The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) has sharply criticized the planned awarding of the international Charlemagne Prize to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission. Among other things, the award, which will be presented in the “Krönungssaal” of the Aachen town hall, recognizes von der Leyen’s role regarding the European Green Deal and her leadership in times of crisis. According to the human rights organization, this honor is at odds with the negative consequences of her policies for indigenous communities and the global climate. Thus, the STP appealed to the board of the Charlemagne Prize not to award the prize to the President of the European Commission.

“Under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen, the EU has taken a few steps in the right direction – for example the initiative for a EU Supply Chain Law as a means to combat human rights violations and environmental destruction in global supply chains – but we are currently experiencing a worrying U-turn: All teeth are to be pulled out of the Supply Chain Act, jeopardizing the rights of those who need protection the most. In the Global South, we see systematical human rights violations and the destruction of entire ecosystems – for Europe’s energy transition and for cheap raw materials. Indigenous communities are especially affected: Their territories are confiscated and declared nature reserves, without them being granted co-determination or compensation. They are not only losing their land, but also the basis for a self-determined life.” Also, infrastructure projects such as dams are to be seen as serious intrusions into their way of life. What is marketed as climate-friendly progress often means displacement, poverty, and environmental destruction for many Indigenous communities. 

The mining of “green” raw materials such as lithium and copper in Indigenous areas usually takes place without the free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) of the affected communities – and without adequate compensation. Also, Indigenous communities are forced out of their habitats in order to use the forests as CO2 compensation areas. “Such false solutions in the name of climate protection are primarily beneficial for the economy – while human rights are trampled underfoot. Indigenous communities in the global south are the ones who pay the price,” Königshausen added. Further, the human rights organization criticized the EU-Mercosur agreement, which von der Leyen is promoting: “The increasing demand for soy and beef is putting even greater pressure on Indigenous communities – especially in Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. Despite the EU’s assurances to the contrary, the Amazon is becoming a geopolitical exploitation zone,” Königshausen warned. “The expansion of agricultural land leads to conflicts about land rights, slash-and-burn deforestation, and water scarcity. Honoring von der Leyen for this kind of policy means glorifying the sellout of Indigenous rights. True leadership, on the other hand, would mean protecting the weakest – not trying to appear as ‘green’ as possible.”