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INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW: MINING, MULTINATIONAL CORPORATIONS AND THE STRUGGLES OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES IN PERU by Gerardo J. Munarriz LL.M., Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, 2004 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE AND POSTDOCTORAL STUDIES (Law) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) August 2017 © Gerardo J. Munarriz, 2017 Abstract This thesis examines and questions the role of international human rights law and international economic law in relation to the increasing encroachment and dispossession of Indigenous lands and territories by multinational corporations (MNCs) in the extractive industry. It also aims to explore the role of a national state’s legal framework and policies not only in validating, authorizing and embedding this process, but also in authorizing a growing and pervasive trend of persecution and criminalization of Indigenous communities who challenge and resist MNCs’ operations. The examination of the relationship between national and international law provides a terrain to grasp how international economic law and international human rights law have become part of evolving regulatory architectures of global governance aiming to validate and embed global capital accumulation. Focusing on Peru, this thesis argues that law, particularly international economic law and the legal framework developed in Peru since the 1990s, has played a prominent role in facilitating and embedding multinational corporate investment in the extractive industry, and in weakening the rights of Indigenous and peasant communities to control their land, water and resources. Peru’s legal framework and policies on extractive industries have not only validated the expansion of MNCs operations and dispossession of Indigenous lands, but have also validated a growing trend of persecution and criminalisation of Indigenous communities. While international economic law constitutes, enables and protects MNCs, international human rights law and corporate social responsibility mechanisms are linked to and help to extend the expansion and deepening of global capital accumulation by means of laws and regulations designed to facilitate and remove barriers to the power and mobility of MNCs. ii Notwithstanding legal and socio-economic barriers, Indigenous communities have mobilized against and resisted MNCs operations. A comparison of three conflicts involving corporate actors and local communities reveals the existence of intense social mobilization and resistance of Indigenous and peasant communities to defend their land rights, their environment and livelihood, their participation in the decision making process and fair distribution of economic benefits. iii Lay Summary My thesis discusses a growing phenomenon in Latin America and around the world, which is the opposition and resistance of Indigenous communities to extractive projects that affect their lands, health and life. It discusses the central role of law in the dispossession of Indigenous lands by multinational corporations; as well as in the increasing criminalization and repression of affected communities. Focusing on Peru, my thesis highlights Indigenous peoples’ resistance and struggle for justice. Despite the legacies of racist colonial violence and significant legal obstacles in accessing justice, Indigenous communities in Peru continue opposing and resisting the dispossession of their lands and the violation of their rights by corporations and the State. My thesis embraces and supports Indigenous communities’ demands for justice. It asserts the right to tell Indigenous communities’ stories of discrimination, suffering and resistance as a mean of achieving agency, aiming to question and challenge mainstream narratives. iv Preface This dissertation is my original and independent work and therefore I take responsibility for any errors or omissions. Some segments in Chapter 3 reproduce and adapt writing from Gerardo J. Munarriz, “Rhetoric and Reality: The World Bank Development Policies, Mining Corporations, and Indigenous Communities in Latin America,” (2008) 10 (4) International Community Law Review 431. v Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... ii Lay Summary ............................................................................................................................... iv Preface .............................................................................................................................................v Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... xi Dedication .................................................................................................................................... xii Chapter 1: Introduction: Conceptual Framework and Methodology of the Thesis ................1 1.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Issue to be Addressed...................................................................................................... 8 1.3 Central Question and Hypothesis.................................................................................. 12 1.4 Thesis’ Specific Questions ............................................................................................ 12 1.5 Definition of “Indigenous Peoples” .............................................................................. 14 1.6 Research Methodology ................................................................................................. 17 1.6.1 Analysis of Texts and Computer-based and Internet-transmitted Documents ......... 20 1.6.2 Study of Conflicts Involving MNCs and Indigenous Communities in Peru ............ 20 1.7 Theoretical Approach.................................................................................................... 22 1.8 Significance of Thesis Research ................................................................................... 28 1.9 Organization of Chapters .............................................................................................. 30 1.10 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 31 Chapter 2: Study of Conflicts Involving MNCs and Indigenous and Peasants Communities in Peru ...........................................................................................................................................33 vi 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 33 2.2 The Minera Barrick Misquichilca (Barrick Gold Corporation, Canada) v. Pierina Mine Communities (Ancash) ............................................................................................................. 37 2.2.1 The Actors in the Conflict......................................................................................... 38 2.2.2 Nature and Scope of the Conflict and Violations of Indigenous Rights ................... 40 2.2.3 Contention and Power Imbalances between MBM and Indigenous Communities .. 42 2.2.4 Domestic and International Legal Claims ................................................................. 48 2.3 Minera Yanacocha (New Mont Mining Company, U.S.A.) v. Yanacocha Mine Communities (Cajamarca) ........................................................................................................ 51 2.3.1 The Actors in the Conflict......................................................................................... 52 2.3.2 Nature and Scope of the Conflict and Violations of Indigenous Rights ................... 55 2.3.3 Contention and Power Imbalances between Mineral Yanacocha and Indigenous Communities ......................................................................................................................... 58 2.3.4 Domestic and International Legal Claims ................................................................. 66 2.4 Rio Blanco Copper S.A. (Monterrico Metals, United Kingdom-China) v. Segunda y Cajas and Yanta Indigenous Peasant Communities (Piura) ...................................................... 71 2.4.1 The Actors in the Conflict......................................................................................... 72 2.4.2 Nature and Scope of the Conflict and Violations of Indigenous Rights ................... 75 2.4.3 Contention and Power Imbalances between Rio Blanco and Indigenous Communities ......................................................................................................................... 76 2.4.4 Domestic and International Legal Claims ................................................................. 82 2.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 87 vii Chapter 3: Indigenous Peoples in Latin America and the Global Political Economy: A Historical Overview .....................................................................................................................95 3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................