In response to the federal government’s designation of LNG Canada Phase 2 as one of the first “national interest projects” prioritized under the Building Canada Act, Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada’s English-speaking section, said: “The Canadian government is pushing forward new fossil-fuel projects during a deepening climate crisis, while one of the worst wildfire seasons on record still rages in parts of the country, and in contravention of the rights of affected Indigenous Nations. This is concerning.”
“The Canadian and B.C. governments have promoted the LNG Canada Phase 2 project in Kitimat, B.C., without obtaining the free, prior and informed consent of multiple Indigenous Nations affected by the plan. We remind the government that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples – which Parliament adopted into Canadian law in June 2021 – is clear: Indigenous Peoples have the right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) over development and extraction projects that affect their territories. Obtaining the consent of all affected Nations is not only a legal necessity; it is a foundation of reconciliation and building a just, sustainable economy for all.”
Passed in Parliament in June, the Building Canada Act gives federal cabinet the power to designate major projects such as ports, pipelines and dams as being in the “national interest,” allowing them to speed through or bypass environmental assessments and consultation processes. Indigenous leaders across the country have condemned the bill and the government’s failure to adequately consult Indigenous Peoples on its development.
Amnesty International Canada has called on its supporters to speak out and, through a new online petition, say ‘No’ to rushed development legislation that fast-tracks corporate interests and undermines Indigenous Peoples’ rights.
