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Building Bridges: ASC’s Exploration of Free, Prior and Informed Consent in Aquaculture
August 6, 2024
On the 9th of August, as the world celebrates the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, we are reminded of the rich cultural heritage, diverse traditions, and unique ways of life that Indigenous communities contribute to our world.
However, we must also acknowledge the challenges these communities face, particularly regarding their rights and participation in decisions affecting their lands, seas and territories, and resources. A critical concept related to their decision-making power is Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC). In August last year ASC embarked on a project that aims to explore how FPIC can be integrated into a future version of the ASC Farm Standard, ensuring that Indigenous peoples have a voice and control over activities that impact their lives.
What is FPIC?
FPIC is a fundamental right recognised by international human rights law, which ensures that Indigenous peoples can give or withhold consent to activities or projects affecting their lands, territories, and resources.
- Free: Consent is given voluntarily without coercion, intimidation, or manipulation.
- Prior: Consent is sought sufficiently in advance of any authorisation or commencement of activities.
- Informed: All information about the project, including potential impacts, is provided in a comprehensible and accessible manner.
- Consent: Indigenous peoples have the right to say yes or no and can withdraw their consent if the conditions change.
FPIC is crucial for protecting the rights and interests of Indigenous communities, ensuring their participation in decisions that affect them, and promoting sustainable and equitable development.
ASC’s FPIC project started in Chile
As a first step in our quest to explore how FPIC can be included in the ASC Farm Standard, we have started work in Chile. We chose this country because of its diverse Indigenous population, ratification of the main international instruments on Indigenous law, important natural resources, and large volume of ASC certified salmon.
The Mapuche, Kawesqar and other Indigenous peoples in southern Chile have experience in interacting with aquaculture and other natural resource industries, such as forestry, and it provides a complex and insightful context for this exploration. In March we started interviewing different stakeholders about their perspective on community engagement and FPIC. We are currently digesting those results which have led to some of the learnings in this blog.
The next step of ASC’s FPIC project is to start planning to convene people for further discussion. ASC intends to replicate this process in other parts of the world.
Voices from practice
Through our interviews, we have gathered diverse perspectives that highlight the need for an informed and locally appropriate approach to FPIC. Many Indigenous leaders emphasise the importance of genuine dialogue and respect for their cultural practices, traditional knowledge and ancestral territories. Some stressed that their main interest is that the aquaculture industry uses sustainable production practices and is transparent about what they do. Others currently struggle to see the way forward for a sustainable outcome.
Equally, representatives from salmon companies express a range of views. Some recognise the value of community engagement and building trust and ensuring the sustainability of their activities, while others view it as challenging. Other stakeholders highlight the need for clearer guidelines, better enforcement of existing laws, and greater capacity building to support both Indigenous communities and companies.
In addition, our conversations have highlighted that societal biases and prejudices are still present and can sometimes lead to discriminatory practices. These issues can hinder progress towards the full recognition and respect for the human rights of Indigenous peoples. Recognising and addressing these challenges is important for creating a more trusting, equitable and inclusive environment.
Our major lessons so far
Importance of our partners
The success of this (and other) project(s) highly depends on the invaluable contributions of our partners, in this case the Consensus Building Institute and Ngülamtun SpA. Their involvement is crucial to learn about, understand and incorporate Indigenous perspectives, mediating between different stakeholders, co-designing the project, and together reflecting on outcomes and ways forward.
By working closely with these partners, we can start building trust with Indigenous communities, ensuring that their voices are heard, understood and respected throughout the process. At the same time, it will allow us to work with salmon companies to understand their challenges in implementing community engagement. This cross-cultural collaboration not only enriches our understanding but also ensures that the project’s outcomes are relevant and beneficial to both the Indigenous people and the salmon companies involved.
Complex situation
The situation surrounding FPIC and Indigenous rights in Chile is highly complex. This is because the history of colonisation and land dispossession has left deep scars and ongoing disputes over land rights and ownership in the country. In the present day, these disputes are fuelled by the economic interests that are associated with Chile’s rich natural resources.
Another level of complexity is added by the country’s legal framework, especially the so-called ‘Ley Lafkeche’ (officially known as Law 20.249) which is legislation that aims to protect the coastal areas traditionally used by Indigenous communities for fishing and other cultural practices. It grants Indigenous peoples exclusive rights to manage and use these maritime spaces. This law has raised concerns among other (commercial) users of these areas, including the aquaculture industry. Shortcomings in how the law has been implemented have also led to lengthy processes which have paralysed new applications for aquaculture concessions, adding to discontent.
Need for capacity development and awareness raising
There is an urgent need for capacity development and awareness raising, both among salmon companies and Indigenous communities. This need spans several areas:
- Creating an understanding of and respect for Indigenous worldviews (cosmovision), the spiritual relationships that Indigenous peoples have with their territories, their own form of governance and the associated practices and decision-making processes.
- Creating an understanding of Indigenous rights as human rights, and on effective engagement and negotiations, and integrating such practices in all company practices.
- Building capacities to engage effectively, build trust, generate and share information, and set up responsive grievance mechanisms.
- Finding mechanisms to generate adequate resources and support mechanisms to ensure that Indigenous communities can engage in FPIC processes effectively and in good faith.
Next steps
As we move forward with our FPIC project, ASC remains committed to listening, understanding and learning from all stakeholders. Our next steps include organising workshops to bring together different stakeholders, facilitating dialogue, understanding and collaboration. Additionally, we are looking at our community engagement programme more holistically, ensuring that it supports sustainable and meaningful relationships with Indigenous people and communities in general, building on our learnings so far.
On this International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, let us reaffirm our commitment to support respect for the human rights of Indigenous peoples and ensure that their voices are heard and respected.
By working together, we can create a more just, equitable, and sustainable future for the aquaculture sector.