This Spanish-language article raises concerns regarding the negative impact of Chinese investment in Latin America. “A report prepared by the Collective on Chinese Financing and Investments, Human Rights and Environment (CICDHA) -composed by a consortium of NGOs from Ecuador, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia and Brazil- documented “the failure of the Chinese State to comply with its extraterritorial obligations in terms of human rights for at least 18 projects operated by 15 Chinese business consortiums, which have acted with the support of 6 Chinese banks in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. Of the 18 documented cases, 7 belong to the mining industry, 6 to the oil industry and 5 to the water sector. Also, 15 affect indigenous territories, 11 protected natural areas, 5 are natural and cultural heritage recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and 12 correspond to the Ecuadorian, Bolivian Amazon region and Brazilian.”
The article gives specific mention to the negative impact in Bolivia: “In most of the projects, China disregards international recommendations and runs over communities - mostly native ones - and the environment. In Bolivia, for example, “the Nueva Esperanza oil block overlaps with one of the three territories of the Tacana indigenous people, which houses an indigenous people in voluntary isolation, Toromona. Although the Tacana opposed oil exploration, the Bolivian State imposed the project, and carried out a consultation process in which conditions were agreed to safeguard the territory and protect the Tacana and Toromona peoples. However, BGP Inc. ignored the agreements and caused environmental damage affecting their livelihoods, ”says the same document.”