Pitfalls and Pipelines - Philippine Indigenous Peoples Links

Chapter 2.6: Legal Strategy from the Local to the International
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indigenous. There are some more enlightened states, at least
in terms of rhetoric or legislation. Yet, concerns of national
supremacy, a preference for inter-governmental consensus,
and a politicization of the debate on human rights has left it
low on the regional agenda.
The Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) created
an ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human
Rights in 2009, but it has yet to move much beyond human
rights promotion as opposed to protection. The good news
is that an early version of the draft ASEAN Human Rights
Declaration contained a reference to indigenous peoples, their
collective rights and the obligation to obtain FPIC in certain
conditions. The bad news, however, is that further drafts are
not being transparently shared with civil society, and behind
closed doors; it is quite possible that such provisions have been
removed. 25
Given this situation, communities in Asia are likely to look
immediately beyond their own countries to the complaints
mechanisms in the next chapter (see Chapter 2.7), or to the
possibilities of legal action in the home country of the company.
2.6.3 Extraterritorial Legal Action
It the community is dealing with a multinational corporation,
it can consider legal action in the home country where
the company is registered. This is known as an extraterritorial
legal action. It is particularly useful if the community affected
by a company’s activities have a low chance of obtaining justice
in their own country. It may even have some practical advantages.
Because the parent company often perpetrates the alleged
crime, or at least makes the decisions that lead to the
violation, evidence is often located in the company’s country
of origin. Any court action in the home country should also
raise more publicity to highlight the issues, and, if there is
a financial settlement made, it is likely to be more generous.
Just the threat of a lawsuit can seriously scare current and
potential investors.