The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IAHCR) has summoned members of Ecuador’s government and the Sarayaku indigenous community to a hearing on May 11 to
consider arguments regarding the government’s alleged non-compliance over
land-rights violations. In 1996 Ecuador granted CGC, an Argentine-based oil company,
concessions to almost 500,000 acres of land, roughly half of which lie within
Sarayaku territory. The Sarayaku maintain that the extraction of oil on their
land will ruin their environment and way of life. The government has allegedly
failed to protect the Sarayaku community from death threats and physical and
verbal abuse despite IAHCR orders in 2003 for Ecuador to protect its people.
