It’s been a little over a decade since China launched its Belt and Road Initiative, a global program to improve relations with Latin America and other developing regions through trillions of dollars in investment in infrastructure and energy projects. But China hasn’t always carried out those projects in a responsible way, sparking outcry about their environmental impact and human rights violations, especially against Indigenous communities. Recently, China was up for a Universal Periodic Review with the U.N. Human Rights Council, in which other member countries analyzed its actions abroad and provided recommendations to improve. Some of the most popular concerns have been emblematic of the environmental and social conflicts affecting Latin America, including violence against activists, rushed impact studies and weak oversight of projects ranging from dams and highways to mines and bridges. China accepted a record ten out of 11 recommendations, giving hope to some that the country will change how it handles future projects in the region. “China’s recognition of these problems is a crucial step towards accountability and transparency,” Paulina Garzón, director of Latin America Sustentable, said in a statement. More than 200 civil society groups participated in the process, including a consortium from Latin America called the Collective on Chinese Financing and Investment, Human Rights and Environment (CICDHA), made up of groups from across the continent. Locals in Peru meet to discuss the Las Bambas mine in 2022. Photo courtesy of Ministerio de Energía y Minas. Ahead of the review, CICDHA analyzed 28 Chinese projects in…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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