This appeal was forwarded by a friend:
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Dear friends,
Here is the appeal:As you are aware, the Supreme Court judges on Thursday took
a cowardly decision not to make a final verdict on the Niyamgiri Vedanta case,
but instead to pass the decision back to the gram sabha level within 10km of
the proposed mine, and to let the MoEF ultimately decide based on their
recommendation.
Knowing the history of Vedanta in Niyamgiri, we know that Vedanta and state
officials will make every effort to influence this process with violence and
persuasion. So much rests on these few weeks, and we need your participation.
This is an urgent call for help from anyone who is able to assist at this
critical time. We need as many people as possible to independently observe the
process in the next 6 weeks (when the situation in the mountain will be most
tense) and for the following 2 months until the gram sabhas officially report
to the MoEF.
More details below:
The implications of this judgment go far beyond Niyamgiri and even far beyond
India. As a precedent for religious and cultural rights, and for
self-determination, the judgment on Niyamgiri will affect those threatened by
“industrial development” all over India and globally. And for Vedanta, losing
Niyamgiri will be huge, and even potentially a fatal blow to their financial
position, reputation, and empire.
Thursday's judgment states that:
Two gram sabhas within 10km of the proposed mine will decide whether the
community's cultural and religious rights, including the community’s claim to
the abode of Niyam Raja, will be seriously affected by the Vedanta mine.
New claims are to be filed for the gram sabha to hear within 6 weeks from now.
We need to start filing these claims in large numbers.
The process of settling claims by the gram sabha should be finished within 3
months.
According to the judgment, verification by gram sabha is to be uninfluenced by
project proponents, state and other such parties. To ensure that the process is
transparent, it is to be overseen by an independent Judicial Officer to be
appointed by the Chief Justice of Orissa High Court. (We have no confidence
that the Orissa High Court - who have been extremely biased in the past - will
be impartial here)
The decision would then be submitted to the MoEF, who would then take the final
decision on clearance of the project within 5 months.
Until then, mining will continue to be banned.
Local leaders (like Kumuti Majhi ) have called out for domestic and
international civil society to oversee the gram sabha process as Vedanta will
use money and force to influence this critical decision.
The Economic Times has rightly stated:
“But Vedanta will want the third option, a more durable one. Mining and metal
companies need to keep costs low as prices of their products fluctuate wildly
on global trends. Anil Agarwal needs to use his considerable clout as an
industrialist and negotiator to win over the villagers of Niyamgiri. He needs
to show them that Vedanta, as a corporate group, is not hostile to their
aspirations.”
We need volunteers - especially political activists, lawyers, journalists and
social workers to go to the mountain as soon as possible and to ensure that the
right information reaches the villages, that the gram sabhas are able to
operate without undue influence, and that Vedanta's flood of money does not
destroy this process.
Please get in touch with us at [email protected] for more details and to
be put in touch with local activists and lawyers who need our help. Your
participation and engagement are crucial.
This is a heartfelt call for help.
Look forward to hearing from you,
In solidarity,Samarendra Das, Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti, and Foil Vedanta x
http://www.foilvedanta.org/
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