The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) and the non-governmental organization PowerShift have sharply criticized the German government’s approval of the EU-Mercosur agreement. Ahead of the vote in the EU Council scheduled for this week, the human rights organizations warn: The agreement secures profits and systematically outsources the social, ecological, and human rights costs. Indigenous Peoples in particular will suffer from the consequences,” fears Jan Königshausen, STP advisor on Indigenous Peoples.
The agreement provides for far-reaching tariff reductions and export quotas, especially for agricultural products and raw materials from the Mercosur region. Critics have been warning for years that this will further exacerbate deforestation, land grabbing, and environmental destruction in sensitive ecosystems such as the Amazon, the Cerrado, and the Gran Chaco. The territories of Indigenous Peoples are particularly often the target of agricultural, mining, and infrastructure projects. “Our central criticism remains the lack of effective human rights protection mechanisms.” The right of Indigenous Peoples to free, prior, and informed consent, which is guaranteed under international law, is neither bindingly enshrined in the agreement nor verifiable or enforceable. This creates the threat of land rights violations, expulsions, and escalating conflicts along the production chains of products sold here in Europe,” said Königshausen.
“Mercosur’s pesticide- and monoculture-driven export model, which is promoted by the agreement, poses significant health, water, and soil risks,” according to an aide-memoire submitted to the State Department by the STP and PowerShift. The organizations are particularly critical of Germany’s role in this regard. By giving its approval, the German government has placed economic interests above its extraterritorial human rights obligations: “Germany bears responsibility for ensuring that trade and raw materials policy does not enable or exacerbate human rights violations – even outside Europe,” emphasizes Bettina Müller, trade and investment policy advisor at PowerShift. “Instead, the governing coalition is currently undermining supply chain laws and consistently steering in the wrong direction with raw materials and free trade agreements.”
The vote in the EU Council is crucial for the future direction of European trade and raw materials policy. “It will determine whether climate, biodiversity, and human rights protection are seriously pursued—or whether they remain systematically subordinate to economic interests,” Jan Königshausen concludes.
This press release was translated from German to English using AI. If you come across errors or ambiguities, please contact us at 65]G378o6DD6CA.
Contact: Jan Königshausen, Advisor on Indigenous Peoples – 65]G378o?6DF29D8:?6@<];