of private companies in the public use of face recognition. A New York Times report revealed how Chinese companies such as C.E.I.E.C. were successfully commercializing versions of China’s mass face recognition system by exporting them to developing countries, in particular, Ecuador, Bolivia, Angola, and Venezuela. The implementation of the system in Ecuador, ECU911, has simultaneously been popular among Ecuadorians worried about street crime and amplified fears about abuse of the system for political repression. Just before the end of the year, 78 facial recognition CCTVs linked to ECU911 were installed in the Historic Center of Quito, the site where hundreds of indigenous activists recently protested the Ecuadorian government. Derechos Digitales published a report finding that C.E.I.E.C. was also active in Bolivia’s security program and that the funding for the program came from a Chinese national bank. Internet Bolivia told Derechos Digitales that Bol-110, the ambitious project to acquire surveillance technologies in Bolivia, “will be in everything: in schools, taxis, hospitals.” And although Bol-110 was not approved by the Bolivian Congress, the face recognition system has already been purchased. 

In Serbia, SHARE Foundation submitted a request for information about a new video surveillance system with face recognition and license plate reader technology. Huawei, a Chinese company,  was revealed to be the Serbian government’s main partner in the endeavor. Additionally, SHARE Foundation unearthed a case study published on Huawei’s website about new generation surveillance cameras that have already been installed in Belgrade. Huawei removed the case study from its website soon after SHARE Foundation’s revelation was made public. In November, SHARE called for the immediate suspension of Serbia’s face recognition program. In a recent report, SHARE, along with NGOs Partners Serbia and Belgrade Center for Security Policy, concluded that the Ministry of Interior’s privacy impact assessment of the surveillance cameras does not meet the standards required by the Serbian data protection law. Brazilian legislators, meanwhile, received an all-expenses-paid trip to China to learn about and view demonstrations of face surveillance technology that Chinese firms hoped Brazil would also choose to acquire.

Security and Data Leakage

The Brazilian Institute of Consumer Defense (IDEC) sent a demand to Dataprev, a Brazilian public company responsible for the security of Brazilian social security information, requesting that it halt its bid for the acquisition of face recognition and fingerprint technology until cases of beneficiaries’ existing data leaks are resolved. IDEC explained that while the company aimed to integrate face recognition into an app to help people with disabilities access their banking and social security information remotely, the technology’s high risk of breach would compromise the personal information of approximately 35 million Brazilians. 

In the Netherlands, Bits of Freedom launched an activism campaign to demonstrate the insecurity of a Dutch Face Recognition pilot program in Amsterdam’s central square, Dam, where a webcam is live-streaming to YouTube and the website webcam.nl. Bits of Freedom downloaded images of its members at the Dam, and then ran the images through Amazon’s face recognition software, Rekognition. The software was able to identify the members. Bits of Freedom concluded that face recognition software, combined with mass surveillance in public spaces, threatens the privacy and security of vulnerable people, including victims of stalking and domestic violence. 

Conclusion

This year, governments around the world have moved quickly to adopt face recognition technologies for use in public spaces. But activists have been quick to respond, demanding transparency and winning moratoria and bans on the use of this powerful technology. As we look forward to 2020, the tensions between the government’s use of this technology for public safety and individuals’ right to privacy will continue to heighten. EFF will remain vigilant and continue the global fight against the government adoption of face recognition technology. 

This article is part of our Year in Review series. Read other articles about the fight for digital rights in 2019.

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[sandlerresearch]

Governance, Risk and Compliance - The Ecuadorian Insurance Industry published on

http://www.sandlerresearch.org/governance-risk-and-compliance-the-ecuadorian-insurance-industry.html

Governance, Risk and Compliance - The Ecuadorian Insurance Industry

Governance, Risk and Compliance – The Ecuadorian Insurance Industry

Summary

GlobalData’s ‘Governance, Risk and Compliance – The Ecuadorian Insurance Industry’ report is the result of extensive research into the insurance regulatory framework in Ecuador.

It provides detailed analysis of the insurance regulations for life, property, motor, liability, personal accident and health, and marine, aviation and transit insurance. The report specifies various requirements for the establishment and operation of insurance and reinsurance companies and intermediaries.

The report brings together GlobalData’s research, modeling and analysis expertise, giving insurers access to information on prevailing insurance regulations, and recent and upcoming changes in the regulatory framework, taxation and legal system in the country. The report also includes the scope of non-admitted insurance in the country.

The report provides insights into the governance, risk and compliance framework pertaining to the insurance industry in Ecuador, including – – An overview of the insurance regulatory framework in Ecuador. – The latest key changes, and changes expected in the country’s insurance regulatory framework. – Key regulations and market practices related to different types of insurance product in the country. – Rules and regulations pertaining to key classes of compulsory insurance, and the scope of non-admitted insurance in Ecuador. – Key parameters including licensing requirements, permitted foreign direct investment, minimum capital requirements, solvency and reserve requirements, and investment regulations. – Details of the tax and legal systems in the country.

Key Highlights

– The SCVS regulates the Ecuadorian insurance industry. – Composite insurance is not permitted in the Ecuadorian insurance industry. However, composite insurers established prior to 1998 can offer both life and non-life insurance products. – Non-admitted insurance is not permitted. However, risks for which local capacity is not available are permitted to be placed with unauthorized insurers. – 100% FDI is permitted in the Ecuadorian insurance industry. – SPPAT, general insurance under the Social Security Act, and aviation insurance are some of the compulsory.

Scope

– The report covers details of the insurance regulatory framework in Ecuador. – The report contains details of the rules and regulations governing insurance products and insurance entities. – The report lists and analyzes key trends and developments pertaining to the country’s insurance regulatory framework. – The report analyzes the rules and regulations pertaining to the establishment and operation of insurance businesses in the country. – The report provides details of taxation imposed on insurance products and insurance companies.

Reasons to buy

– Gain insights into the insurance regulatory framework in Ecuador. – Track the latest regulatory changes, and expected changes impacting the Ecuadorian insurance industry. – Gain detailed information about the key regulations governing the establishment and operation of insurance entities in the country. – Understand key regulations and market practices pertaining to various types of insurance product.

[mikemortgage]

The Supreme Court allowed a corrupt case into Canada. That should worry everyone

On July 10, 2018, Steven Donziger, a New York lawyer and a basketball buddy of Barack Obama’s, was suspended indefinitely from the practice of law in the state of New York.

A New York court ordered the suspension for professional misconduct, based on “uncontroverted evidence” that Donziger and his legal team helped secure a judgment against Chevron Corp. in Ecuador through dishonesty and chicanery. Specifically: “judicial coercion, corruption of a court expert and ghostwriting of his report, misrepresentations concerning the expert’s independence, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, improperly threatening criminal prosecution, and judicial bribery.” While Donziger contested the process, the court ruling notes that he “chose not to challenge the underlying factual findings.”

Donziger had been the driving force behind a case that pit Amazonian plaintiffs in Ecuador against Chevron for environmental damage done by Texaco (that was later remediated to the satisfaction of the Ecuadorian government). Chevron purchased Texaco in 2000.

The case has wound its painful way through the judicial systems in five separate countries and appears to have finally come to an end. Argentina has joined Brazil in refusing to recognize and permit enforcement of the Ecuadorian court’s US$8.4 billion judgment against Chevron. The Ontario Court of Appeal refused to enforce the judgment in Canada when the plaintiffs tried shopping it up here.

Now that Chevron is exonerated, it is time for a post-mortem review. There are lessons for Canada to learn here — if there is any inclination to learn them.

In 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada decided the Ecuadorian judgment would be heard for enforcement proceedings in Ontario against Chevron Canada, despite an American court already having found the ruling had been obtained by fraud. This is because, under the principle of international comity, Canada focuses on the obligation in the foreign judgment not on the process or substance of the decision.

Because of the court’s decision, for nearly four years, Chevron Canada has been compelled to defend its assets and its reputation against an unlawfully obtained foreign judgment all while enduring media coverage that vilified the company based on the fraudulent judgment. The shameful enforcement proceedings have cost Chevron Canada millions in legal fees, with no hope of ever being compensated now that it has prevailed.

That is unjust.

And it’s embarrassing for a functioning democracy like Canada, where the rule of law is supposed to be a foundational principle of our legal order.

In considering where to invest, companies increasingly scrutinize not just the regulatory and tax framework in the jurisdiction where they intend to operate, but also whether or not that country upholds the rule of law. Countries such as Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Cuba, and more recently, South Africa, have become bywords of caution to the investment community because they have suddenly changed the rules that govern ownership. Investors observing the Chevron Canada case will surely want to be sure of safeguards here to protect them against this kind of stunt again.

At the moment, there is nothing to stop someone else from following Donziger’s disgraceful blueprint in Canada. The Ecuador case would be relatively easy to reproduce with the following recipe: find a social-justice tale in a foreign country, bribe a foreign judge, taint the proceedings, bask in the adoration of biased media who love a good environmentalist yarn, enforce the judgment in Canada, rinse and repeat.

There will surely be other Donzigers, so it’s time for some national soul searching. What was it about this case that caused the Supreme Court of Canada to have more respect for a corrupt Ecuadorian judgment than the thorough and uncontroverted decision of the U.S. District Court, whose ruling was upheld on appeal?

Why did the Supreme Court of Canada ignore the ruling that Donziger’s team committed illegal acts in procuring the Ecuadorian court judgment? Why wasn’t that sufficient warning?

Should Canada recognize the judgments of countries with compromised judiciaries for enforcement here? Why should Canada be more concerned with keeping up international appearances at the expense of the investors who have placed their trust in Canada’s representation that it upholds the rule of law?

Is it now clear enough from this case that allowing Chevron Canada to be dragged through the courts for four years has hurt Canada’s international reputation?

If Donziger had not been exposed and censured in the U.S., the fraudulent case against Chevron Canada may ultimately have been successful here. That should worry us all. Clearly Canada has problem and it needs to fix it — before this happens again.

Jay Cameron is a lawyer with the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms jcameron@jccf.ca; @JurisCameron

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[csrgood]

Chevron Suffers Major 8-0 Defeat in Ecuador’s Constitutional Court Over Landmark Pollution Judgment

In a resounding defeat for Chevron in a landmark pollution case, Ecuador’s Constitutional Court in a unanimous 8-0 decision rejected the oil major’s final appeal of a $9.5 billion pollution judgment that found the company deliberately dumped billions of gallons of toxic oil waste onto Indigenous lands in the Amazon rainforest.

The decision, issued in a 151-page decision published Tuesday, was a total victory for the Indigenous groups that brought the case and a stunning rejection of all of Chevron’s claims.The Court rejected Chevron’s allegations that it was victimized by fraud and the court threw out the company’s claim that Ecuadorian courts had no jurisdiction over the matter.

The decision also raises the total number of appellate judges in Ecuador and Canada who have ruled against Chevron on either the underlying merits of the case or its fraud claims to 29. The case against Chevron was spearheaded by the Amazon Defense Front, a grass roots group representing 80 Inidgenous peoples and farmer communities in Ecuador’s northern Amazon region. 

“This decision is another huge victory for the people of Ecuador in their historic two-decade battle for environmental justice against the world's worst corporate polluter and rogue operator,” said FDA leader Luis Yanza, a Goldman Prize winner who initiated the lawsuit against Chevron in U.S. federal court in 1993. "No country should ever do business with Chevron until the company first pays for the harm it caused to the people of Ecuador."

Patricio Salazar, the lead Ecuadorian lawyer on the case, said: “Justice has prevailed over Chevron’s illegal attempts to engage in constant attacks on lawyers who defend the Indigenous communities rather than litigate in good faith on the merits.  It is now highly likely that Chevron will pay every last dollar of the judgment against it, as it is legally and ethically obligated to do.”

Ecuador’s Constitutional Court – which deals only with Constitutional issues – is the third major appellate court in Ecuador and the fourth court overall in the country to uphold the trial-level decision against Chevron, which issued in 2011.  Ecuador’s highest civil court, the National Court of Justice, already ruled unanimously to affirm the judgment against Chevron.  

After eight years of arduous proceedings slowed by Chevron's strategy of deliberate delay, Ecuador’s trial court relied on 105 technical evidentiary reports to find in 2011 that the company poisoned a 1,500 sq. mile area of the Amazon with life-threatening and carcinogenic oil waste.  It is estimated that thousands who live in the sensitive rainforest ecosystem, including many Indigenous peoples, have died of cancer while tens of thousands must endure what is essentially one of the world’s worst ongoing public health catastrophes. 

Ecuador’s government, which received royalties from Chevron’s shoddy operation of 400 well sites, has been of scant help to the victims.  Medical care in the affected region is virtually non-existent, and many people perish from cancer without even visiting a doctor and after receiving no treatment, said Steven R. Donziger, the longtime U.S. legal representative of the Ecuadorian communities who has taken dozens of trips to the affected area.

"Chevron has caused a humanitarian crisis in Ecuador of epic proportions that is ongoing to this day," he said. "Tens of thousands of people will die in the coming years if nothing is done to clean up the pollution. The world must pay attention and Chevron shareholders and management must act immediately to address this worsening problem."

Chevron has refused for years to pay the Ecuador judgment -- now worth $12 billion with interest -- and company officials have threatened the Indigenous groups with a "lifetime of litigation" if they persist. Chevron has hired 60 law firms and at least 2,000 lawyers to engage in a strategy of forum shopping and obstructionism in countries around the world. Chevron is also looking for a taxpayer-funded bailout of its liability from its victims, having sued Ecuador’s government in a secret arbitration proceeding in an effort to get it to pay for the clean-up.  

The latest Ecuador court decision is also a major blow to controversial U.S. judge Lewis A. Kaplan. Kaplan -- who many have said is similar to former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio in robes -- relied on false testimony from an admittedly corrupt Chevron witness to find that the Ecuador judgment was procured by fraud.  Kaplan refused to seat a jury of impartial fact finders and he refused to consider any evidence of Chevron’s environmental contamination in Ecuador.

Kaplan remains the only judge in the world to have ruled in favor of Chevron. Seventeen Ecuador judges, who had access to a far fuller evidentiary record than Kaplan, ruled in favor of the affected communities.  Twelve judges from Canada, including the country's entire Supreme Court, have also ruled in favor of the Ecuadorians on various technical issues.

The Constitutional Court decision from Ecuador bluntly rejects the same fraud claims that Chevron peddled successfully to Judge Kaplan. It also turned away a handful of Chevron objections regarding jurisdiction and applicable law that the company has been recycling in various forums for well over a decade in an effort to delay a final resolution, said Donziger.  

The Ecuador decision also powerfully confronts Chevron on the brutal human consequences of both its original environmental crimes—which the Court emphasizes were not the result of an accident, but rather of deliberate operational decision-making designed to save money and enrich the company’s shareholders and executives—and the additional offense of its two-decade campaign of distraction and delay. 

The decision also sweeps more broadly in its reading of background principles of environmental law, human rights, and indigenous peoples’ rights. Specifically, the Court acknowledged the relevance of the precautionary principle in the overall legal framework, and discussed the deeply interlinked nature of environmental harm and broader human rights consequences and “social decomposition.”

In an aspect of the decision that may serve as a critical precedent for Indigenous peoples and affected communities fighting against harmful but purportedly “legal” natural resource extraction projects, the Court held that contracts and legal doctrine should not be construed to give a private entity a right to pollute where environmental and human rights of third-parties were impacted. 

The Ecuadorian plaintiffs also have picked up several appellate victories in Canadian courts as they attempt to collect Chevron assets in that country to force compliance with the Ecuador judgment. Canada’s Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of the Indigenous groups in 2015 when Chevron tried to block the enforcement action on jurisdictional grounds.

Donziger, the longtime U.S. representative of the Ecuadorian communities, praised the decision from the Constitutional Court.

“It is long past time for Chevron to come to grips with the fact that it has now lost in four separate courts in Ecuador, the country where it insisted the trial be held, based on evidence it deliberately dumped toxic waste and decimated Indigenous peoples,” said Donziger.  “A litigation strategy that consists of spending hundreds of millions of dollars to create fake evidence and attack lawyers, rather than deal with the merits of a case, is ultimately a losing strategy for Chevron shareholders.”

For background on the overwhelming evidence against Chevron, see here. For a summary of Chevron’s fraud in the Kaplan case, see here.  For excellent articles on Chevron’s subterfuge and bad faith by Greenpeace co-founder Rex Weyler, see here and here.

source: http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/41192-Chevron-Suffers-Major-8-0-Defeat-in-Ecuador-s-Constitutional-Court-Over-Landmark-Pollution-Judgment?tracking_source=rss