Avoided Deforestation (REDD) and Indigenous ... - Amazon Fund

which Bolivian legislation calls “ecological easements,” 16 which have existed since 1996, though
these easements are rarely implemented. That is to say, in Bolivia the availability and autonomy
of forest resource use by indigenous people is not absolute and should be reconciled with the
environmental obligations which apply to all types of private property, 17 however there are no
clear rules regarding this compatibility.
Even though legislation prior to the NPCBS recognized the exclusive exploitation right
of forest resources on behalf of indigenous people, 18 forest concessions granted in the 1980s
remain in force until today. Many of the mentioned concessions were challenged in court, and
the respective case law which has been consolidated argued principles of legal certainty for not
reversing the concessions. 19
16 NPCBS. Article 389. II.
17 NPCBS. Article 358. “The rights of use and utilization over natural resources must abide by the Constitution and
the law. These rights are subject to periodic inspection of compliance with technical, economic and environmental
regulations. Non-compliance with the law will cause the reversal or cancellation of the use or utilization rights.”
(Emphasis by author.) In the case of indigenous territories, non-compliance with technical, economic and
environmental regulations cannot cause the reversal or cancellation of rights under Article 394 which states
that indigenous territories are irreversible; however, this does not mean that they are exempt from the stated
obligations.
18 Article 32. (Authorization of use on private property and original community lands) II. Guarantees to indigenous
people the exclusivity of forest use in original community lands duly recognized according to article 171 of the
Political Constitution of the State and Law No 1257 which ratifies Convention No 169 of the International Labour
Organization.
19 “Although constitutional reforms introduced the explicit recognition of indigenous people and their capacity
to make the most of their values, territories and customs, these must be coordinated with national law which
incorporates it and contains provisions that, independently of the discussion about temporality of the origin of
community land rights, should be adequately reconciled; these provisions include: the rights of individuals to
work and engage in commerce, industry or any other lawful activity under conditions that do not undermine the
collective good, to formulate requests, to private property provided it meets a social function, the recognition
of the goods of original domain of the State such as the soil and subsoil with all of its natural wealth, whose
regulation and conditions of adjudication to private individuals is defined by law; they should also be in line with
international instruments such as C169 of the ILO, recognized as a Law of the Republic on June 11, 1991, which
expects that the measures adopted to implement the agreement should be interpreted in a flexible manner and
take into account the local conditions of each signatory country. From the above, the General Superintendent
of the Regulation System of Renewable Resources (Sirenare) and the Forest Superintendant were established
with the powers conferred by law L. Nº 1700 (forest law). DS. No 24453, Law Nº 1600 of the Sectorial Regulation
System and the articles 60 and 61 of DS. Nº 24505 modified by DS. Nº 24786, have successfully delivered
the administrative resolutions challenged in the demand, working under our legal norms, without violating
constitutional regulations or any laws.” 200005-Sala Plena-1-059 versus the Attorney General of the Republic,
President of the Central Indigenous Peoples of Beni and others – SEEN IN ROOM: The demand for judicial redress
30 Av o i d e d d e f o re s t A t i o n (redd) A n d i n d i g e n o u s p e o p l e s: experiences, chAllenges A n d o p p o r t u n i t i e s in t h e A m A zo n c o n t e x t