One of the campaign commitments of President Gabriel Boric will be fulfilled this Friday, because the Executive confirmed that during that day they will sign the Escazú Agreement, an initiative that seeks to guarantee access to various environmental rights and that had been rejected by the administration of former President Sebastián Piñera.
The minister who confirmed the news was Giorgio Jackson, from the General Secretariat of the Presidency (Segpres). “It is an important signal, it is generating conditions so that environmental problems can be solved with the community. It is a powerful signal for the new generations,” said the Secretary of State in Radio Future.
“Friday will be the signing of the project that ratifies Escazú, a treaty to which Chile was originally a party, but then it was inexplicably decided not to sign it by (former) President (Sebastián) Piñera,” he said.
In addition, Minister Jackson valued the importance of the environmental field for the current Government. “For us, the environmental issue is super important. Being able to generate justice and awareness that problems of this type can be resolved in the first instance was relevant.”
According to Unicef, the Escazú Agreement is a tool for the protection of the environment and human rights, as it seeks to guarantee access to information, public participation and access to justice in environmental matters. In addition, it establishes objectives so that people can have access to environmental information, that they can be consulted in environmental decision-making processes, that they can go to court in cases of environmental damage, while promoting the defense of the rights of environmental defenders and respect for the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.
Senator Walker asks to promote the draft agreement
Senator Matías Walker (DC), together with his counterpart Alfonso De Urresti (PS) and other senators from different political parties, submitted a draft agreement that asks the President of the Republic to expedite the processing of the ratification of the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean, “Escazú Agreement”.
“The idea is that the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric Font, can mandate the ministers of Foreign Affairs and the Environment, so that they can prioritize and speed up the processing of the ratification of the Escazú Agreement by Chile, hopefully completing it before next April 22, the date on which the First Conference of the Parties (COP) will be held in Santiago, promoted by our country for years, as a way of demonstrating the permanent commitment of the State to democracy, human rights and sustainability,” said Senator Walker.
Likewise, the parliamentarian commented that, according to the established deadlines, if a State signed the Agreement before September 26, 2020, it must ratify it. Meanwhile, if a State did not sign before that date, as is the case of Chile, it can only adhere.
In addition, the parliamentarian pointed out that the Escazú Agreement aims to guarantee the full and effective implementation in Latin America and the Caribbean of the rights of access to environmental information, public participation in environmental decision-making processes and access to justice. in environmental matters, as well as the creation and strengthening of capacities and cooperation, contributing to the protection of the right of each person, of present and future generations, to live in a healthy environment, and to sustainable development.
“This is the only binding agreement emanating from the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), the first regional environmental agreement in Latin America and the Caribbean and the first in the world to contain specific provisions on human rights defenders. in environmental matters. The Escazú Agreement entered into force on April 22, 2021, International Mother Earth Day”, explained the DC legislator.
Finally, Senator Walker recalled that the Government of Sebastián Piñera, despite the important role played by our country in the entire process, on September 8, 2020, announced that the agreement was an “inconvenience for Chile” and did not sign.
