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We want San Roque Lake clean now!

At Fundeps we have been working since 2009 for the right to a healthy environment. We understand the environment from a comprehensive and broad perspective that includes the interaction between natural common goods and society. From this perspective, we are concerned about the province’s water, so in this note we will tell you chronologically about the actions we are carrying out in the search for solutions for a healthy San Roque lake.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

In 2020, we carried out a Situational Diagnosis of Córdoba’s Water Resources: Lago Los Molinos and Lago San Roque, with the aim of analyzing the state of the main basins in the province, fully understanding the problem and analyzing possible courses of action.

The San Roque Lake Basin is in an extremely serious situation due to its advanced state of eutrophication. This means: the proliferation of algae in fresh water as a result of an excess of nutrients, particularly phosphorus; this natural process is exacerbated during hot weather. The situation is mainly due to the lack of sanitation in the Punilla area, a deficient sewage system, lack of control over discharge authorization, degradation of the lake, fires, deforestation, among others. With this basis, we carry out negotiations with decision-makers with the aim of undertaking actions for its remediation.

The pollution of the San Roque Basin not only puts at risk the health of people who are directly or indirectly in contact with the basin, but also affects the quality of life, the landscape, regional economies and the biological diversity of the province.

As we did not receive any positive responses from the provincial administration and as a last resort, in November 2022 we filed a Collective Environmental Protection action suing the Province, the communes and municipalities that make up the San Roque Lake Basin, the Provincial Administration of Water Resources of the Province of Córdoba (APRHI), the Ministry of Public Services of the Province of Córdoba, and the Secretariat of the Environment of the Province of Córdoba (now Ministry). Check out the timeline of the case here.

In the writ of amparo we ask the courts, among other measures, to gradually cease polluting activities such as dumping hazardous waste, sewage, and industrial waste; to order the defendants to build, complete, or expand the necessary sewage works, and to create an autonomous and self-sufficient River Basin Committee, made up of the various stakeholders in the river basin. We also request various precautionary measures such as the suspension of any authorization to carry out untreated dumping, the creation of a temporary management plan, and the design of a risk communication plan, among others.

In March 2023, the Third-Party Administrative Litigation Chamber partially admitted the requested precautionary measure and ordered the Government of Córdoba to prepare and present a provisional Sanitation and Sustainable Development Plan within 60 days.

The province appealed this resolution and simultaneously presented a plan that does not comply with the resolution. The plan presented has serious deficiencies: it does not stipulate deadlines, budget, or agencies in charge of execution. In addition, it is a plan that greatly exceeds the limits of the precautionary measure since it was designed to be executed within a period of 15 years. We at Fundeps made various observations. To date, the intervening Chamber has not yet issued a ruling. We consider that the design of an environmental management program of such impact and temporal extension, which involves present and future generations linked to the San Roque Basin, must necessarily be designed in dialogue with the population and that the future of the basin cannot be decided in the limited period of 60 days.

Currently, the judicial process is still ongoing and in the meantime the province, the Ministry of Environment and the Basin Authority (created in November 2023 by law 10,941) are carrying out insufficient cleanup actions: they are the same ones that have been carried out for years and that have not prevented the current contamination situation.

In the face of the summer season, with very high temperatures, thousands of hectares recently burned and a deep drought, we believe that it is time to demand actions that lead to different results that transform the management of the basin and promote real change. It is a key moment to request citizen participation in the design, execution and implementation of public policies aimed at the sanitation of the basin.

 

Your participation is key to achieving the cleanup of the basin. SIGN HERE!

 

Contact

María Laura Carrizo, lauracarrizo@fundeps.org

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(Re)ordering the territory: Escazú and citizen participation

In an effort to promote the effective implementation of the Escazú Agreement at the local level, Fundeps held three meetings during the month of August, aimed at the Urban Planning Department of the Municipality of Córdoba. These training sessions focused on strengthening competencies in environmental law and the rights of access to information, participation and environmental justice, essential for sustainable urban planning.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

The target audience of these meetings were members of the Secretariats of Urban Development, Regional Integration and Institutional Linkage, and Smart City of the Municipality of Córdoba. The main objective was to provide the necessary tools to understand and apply the Escazú Agreement in the urban planning policies and practices of the city.

The first two workshops focused on theoretical and specific aspects of minimum budget laws and the Escazú Agreement. For the last meeting, we placed special emphasis on citizen participation. During this session, we explored various models of successful citizen participation, both at the national and regional level, highlighting practical examples that have been implemented in different cities in our country, as well as in Latin American countries and localities in Europe.

We proposed discussions on cases where active citizen participation has resulted in significant improvements in urban planning and management, highlighting how these inclusive processes can be adapted to our city. In addition, we analyzed the tools and mechanisms available to facilitate citizen participation in decision-making, emphasizing the importance of transparency, effective communication, clear language and building trust between municipal authorities and citizens.

We continue to work for the full and effective implementation of the Escazú Agreement at the local level. The Agreement is a fundamental tool for the protection of the environment and of human rights defenders in environmental matters.

If you want to learn more about the Escazú Agreement, visit our website: https://acuerdodeescazu.org/

 

Authors

Lourdes Zanotti

Federico Marengo Ligoria

Contact

María Laura Carrizo, lauracarrizo@fundeps.org

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A decree cannot limit access to public information

The undersigned organizations express our concern about Decree 780/24 with which the National Executive Branch attempts to restrict the right of Access to Public Information.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

A regulatory Decree cannot limit the right of access to public information in contradiction with the scope of the Access to Information Law itself, voted by the National Congress in 2016.

The exceptions established by Law 27,275, which allow the State to refuse to provide the requested information, are far from what is regulated by the National Executive Branch. The aforementioned Decree expands the information that is outside the public interest, expands secrecy and provides discretion by leaving in the hands of public officials the definition of what is a public document and what information can be considered part of the private sphere of the authorities, giving them special protection.

Decree 780/24 represents a serious regression in the interpretation of the right of access to information in light of international standards on human rights and the fight against corruption, and creates a discretionary regulatory framework whereby the political definitions of the government and the subjective decisions of officials take precedence over the right to access information in the hands of the State.

We request the National Executive Branch to repeal this Decree and guarantee full access to public information.

 

Acción Colectiva – ACIJ – Alianza Regional por la Libre Expresión e Información – Amnistía Internacional- Andhes – Anima Chicos – ARPIAS (Salta)  – Asuntos del Sur – CADE – CAIP – Campaña por el Aborto (Salta) – CAREF – Carrera Comunicación (UBA)  –  CECIM (La Plata) – CEG (La Plata) – CELS – CEPPAS – CIDC – CIPCE – CIPPEC –  Clínica Jurídica de Acceso a la Información (UNLP) – Comunicación para la Igualdad – Conciencia – Consciente Colectivo – Democracia en Red – DEMOS – Directorio Legislativo – ELA – Escuela de Fiscales – FADECCOS – FARN – FATPREN – FEC – Festival Cine a la Vista – FIC – FOCIS (Salta) – FOPEA – F. para el Desarrollo Humano Integral – FUNDAR – FUNDEPS – Gestión Nativa –  Hora de Obrar – Huésped – ILSED – Incidencia Feminista –  INECIP – Khuyay – La Casa del Encuentro – La Fuerza de las Mujeres – Minka Digital – Mujeres en Igualdad – Mujeres por la Igualdad de Oportunidades – Mundosur – Nuestra Mendoza – Obs. de Just. Sanitaria y Climática Latam. – Patagonias.org – Periodistas Argentinas – Poder Ciudadano – RAAC – Red Ciudadana Nuestra Córdoba – REDCOM  – Red Par – Red Ruido – RIPVGAR – Salta Transparente – SES –  Sipreba – Unión Inquilinxs (Salta) – Vía Libre – Xumek

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Civil society organizations and academics reject before the Senate the candidacy of Lijo and García-Mansilla to the CSJN

Gides (Social Rights Research Group), Fundeps (Foundation for the Development of Sustainable Policies), El Telar and Católicas por el Derecho a Decidir Argentina we appear before the Chamber of Senators of the Nation to explain the reasons why we consider that The candidates to fill the vacancies in the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, Ariel Lijo and Manuel García-Mansilla, do not meet the conditions required to integrate the highest body of justice in our country.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

As academic and civil society organizations with a long history in the field of human rights, we understand that the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, as the main guarantor of the National Constitution and the Rule of Law, can only be made up of people whose experience reflects strong suitability and independence, as well as a firm commitment to constitutional principles and human rights.

Ariel Lijo faces serious accusations in the Judicial Council, including negligence in the investigation of corruption cases, unjustified delays in legal processes and accusations of illicit enrichment, in addition to criminal charges for illicit association, money laundering, bribery and influence peddling. . Furthermore, he lacks professional or academic merits to support his candidacy.

For his part, Manuel García-Mansilla holds an ideological position that could affect the defense of human rights and the international commitments assumed by our country. During his career, he has questioned the hierarchy of international human rights treaties signed and ratified by Argentina. She has also expressed her opposition to the right to abortion, even in cases where the pregnancy is the result of rape. Its incorporation into the highest body of justice of the Nation implies a serious risk for the guarantee of the rights of women and pregnant people.

Likewise, we express our deepest concern about the flagrant lack of representation of various sectors of society in the potential composition of the Supreme Court. The inclusion of new members should reflect gender diversity and thematic and regional specialization, to ensure adequate representation of a federal country like ours. It is necessary to emphasize that gender diversity in public positions and decision-making bodies is a legally binding requirement derived from our constitution and international treaties.

Furthermore, on this occasion some organizations sent questions and concerns for the candidates to answer publicly, as enabled by the procedure of the Upper House.

The questions presented to García Mansilla include: How do you justify your candidacy to the Supreme Court in a context where equal gender representation is required and your appointment would perpetuate the underrepresentation of women on the court? What concrete actions have you taken to advance women’s rights and diversities in your career? While the questions asked to Lijo were: How can her candidacy contribute to equitable gender representation in the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation? How do you guarantee transparency and ethics in your judicial decisions?

In these contexts, we believe it is essential that the Senate consult the candidates along the lines expressed here, as well as investigate in detail the crucial points that we have noted in our challenges.

We demand that the Senators rise to the occasion, and NOT agree to the approval of these candidacies in defense of Human Rights and the highest values ​​of justice.

Ícono de validado por la comunidad
Contact

Mayca Balaguer, maycabalaguer@fundeps.org

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The IDB approves a New Access to Information Policy

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) took the final step of a process that lasted several years and culminated with the approval of a new Access to Information Policy (PAI) by the Board of Executive Directors.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

The new policy, approved on July 26, 2024, which updates the current IDB policy, will go into effect on September 1, 2025

At Fundeps, together with other regional organizations, we actively participate in the process of updating and adapting the IDB’s PAI, sending comments and suggestions to each of the previous versions, as well as participating in various public consultations to strengthen the right. access to information and transparency in the Bank.

As improvements introduced to the new Bank Policy, mention can be made of the possibility of making anonymous information requests, the reduction in the IDB’s response times to information requests and the work that the institution is doing to increase the usability of the information. and the use of more accessible formats. Even so, it is imperative to consider that access to Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) is not universal or uniform.

Likewise, there are essential aspects that the PAI, or its next updates, must incorporate, such as:

  • The approach to access to information as a fundamental human right and, therefore, a pillar of the PAI itself.
  • The harmonization of the Access to Information Policy with the Escazú Agreement.
  • Eliminate ambiguities in the language of the standard, mainly in the “Exceptions” section, which must be more precise and establish clear criteria for its application.

Likewise, it is worrying that some criteria and parameters that will make the PAI effective are addressed in the Implementation Guidelines. In this way, the effectiveness and strength of the PAI will depend greatly on these Guidelines, which do not require mandatory compliance, as the PAI itself does.

Likewise, it should be mentioned that there were significant delays in the PAI review process. At the end of 2019, the IDB began this process that was suspended months later. Subsequently, in April 2022, it was resumed and the Bank presented a new policy proposal to the Board of Executive Directors, which was approved for public consultation with interested parties. It was only in January 2024 when the final version of the New Information Access Policy was approved, which did not take into account many of the comments and suggestions raised by civil society within the framework of the in-person and virtual consultations organized by the own bank.

As a next step, after the approval of the Access to Information Policy, the Implementation Guidelines for its application will be prepared, which, according to the IDB, will be circulated in a timely manner for comments from the public and civil society organizations. Given the great importance of these Guidelines, especially in this case, we hope that this will be the case and we reiterate the importance of the Bank placing people at the center and using the possibility of making effective and full the exercise of the right of access to information , also strengthening in this process the effective participation of civil society organizations, communities and people affected by their projects and populations in vulnerable situations.

 

More Information

Contact

Gonzalo Roza, gon.roza@fundeps.org

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Marcos Juárez’s health remains at risk: statement on fumigation protection

The provincial justice decided to consider that the protection initiated by residents of Marcos Juárez and Fundeps had not been presented due to errors related to the formalities of the process that were corrected at the time of being requested. The underlying issue, which is the distance for the application of agrochemicals within the municipal ejido, remains undiscussed, since the current ordinance is not complied with. This resolution affects access to justice and the rights to health and a healthy environment in the community.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

In November 2023, from Vecinos Autoconvocados de Marcos Juárez and Fundeps we presented an environmental protection with the aim of increasing the distances between populated areas and the application of agrochemicals, due to the effects that these cause on community health. This judicial step was taken after having made various claims and requests for dialogue with local authorities, and not finding appropriate responses.

After the presentation of the amparo, the Civil, Commercial, Labor and Family Chamber of Marcos Juárez began the process, ordering its publication and requesting the Municipality of Marcos Juárez to answer the lawsuit. On that occasion, the Municipality pointed out errors related to the format of the presentation of the amparo document, which later resulted in a judicial resolution that decided to have it as not presented. This formatting error was due purely and exclusively to the way in which the neighbors’ signatures were placed in the electronic file, and was immediately corrected through ratification. Furthermore, the people who signed made themselves available to the Court to ratify the protection in person and leave no room for doubt about their intention to continue with the process. However, these efforts were not considered by justice.

It was just a question of forms. The court did not provide a ruling on the underlying content of the protection, which is the distances in the application of agrochemicals, nor did it give an opinion on the technical information provided that shows the existence of damage to the health of the population, particularly children, girls and adolescents.

The judicial action, in short, is based on the concerns that we have had for many years as residents of Marcos Juárez who see our health affected, due to the non-compliance and ineffectiveness of the current legislation, and we have decided to seek a response, with the support from Fundeps, an organization from Córdoba that has been working for 15 years promoting rights and accompanying affected communities throughout the province.

This decision seriously affects the right of access to justice in environmental matters of the Marcos Juárez community, since there was no discussion about the use of agrochemicals or their impact on health and the environment. This type of resolution goes against the precautionary principle that must prevail in any environmental process, where measures must not only be proposed to eliminate environmental damage, but also minimize the possibility of its continued occurrence.

We reaffirm that our fight for an environment free of pesticides is still standing and stronger than ever. Our commitment to a healthy environment for the entire population of Marcos Juárez is unwavering.

We will continue working hard to guarantee an environment free of contaminants and pesticides, based on the constitutional principles that support us.

 

More Information:

 

Contact:

María Laura Carrizo, lauracarrizo@fundeps.org

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They ask the Senate to guarantee a composition of the Supreme Court that includes women

Given the absence of women in the presidential proposal to fill the vacancies in the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, a group of 12 civil society organizations sent a letter to the president of the Agreements Commission of the Chamber of Senators, Guadalupe Tagliaferri, so that the public hearing for the appointment of the two male judges proposed by the Executive Branch does not begin because it is unconstitutional and discriminatory based on gender. Likewise, it implies a strong setback in the diversity that the highest court must have, with a serious impact on its legitimacy.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

In all of Argentine history there were only three women in the Court compared to 104 men. Instead of reversing this alarming reality, the Executive Branch decided to integrate this court only with men. Today it is the Agreements Commission of the Upper House, the body that has the historic opportunity to prevent us from having an absolutely male Court for at least 7 years, leaving out women who meet the conditions to occupy that position and reinforcing the stereotypes that block their access to places of power and decision-making.

The moments of greatest political participation of women in these spaces also coincided with important advances in gender matters. The creation of the Court’s Women’s Office and the Domestic Violence Office, fundamental organizations for documenting and reversing discrimination and violence, took place when Carmen Argibay and Elena Highton de Nolasco were part of the highest judiciary.

An equal integration of the Supreme Court and equal access to public positions, especially in hierarchical and power bodies, are political rights of women and the State has the obligation to make them effective, in accordance with the commitments assumed in international rights treaties. humans with constitutional hierarchy. Likewise, Decree 222/03 includes these standards for the process of appointing judges to the Court and establishes that a diverse gender composition must be promoted when defining appointments.

Although in the Argentine Judiciary 57% of the staff is made up of women, they occupy only 31% of the positions of judges in the national and federal justice system and only 29% of the highest authorities there.

It is the duty of the Executive Branch to propose women for the Court who have the qualities, suitability and commitment to the rights required for such a function and, of the Legislative Branch, to promote and ensure that said obligation is fulfilled.

For this reason, Amnesty International, the Latin American Justice and Gender Team (ELA), the Women’s Network for Justice, the Foundation for the Development of Sustainable Policies (Fundeps), Women in Equality (MEI), the Foundation for Study and Research of Women (FEIM), Fundación Poder Ciudadano, the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), the Institute of Comparative Studies in Criminal and Social Sciences (INECIP), the Center for Legal and Social Studies (CELS), the Civil Association for Equality and Justice (ACIJ), the GQUAL Campaign and the Association for Civil Rights (ADC), ask the Senate not to begin the discussion of the specifications to appoint two judges to the Court in order to guarantee gender equality in the Argentine Justice.

 

Contact

Mayca Balaguer, maycabalaguer@fundeps.org

 

*Image taken from a publication of the Gender with Class Foundation

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Organizations reject the president’s speech in favor of the exploitation of natural resources without considering the environmental dimension

The signatory organizations here express our deepest rejection of the speech by the President of the Nation, Javier Milei, on the occasion of the signing of the so-called May Pact, in which he urged provincial governments to advance in the exploitation of natural resources without contemplating the environmental dimension nor the demands of local communities and civil society organizations.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

The president’s words and the text signed by the provincial authorities (point 7) go against the constitutional mandate, which guarantees all Argentines the right to a healthy, balanced environment suitable for human development, and which establishes the duty of the authorities to provide for the protection of this right, the rational use of natural resources, the preservation of natural and cultural heritage and biological diversity and environmental information and education.

The president publicly states that promoting the development of productive activities without any type of environmental control and regulation will result in the generation of wealth; a premise already surpassed more than fifty years ago throughout the world due to the negative impacts that the destruction of ecosystems generates on the quality of life of the population, and the way in which it obstructs the productive development of nations. The uncontrolled exploitation of natural resources generates more poverty and demands more resources from the State to alleviate the social and environmental crises it causes.

The president’s statements also imply a world that no longer exists. The country’s insertion into the international scenario implies greater responsibility in social and environmental terms, due to the requirements and obligations established in bilateral agreements and multilateral treaties and the requirements to access membership of groups of countries. It is not possible to think about the development of a country today without considering the social and environmental footprint of the use of the goods that it offers to the world.

The May Pact signed in the Historic House of Independence in Tucumán must mark a path in favor of harmony and national unity and put aside unnecessary enmities. Unfortunately, the mention of “noisy minorities” and the classification of environmental organizations as adversaries of progress marks the wrong direction in this regard.

Environmental defenders in the territories play a key role in the protection of soil, water, biodiversity, native forests, glaciers, wetlands, rivers, the sea, peatlands, aquifers, mountains, landscapes , cultural values ​​and nature. Without these ecosystems, without the environment, there is no possible progress.

Likewise, environmental organizations have had and have a leading role in the creation of new National Parks, nature reserves and protected areas, thus collaborating in the conservation of our natural and cultural heritage. Furthermore, non-governmental organizations are legitimate components of civil society in modern democracies around the world.

40 years after democratic recovery and 30 years after the last constitutional reform, Argentina needs a social and environmental pact. But not just any pact, but one that proposes living in harmony with nature and that leads us to true development, that contemplates present generations and also future generations that will inherit our country and our planet.

In this framework, we demand that the national and provincial authorities guarantee that all Argentines have their constitutional right to a healthy environment, that current environmental regulations be respected and applied, and that access to information and citizen participation in environmental matter.

 

Organizaciones firmantes:

  • Agencia de Cooperación para el Desarrollo
  • Ahora qué?
  • Alianza x el Clima
  • AsAE
  • Asociación Ciudadana por los Derechos Humanos
  • Asociación para la Conservación y el Estudio de la Naturaleza
  • Asociana
  • Aves Argentinas
  • Banco de Bosques
  • CAUCE (Cultura Ambiental Causa Ecologista)
  • CeDePesca
  • CeIBA (Centro de Investigación del Bosque Atlántico)
  • CEPPAS (Centro de Políticas Públicas para el Socialismo)
  • Circulo de Políticas Ambientales
  • Comunidad Verde
  • Conciencia Solidaria
  • Consciente Colectivo
  • Ecohouse
  • FARN (Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales)
  • FSAC
  • Fundación Ambiente y Medio
  • Fundación Avina
  • Fundación Biodiversidad Argentina
  • Fundación Cambio Democrático
  • Fundación Hábitat y Desarrollo
  • Fundación Mil Aves – Córdoba
  • Fundación Patagonia Natural
  • Fundación Protestante Hora de Obrar
  • Fundación Somuncura
  • Fundación Yuchan
  • Fundeps
  • Futuro
  • IIED-AL (Instituto Internacional de Medio Ambiente y Desarrollo IIED-América Latina)
  • Instituto de Conservación de Ballenas
  • Isla Verde – Sembrando conciencia
  • Jóvenes por el Clima
  • Laudato Si – Ecología integral
  • Los Verdes
  • Natura Argentina
  • PEM (Por El Mar)
  • Plurales
  • Proyectar ONG
  • Proyecto Quimilero
  • Red Agroforestal Chaco Argentina
  • Red de Mujeres en diálogo ambiental
  • RUCC
  • SAREM
  • Somos Red – agroecología y cooperación
  • Surfrider – Foundation Argentina
  • Sustentabilidad Sin Fronteras
  • UICN – Comité Nacional Argentina
  • Unidos por Nuestras Acequias
  • Viento Sur – Zapala
  • WCS Argentina
  • Wetlands International
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China-driven financial initiatives: access to information and accountability

Much of what happens in Argentine foreign policy is linked to China, hand in hand with its growing global influence, which is why it is important to know initiatives such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Belt and Road Initiative. , in which China is its main promoter. At Fundeps we share documents with basic and accessible information about these initiatives, placing emphasis on practical resources to access information and their accountability mechanisms.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) represents China’s flagship global connectivity and infrastructure development program that aims to boost trade and new political and economic ties with participating nations, primarily emerging and “developing” countries. ”. For its part, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank created in 2015 at the initiative of China that currently has more than 100 member countries around the world and finances projects in other regions, such as Latin America and the Caribbean or Africa.

The AIIB is closely linked to the Belt and Road Initiative not only because the processes of formation of these two instruments were promoted by Chinese President Xi Jinping and occurred simultaneously, but also because the AIIB constitutes the main tool financing for projects that are part of the IFR. Likewise, both are part of a process of geopolitical reconfiguration where the center of gravity of the world economy turns towards the Asia Pacific. Furthermore, both have been the subject of criticism since their inception in relation to the negative environmental and social impacts that their projects have generated and the lack of transparency, accountability and citizen participation in their design and implementation.

The role that the AIIB and the IFR play – and will play in the medium-short term – in Argentina is much closer and more tangible than we believe: although they seem like initiatives or actors that are distant and unrelated to the local reality, through Their actions promote or facilitate the implementation of large infrastructure and energy projects in the country that, in turn, have – or may have – a direct or indirect impact on people’s daily lives and may affect social and/or environmental rights. , especially from the populations and communities linked to the projects. In fact, there is already a first approved project in Tierra del Fuego that will be financed by the AIIB for an amount of 65 million dollars and, within the framework of the IFR, there are various projects committed in our country. For this reason, it is essential to monitor them, know how to access information about the projects and how to file a complaint with the Bank’s accountability mechanism.

In addition to this and given the frequent lack of transparency of Chinese banking and the general lack of knowledge about it, at Fundeps we share these updated brochures with summarized information about the AIIB and the Belt and Road Initiative. We also added instructions on how to make a complaint to the Project Affected Persons Mechanism (PPM), the AIIB’s accountability mechanism.

How does the situation influence?

During the current government of Javier Milei, diplomatic ties between both countries have been strained due to the reconfiguration of the new administration’s foreign policy, with greater geopolitical alignment with the United States and the West. We can also mention certain measures such as the decision of the Argentine government to visit the Chinese space base in Neuquén or renounce Argentina’s membership in the BRICS bloc, the brake on infrastructure works with Chinese financing or even statements by the President himself or of Foreign Minister Diana Mondino. This has been reflected, among other things, in the difficulties in the negotiations to renew the swap with China – currency exchange between the central banks of both countries – or in the weakening of the commercial link, which has moved China to fourth place. place as Argentina’s trading partner, currently positioning itself behind Brazil, the European Union (EU) and the United States.

However, it is worth highlighting that the link between Argentina and China continues to be very important, and will continue to be so in the future, regardless of the government in power.

A bilateral relationship of a strategic nature

The bilateral relationship between the People’s Republic of China and Argentina has been strengthening in recent decades and has acquired greater relevance since the 2000s, becoming established, almost 10 years ago, as a Comprehensive Strategic Association. It includes an expansion in the areas of cooperation and covers not only economic and financial aspects but also political, commercial, technological, cultural, health and investment matters. This strengthening of ties was reflected in the incorporation of Argentina to the two initiatives mentioned here.

The signing of a Joint Declaration in 2004 and the Comprehensive Strategic Association in 2014 have been, at the diplomatic level, two unavoidable antecedents to understand Argentina’s entry into the IFR and the AIIB. Given the continuity and long-term projection of the Sino-Argentine link, it can be said that Argentina’s entry into the IFR (in 2022) and the AIIB (from 2021, as a non-regional member), are consistent with the rapprochement and consolidation of bilateral relations since their normalization in 1972 and crystallize this long-standing bond between both countries, posing both opportunities and challenges for our country.

 

 

Contact

Gonzalo Roza, gon.roza@fundeps.org

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Concern about the situation of people detained in the demonstration against the Bases Law

We express our deep concern about the situation of the people detained during the demonstration against the bill known as the Bases Law. Protesting is a right and it is essential that international norms and standards are respected. From Fundeps, we appear before the Federal Justice requesting the immediate release of these people.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

On June 12, within the framework of the treatment of the draft “Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentines” in the National Congress, a demonstration took place that ended in arbitrary arrests after the repression of the security forces.

The operation carried out by the Federal Police, Gendarmerie and Naval Prefecture advanced on the people using gas, fire hydrant trucks and rubber bullets. This action received congratulations from the Office of the President who described those who demonstrated as “terrorists,” accusing them of attempting a “coup d’état.”

The criminalization of social protest is a serious violation of human rights. Freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly are protected by national laws, our National Constitution and international human rights treaties to which our country is a party.

For all this, we appear before the Federal Justice requesting the immediate release of the detained people, who are in that situation for acts that do not constitute any crime. Furthermore, without clarity of their conditions, reasons for detention and in violation of their rights in the processes initiated.

Democracy is strengthened by guaranteeing the right to demonstrate and to be able to express ideas freely, without fear of repression and criminalization. Under no point of view can a social claim be assimilated with a coup d’état.

Contact

Mayca Balaguer, maycabalaguer@fundeps.org

 

*Image source: FARCO Agency

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Serious setback in access to justice: they order the closure of 81 care centers throughout the country

Yesterday, June 10, a resolution from the Ministry of Justice was published in the Official Gazette ordering the dissolution of 81 Access to Justice Centers. In this way, there will be only one Center per province and remote care will be privileged, which dismantles a primary legal care system linked to decentralizing and breaking down the geographical barriers that the most vulnerable people face when accessing justice. Civil society organizations and different people and institutions committed to access to justice agree on the loss that the reduction of this service means.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

For 15 years, the Access to Justice Centers (CAJ) have been extended as a federal policy throughout the country that brings answers to all citizens, but particularly to the most vulnerable groups in society. The focus is precisely on popular neighborhoods and/or rural areas, places that historically have had greater barriers to accessing their rights. CAJs are devices that provide primary legal care: it is about providing services that specifically address the daily legal needs of vulnerable communities: access to personal documentation, advice on family or work issues, assistance to crime victims, among others. issues. It is the first line of care, located in the territories, that allows removing historical barriers linked to the distance between those most vulnerable people and the state responses they require.

The traditional institutions of the justice sector do not deal – or arrive very late, in a fragmented manner and through long, rigid, winding, expensive and generally ineffective paths – to provide answers to many of the problems that communities face. Faced with this, having decentralized centers, with a territorial approach, that can fully accompany people in resolving the needs they experience is essential.

According to data from the Ministry’s own website, from 2016 to 2022, the Access to Justice Centers attended more than 1,300,000 queries.

What is the current situation of the CAJs?

According to official information from the Ministry of Justice provided in response to a request for access to information made by the Civil Association for Equality and Justice (ACIJ), six Centers had been closed so far this year (going from 109 to 103 ). However, today, a resolution from the Ministry of Justice was published in the Official Gazette that resolves that there will be only one Center per province and remote care will be privileged, which violates a first principle of primary legal care linked to decentralize and break down the geographical barriers that people face. At the same time, it does not take into account the need for support that the most vulnerable people face or the technological barriers.

The cost of Access to Justice

Simultaneously with the announcement of the Official Gazette, the Executive Branch issued a statement that ignores, on the one hand, the most basic premises of access to justice and, on the other, some obvious facts such as that in Argentina there has been no Ombudsman for a long time. 15 years or that the Crime Victim Assistance Centers (CENAVID) operate precisely in the CAJ or remotely through telephone service.

In the same statement, reference is made to the cost that this policy has for the country. The first thing to say is that it is not possible to verify the figure of 8 billion pesos that the Ministry of Justice mentions regarding the cost of maintaining the CAJs. However, it is necessary to highlight that, if that were the correct number, it would correspond to only 0.01% of public spending. In comparative terms, it is equivalent, for example, to 8% of the tax benefits granted to the Mercado Libre company in 2023 or 0.18% of what Argentina has paid in external debt services so far.

At the same time, it is important to highlight that the use of the law by people in situations of greater vulnerability and early attention and resolution
of legal consultations and conflicts result in better economic results in general, avoiding the loss of resources and the aggravation and escalation of the problems they face. Investment in Access to Justice ends up reducing State expenses. Currently, international organizations such as the OECD encourage the implementation of this type of device, in part, with arguments of this type.

Concern about the current situation is transversal. Civil society organizations and different people and institutions committed to access to justice agree on the loss that the reduction of this service means. In the current situation of socioeconomic crisis, these territorial and people-centered policies are a fundamental instrument for effective access to justice.

FIRMS

  • ACIJ – Asociación Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia
  • ELA – Equipo Latinoamericano de Justicia y Género
  • INECIP – Instituto de Estudios Comparados en Ciencias Penales y Sociales
  • CELS – Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales
  • Fundeps
  • Capibara
  • Xumek
  • RAAC – Red Argentina de Abogacía Comunitaria
  • Curas Villeros
  • Andhes – Abogados y Abogadas del Noroeste Argentino en derechos humanos y
    estudios sociales.
  • Observatorio de justicia sanitaria y climática

About access to justice

Access to justice is an internationally recognized human right and is also considered instrumental, that is, it allows access to others rights. It includes guaranteeing the effectiveness of the rights of all people, which includes not only being able to access judicial actions but not finding non-judicial, administrative and alternative responses to conflicts that affect people’s daily lives.

Contact
Mayca Balaguer, maycabalaguer@fundeps.org
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Protection against gender violence is a commitment to the entire society

Three days after the 9th anniversary of Ni Una Menos and five after the publication of the femicides report that confirmed that in 2023 there were 250 victims in our country, the national government decided to close the Undersecretariat for Protection Against Gender Violence. A woman dies every 35 hours in Argentina, while one in two women in a relationship has suffered or is suffering from domestic violence and there are no state structures to resolve it.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

According to data from the National Registry of Femicide of the Women’s Office of the Supreme Court of Justice, there have been between 226 and 260 victims of femicide per year from 2017 to 2023. It is clear that lethal gender-based violence is far from being resolved. The problem is real and not ideological. To these lethality data we must add the 124,000 calls to line 144, a state policy that has been in existence for 10 years and is a hub for prevention.

Public policies to address cases of gender violence are part of a commitment that the Argentine State has historically made within the framework of international agreements and that is why gender institutions were created almost 40 years ago to carry them out. Argentina occupies a privileged role in the fulfillment of these agreements and has been a pioneer in taking measures against discrimination and violence against women and LGBT people. It is taken as an example internationally.

Without specialized bodies in the comprehensive approach or sufficient personnel and budget, the Argentine State will not be able to design and implement adequate policies to prevent and punish these acts. But, furthermore, you will not be fulfilling your obligations. With the closure of the Undersecretariat for Protection Against Gender Violence, the Argentine State goes back to times prior to 1987 when the first undersecretariat for women was created and retraces a path of progressive progress that it achieved in the last 37 years.

Our National Constitution grants constitutional status to the Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), committing to the development of policies aimed at eliminating discrimination against women by all appropriate means and without delay and enshrining the Inter-American Convention to Prevent , Punish and Eradicate Violence against Women (Belem do Pará) in 1996 through Law No. 24,632. With the closure of the Undersecretariat, the commitments no longer have reference authority for the design of policies and budgets and Law No. 26,485 on Comprehensive Protection to prevent, punish and eradicate violence against women will no longer have enforcement authority.

Fiscal regulation cannot be done at the cost of deaths and other forms of discriminatory violence against the population. Our society has built a consensus against gender violence. It is not an option to reverse four decades of progress.

We demand that the government rise to the urgency and immediately designate an adequate structure to respond to a problem that does not cease. We urge Congress to ensure that the laws it defines for social protection are executed.

 

SEE ACCESSIONS: La protección contra la violencia de género es un compromiso con toda la sociedad

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