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1) U'wa Briefing - World Resources Institute
2) Activists Say No to Oil Drilling on U'wa Lands - Rainforest Action Network
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World Resources Institute

Oil, the Environment, and Human Rights in Colombia

The U'wa People, Occidental Petroleum, and US Military Aid to Colombia

A Briefing with:

Stephen Kretzmann, Amazon Watch / U'wa Defense Working Group
and Adam Isaacson, Center for International Policy

1:15 - 2:30pm

Thursday February 17th

World Resources Institute
10 G St. NE
Washington, DC

The U'wa people's' eight year-old struggle to stop Occidental Petroleum
(Oxy) from drilling for oil in their Colombian cloudforest home has reached
a critical stage. The U'wa are so opposed to the project that they have
repeatedly stated they are willing to die defending their land.

On November 17th, 1999 several hundred U'wa took up residence on Gibraltar
1, the site of the first well that Occidental Petroleum plans to drill. On
January 19, between 500 and several thousand Colombian soldiers arrived and
forcibly removed the U'wa. The land on which Oxy plans to drill is not only
U'wa ancestral territory - it is actually owned by the U'wa. This means
that current activities by the Colombian military and Occidental is clearly
in violation of the Colombian constitution, which states that the government
may not expropriate indigenous lands.

Just last Friday, members of the Colombian police and military cooperated
to break up a nonviolent blockade of the road to the wellsite. Several
hundred U'wa protestors were removed using tear gas and bulldozers, and
reportedly four children died.

This is all happening at the same time as the Clinton administration is
proposing a $1.6 billion military aid package in Colombia. Join Stephen
Kretzmann, Coordinator of Amazon Watch's U'wa Campaign, and Adam Isaacson,
a Senior Analyst at the Center for International Policy to discuss this urgent
situation and the economic interests behind the proposed Colombian military
aid package.

-------------------------------------------
From: Rainforest Action Network

34 CITIES, 9 COUNTRIES : ACTIVISTS SAY NO DRILLING ON U'WA LAND! FIDELITY
INVESTMENTS TARGETED AROUND THE PLANET

 

In this post :
1. Fidelity feels the heat! Feb 3 and beyond....
2. Global solidarity round up with contact info!
3. MEDIA - Bloomberg Business wire

 

The U'wa people of Colombia continue their uncompromising resistance to
Occidental Petroleum's (Oxy) efforts to drill for oil on their ancestral
homelands. Despite the ongoing occupation of their land by the Colombian
army, the forcible removal of dozens of U'wa from the drillsite area and
mounting violence in the region the U'wa continue to mobilize to defend
their lands and culture. The U'wa have been protesting Oxy by blocking
roads across the region, rallying in Bogata along with representatives of
other indigenous communities (such as the Embera Katio) and calling for
solidarity actions around the world.
On February 3 the U'wa call was answered when activists around the world
targeted one of Oxy biggest shareholder's Fidelity Investments. From Tokyo
to London and in 23 cities across the U.S. Fidelity got the message that we
will hold them accountable for the safety of the U'wa people. Fidelity's
business as usual was disrupted by demonstrations, rallies, pickets,
die-ins, talking briefcases, attempted lock downs and activists delegations
delivering letters of protest. Additionally in 8 other countries around the
world activists mobilized to support the U'wa resistance. Fidelity's was
clearly very shaken by the mobilization. They hired both uniformed and
undercover security at many of their investor centers and in London boarded
up much of their office in preparation for a demonstration by Reclaim the
Streets. In other parts of the world U'wa supporters rallied outside of
Colombian embassies, held vigils or organized educational events in their
communities. See below for descriptions of what happened in specific areas
as well as contact information for each city.
Fidelity's official response remains that they do not want to address this
issue. As Fidelity spokesman Vincent Loporchio says : Fidelity invests in
"companies with the highest likelihood of stock-price appreciation.... Our
portfolio managers are not trained to make investment decisions in order to
fulfill social or political objectives." Apparently this means they are
perfectly happy to profit off the destruction of indigenous lands and
cultures.
Meanwhile Occidental CEO Ray Irani has moved to silence U'wa supporters by
requesting a temporary restraining order against Rainforest Action Network,
Amazon Watch, Action Resource Center, Project Underground and Student Action
for the Environment. The court case is still pending but one thing is
certain - no lawsuit will silence the growing voices of support for the
U'wa. We need to keep the pressure on Oxy's 2 most important shareholders
- Fidelity and Al Gore. Wherever Gore goes we need to be there to raise
this issue and wherever there is a Fidelity presence we need to show them that
the U'wa have many friends.

CONTACT AL GORE'S OFFICE - Nashville TN p) 615-340-2000 fax) 615-340-3295

Find the nearest Fidelity "Investor Center" to you :
http://personal400.fidelity.com/gen/centers/invstctr.html.tvsr
Fidelity's boston office fax # = 617-476-4164
Organize a follow up action in your town!

For more information or to coordinate solidarity actions contact Rainforest
Action Network patrick reinsborough at organize@ran.org or lauren
sullivan
at lsullivan@ran.org

---------------------------------------------
#2 ACTION FOR THE U'WA AROUND THE GLOBE

US cities where activists visited Fidelity : (* = more info below)

Atlanta, GA*
Charlotte NC
San Francisco, CA*
Boston, MA*
Los Angeles, CA*
Glendale, CA
Canoga Park, CA
Irvine, CA
Palo Alto, CA*
San Rafael, CA
Chicago, IL*
NY, NY*
Denver, CO*
Providence,RI
W. Hartford, CT
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Tampa, FL
Austin, TX
Houston, TX
Portland, ME
Minneapolis, MN*
Portland, OR
Seattle, Washington
San Diego, CA*

International -
London* - Reclaim the Streets demonstrates at Fidelity UK
CONTACT : rts@gn.apc.org
Tokyo - activists deliver letter of protest to Fidelity Japan
CONTACT : Yuriko Hayami, JATAN eureka@jca.apc.org
Calgary, Canada - rally at OxyCanada HQ, disruption of Fidelity
tradeshow exhibit CONTACT : Jeff Emmett jeffjim@telusplanet.net
Amsterdam - demo at Colombia embassy CONTACT : trasgu@cable.A2000.nl
Tel Aviv, Isreal - unconfirmed solidatity action
CONTACT : Roni, Green Action armonb@inter.net.il
Mexico City - solidarity statement from striking UNAM workers
Prague, Czech Republic - ongoing community education
CONTACT : Hubert, Earth First! Prague zemepredevsim@ecn.cz
Limerick, Ireland - ongoing community education
CONTACT : Green Concern greenconcern@hotmail.com

other solidarity actions :
Santa Barbara, CA - Earth First! bike ride for the U'wa coalition of
enviro, human rights, peace and justice groups confront representatives of
Oxy petroleum at corporate greenwashing conference Madison WI - rally for
the U'wa/protest against military aid at State house
CONTACT : MattEBubba@aol.com Community Action on Latin America

 

LONDON
A small but resolute group of people from Reclaim the Streets picketed the
office of Fidelity Investments and distributed up to 1000 leaflets, mainly
to Fidelity workers. 2 majestic banners were unfurled: 'NO BLOOD FOR OIL'
and '5000 U'WA LIVES AT STAKE/FATALITY INVESTMENTS' .There was a very
strong police presence but no arrests. The doors and windows of the office
were boarded up and we can be pretty sure that every worker there has a
fair idea of what the U'wa issue
is all about. A local Colombian cafe owner came over to express support and
took a load of leaflets for his clientele, many of which will work for
Fidelity with any luck. Photos posted at www.gn.apc.org/rts CONTACT -
London Reclaim the Streets rts@gn.apc.org

ATLANTA - Atlanta Rainforest Action Group organized guerilla theater at 2
different Fidelities with 30 costumed activists participating in die-ins
inside the investor centers. Activists then marched to the Colombian
consulate for a rousing demonstration.
CONTACT - Leigh Scherberger leighscherberger@hotmail.com 770-232-7084

CHICAGO - Chicago Colombia Committee and Colombia Labor Monitor brought out
40 folks on a very cold and dreary day. Nearly 2,000 leaflets were
distributed during the lunchtime rush. Fidelity's reponse was to panic and
call the cops who arrived via squad car and bicycles several minutes later.
Photos at www.prairienet.org/clm/chicol.html
CONTACT - Dennis Grammenos, Chicago Colombia Committee (773)489-1255

dgrammen@prairienet.org

SAN FRANCISCO - 75 people from Rainforest Action Network, Greenaction,
Project Underground and other local groups rallied outside Fidelity's SF
office holding a giant banner which read "Fidelity Don't Invest in Genocide!
Take Action for the U'wa!". Floyd Westerman from the International Indian
Treaty Council started the rally with a ceremony and a call to support
indigenous peoples everywhere. Other speakers talked about local
environmental justice issues, American military aid and the need for diverse
communities to unite against corporate domination. That evening a teach-in
on Colombia was held with representatives of the Embera Katio people an
indigenous community in Colombia who are fighting to protect their lands
from a giant dam. Connections were drawn between the Embera and U'wa
struggles, US militarism and the growing movement against corporate
globalization.
CONTACT - Patrick Reinsborough, Rainforest Action Network rags@ran.org,
415-398-4404

MINNEAPOLIS - A group of concerned citizens approached the management and
security of Fidelity Investments at 7600 France Ave. in Edina. The group
requested that a letter, signed by several local citizen organizations, be
sent to the CEO of Fidelity, asking said company to divest its dominant
holdings in Occidental Petroleum, the destroyer of the U'WA. The activists
caused quite a stir by holding signs up inside Fidelity, leafleting all the
surrounding businesses and asking the police as many difficult questions as
possible. By the time the protesters left the Fidelity manager was very
frazzled indeed. CONTACT - Drew Hempel hemp0027@tc.umn.edu; Big Woods EF!
Hotline 612-362-3387

BOSTON - Alerted to International protests in support of the U'wa people,
Fidelity heightened security at its Boston Investor center. Despite this,
activists
attempted to lock down inside the office but were intercepted by plain
clothes policemen and thrown off the property. However, activists were
able to chain a "talking briefcase" to
the door and for the next hour it broadcast the story of the U'wa,
Occidental and Fidelity's connection to this project. Meanwhile, 50
protesters braved the freezing weather to hold signs/banners, chant, talk
to passersby and support the attempted lockdown. Food not Bombs provided
a hot lunch and returned for the second demo of the day at 3:30. Over 80
protesters flooded the sidewalks, then marched up to Fidelity headquarters
holding signs, massive puppets representing the U'wa, drumming and chanting
slogans. Speakers from Colombia Vive,the Colombia Support Network, Amazon
Watch and Rainforest Action Network fired up the
crowd. CONTACT : Kim Foster, RAINFOREST ACTION NETWORK fosterk@gis.net
781-551-6674

NY, NY - As well as organizing a demonstration at Fidelity, 2 NY U'wa
supporters disrupted a Feb 7 Al Gore campaign event with a banner that
read, "Want My Vote? Save the U'wa". The activists challenged Gore, a
major Oxy shareholder, to use his personal and political influence to stop
impending
drilling on the homelands of the U'wa people. The activists, Rainforest
Relief Executive Director Tim Keating and Cindy Rosin distributed hundreds
of leaflets to attendees of the performance before they were arrested by
police.
CONTACT Adam Weissman (212) 966-4831 adam@wetlands-preserve.org

DENVER - Activists from the Boulder Rainforest Action Group accompanied by
"Crackers" the chicken picketed Fidelity in Denver's World Trade Center.
After facing down overzealous security guards, making a lot of noise and
handing out many leaflets they vowed to return soon!
CONTACT - Alyssa Schuren, Boulder RAG 303-492-5776
Alyssa.Schuren@Colorado.EDU

LOS ANGELES - 30 people from Action Resource Center, Amazon Watch and other
groups were greeted by telephoto lens wielding security guards at the
Century City Fidelity. This didn't deter them from much raucous
demonstrating and leafleting. At another LA location 12 activists from
Catholic Worker began a routine of weekly visits to their local Fidelity
while at a third a candle light vigil was held.
CONTACT - Brett Doran, Action Resource Center bdoran@envirolink.org
310-392-7656

PALO ALTO, CA - Students for the Redwood Action Team at Stanford
University, and Bay Area Action rallied with drums, banners and signs
outside their local Fidelity. A delegation delivery a letter of protest to
the branch and informed the manager that they would be back soon unless
Fidelity used its influence to stop Oxy drilling on U'wa land.
CONTACT - Galen, RATS 650-497-6046 Cynthia King cking@Stanford.EDU

SAN DIEGO, CA - A lone activist leafleting and getting petitions signed got
himself removed from corporate property. He continued spreading
information about the U'wa on the public sidewalk and is already organizing
for the next
demonstration.
CONTACT : Nate Solov solov@rohan.sdsu.edu 619-582-3936

------------------------------------------------

#3 MEDIA - The global solidarity movement for the U'wa has attracted a lot
of media attention. Much of it is up on RAN's website - www.ran.org.
Here's an example of one article from the Bloomberg Business Wire. Please
send us any local media about the campaign for our archive.

 

 

Fidelity, Gore Urged to Help Block Colombian Occidental Venture

Washington, Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Environmental activists are urging
Fidelity Investments and U.S. Vice President Al Gore either to divest their
holdings in Occidental Petroleum Corp. or use their influence to persuade
the company to withdraw from a controversial venture in Colombia.
Rainforest Action Network and Amazon Watch, two non-profit
environmental groups, are targeting Fidelity, the world's biggest mutual
fund company, and presidential candidate Gore as part of an effort to stop
Occidental's drive to drill oil in a region they say belongs to the U'wa
Indian tribe.
Fidelity is the second-largest holder of Occidental shares
and Gore -- who has billed himself an environmentalist -- is
executor of an estate that holds as much as $500,000 worth of
stock in the company.
Members of the U'wa, a tribe that opposes exploration on its ancestral
lands, have threatened to commit mass suicide if the project isn't stopped.
News reports in Colombia say the military began to evict the U'wa from
their lands last week.
``I do not want my money supporting something like this,''
said Kathy Kerridge, an attorney and housewife who owns $47,000
worth of shares in five Fidelity funds. While she hasn't sold her
investments yet, she said, ``if I don't see some kind of action I will sell
my shares and transfer them to another fund and move them out of Fidelity.''

Investors' Pressure

Kerridge is among the two dozen owners of Fidelity funds who have
urged the company to pressure Occidental into withdrawing from the U'wa
tribe's land. One investor has sold off about $300,000 worth of Fidelity
mutual funds to protest the company's actions in Colombia, according to
Rainforest Action Network.
Tomorrow, activists will hold 22 demonstrations outside
Fidelity offices in the U.S. and nine protests outside Colombian embassies
and Fidelity offices in other countries. Outside the company's headquarters
in Boston, at least one investor will publicly divest her $21,000 worth of
Fidelity funds to protest the company's 8.25 percent stake in Occidental,
said Steve Kretzmann,
a consultant to Amazon Watch's U'wa campaign.
``We generally don't comment on customer relationships,''
said Vin Loporchio, a Fidelity spokesman.
The campaign is one of the first to expand investor activism -- by
which investors try to force votes on such issues through proxy votes
during annual shareholder meetings -- to the realm of mutual funds. The
activists took aim at Fidelity because it has consistently ranked among the
top three owners of Occidental stock and is a ``leader in its field,'' said
Shannon Wright, director of Rainforest Action Network's ``beyond oil''
campaign.
``You're definitely going to see a lot more of this because more
people are investing in mutual funds and the people responsible for
deciding on proxies are increasingly mutual fund managers,'' said Simon
Billenness, a senior analyst with the ``socially responsible'' investment
firm Trillium Asset Management Corp., which manages more than $600 million.
``And they are going to be increasingly lobbied by people like Kathy
Kerridge.''

Gore's Connections

Gore is under fire because of his close connections with
Occidental. The vice president's personal financial disclosure, filed
with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, shows him as executor of his
late father's estate, which holds $250,000 to $500,000 worth of Occidental
stock.
The Center for Public Integrity, a non-profit research group in
Washington, reports that Al Gore Sr., the vice president's father, earned
$500,000 a year working for Occidental after he retired from the Senate. In
the past, the younger Gore has flown aboard the company's private jet and
solicited hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions for the
Democratic party from Occidental.
Laura Quinn, a spokeswoman for the vice president, said his mother,
Pauline Gore, is sole beneficiary of the late Al Gore Sr.'s estate. ``As
far as I'm aware, the campaign has not spoken on this issue,'' Quinn said.
Occidental Chairman and Chief Executive Ray Irani ``has
access to Al Gore and to that extent Gore has access to him,''
said Peter Eisner, managing director of the Center for Public
Integrity. ``It's an interesting tactic and could bear fruit if
Gore chooses to do it. I know he can pick up the phone and call
the chairman straight away. Will he do it? I have no idea.''

Political Interests

The activists say it's in the political interest of Gore --
author of a popular book on the environment -- to heed their call. ``He
does not want in a presidential year to be connected to one of the world's
worst environmental and human rights disasters,'' Kretzmann said.
Rainforest Action Network and other groups have also been in touch
with other major Occidental investors, like Vanguard Group, the company's
third-largest shareholder after Fidelity and Sanford Bernstein.
``We understand and respect their concerns,'' said Vanguard Group
spokesman John Demming. ``We've asked our managers and analysts to look
into the situation.''
Occidental declined to comment.
Fidelity, which so far has declined to meet with the
protesters, indicated it's not in a position to respond to their demands.
``Our portfolio managers have a responsibility to invest in companies
that appear to have the highest likelihood of stock appreciation,''
Loporchio said. ``They are not trained to make investment decisions to
fulfill social or political objectives.''

--Emily Schwartz in Washington (202) 624-1927 with reporting in
Boston by Kathie O'Donnell /pjh

 

************************************************************
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Washington, DC 20036-1860
tel (202)785-3334
fax (202)785-3335
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Disclaimer: All copyrights belong to original publisher.
The Amazon Alliance has not verified the accuracy of the forwarded message.
Forwarding this message does not necessarily connote agreement with the
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Todos los derechos de autor pertenecen al autor originario.
La Alianza Amazonica no ha verificado la veracidad de este
mensaje. Enviar este mensaje no necesariamente significa que
la Alianza Amazonica este de acuerdo con el contenido.

La Alianza Amazónica para los Pueblos Indígenas y Tradicionales de la
Cuenca Amazónica es una iniciativa nacida de la alianza entre los pueblos
indígenas y tradicionales de la Amazonía y grupos e individuos que
comparten sus preocupaciones por el futuro de la Amazonía y sus pueblos.
Las ochenta organizaciones del norte y del sur activas en la Alianza
Amazónica creen que el futuro de la Amazonía depende de sus pueblos y el
estado de su medio ambiente.

The Amazon Alliance for Indigenous and Traditional Peoples of the Amazon
Basin is an initiative born out of the partnership between indigenous and
traditional peoples of the Amazon and groups and individuals who share
their concerns for the future of the Amazon and its peoples. The eighty
non-governmental organizations from the North and South active in the
Alliance believe that the future of the Amazon depends on its peoples and
the state of their environment.