Ecuadorian Rainforest Threatened By OCP Development

<p><center><b>URGENT CALL FOR ACTION AND SOLIDARITY WITH ECUADORIAN TREE SITTERS</b></center></p>

<p><center><b>4 Things You Can Do To Support Ecuadorian Activists:</b></center></p>

<p><b>1. E-MAIL THE FINANCIERS OF THE PROJECT IMMEDIATELY AND DEMAND THEY CANCEL THE PIPELINE LOAN</b><br>
(see sample letter and addresses below) </p>

<p>While activists in Ecuador take to the trees to defend the fragile Mindo cloudforest and other ecosystems and communities affect by the new
OCP(Oleoducto de Crudos Pesados) pipeline, the German Bank and Federal Government of the NWR Province are holding a hearing this
MONDAY, JANUARY 14th, 2002 to debate their $900 million dollar loan to the project.
THIS MEANS THEIR FINANCING IS IN JEOPARDY! WE NEED TO BOMBARD THEM WITH E-MAILS BEFORE MONDAY AND LET THEM
KNOW THAT WE STAND IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE TREE SITTERS AND ARE CALLING FOR A CANCELATION OF THIS DESTRUCTIVE PROJECT.

<p><b>2. SEND A LETTER OF SOLIDARITY TO TREE SITTERS SO THEY KNOW THAT THOSE OF US CONCERNED ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT, SOCIAL
JUSTICE, AND HUMAN RIGHTS SUPPORT THEIR ACTIONS!</b> </p>
<p>As activists around the world who have put our bodies on the line to defend our beliefs, we know that support from allies goes a long way in keeping our spirits
up. We also know that from years of indigenous and civil society uprisings, the Government of Ecuador routinely violates the rights of those who have taken a
stand for economic, social, and environmental justice. The physical safety of these activists, along with the fate of the forests and communities they are
defending, are all at risk and we need to let them know they have our ongoing support.<br>
Please take a moment to write a note of solidarity to:
<a href="mailto:Oilwatch [at] uio.satnet.net">Oilwatch [at] uio.satnet.net
</p>

<p><b>3. FINANCIALLY CONTRIBUTE </b><br></p>
<p>In addition to the very real threat of repression against the activists by the Ecuadorian government or the oil companies themselves, the natural elements also
pose a serious challenge. The rainy season has begun and activists are in need of financial support for food, gear for warmth, and medicine in order to
maintain their occupation. Until the groups on the ground have set up a bank account for donations, checks can be sent to Amazon Watch. As a 501 c 3
non-profit organization, Amazon Watch will wire all donations directly to the activists - without any deductions. </p>

<p>Please send any donations to:<br>
Amazon Watch <br>
115 S. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Suite E, <br>
Topanga Ca., 90290 <br>
Marked: Ecuador Tree Occupation</p>

<p><b>4. STAY INVOLVED AND UPDATED!</b><br> </p>
<p>While OCP(Oleoducto de Crudos Pesados) has announced that some construction will be delayed until April, activists are committed to remain on the ground and in the trees until the project
is stopped. As we all know, projects like the OCP can take a long time and those who are on the front lines need sustained, long term solidarity and support.
For background information and to join the Amazon Watch list serve, go to: http://www.amazonwatch.org. To learn more about Citibank's involvement in the OCP
project, go to http://www.ran.org. </p>

<p>Addresses and Sample Letter</p>


<p><b>EMAIL TO ALL THREE ADDRESSES:<br>
<a href="mailto:presse [at] westlb.de">presse [at] westlb.de<br>
<a href="mailto:manfred_knoll [at] westlb.com ">manfred_knoll [at] westlb.com <br>
<a href="mailto:wolfgang.clement [at] landtag.nrw.de">wolfgang.clement [at] landtag.nrw.de</b> </p>

<p>Dear Sirs,</p>
<p>I am writing to bring your attention to an environmental and social tragedy in the making-one that you have the power to avert. The new OCP oil pipeline in
Ecuador will bring devastation to the communities, protected ecosystems and pristine rainforests along its 300-mile route. </p>

<p>The OCP pipeline route affects eleven protected areas, and cuts through the middle of the Mindo Nambillo Cloudforest Reserve and surrounding ecologically
sensitive forests, an area designated as the first "Important Bird Area" of South America which contains over 450 species of birds. At his moment, affected
community members and environmentalists are occupying the forest and trees within the Reserve to prevent any further destruction of this rare forest. The
pipeline will lead to the doubling of oil production in the Ecuadorian Amazon, threatening the country's protected areas and last remaining old growth rainforest,
much of which falls on the territories of several isolated indigenous communities. A doubling of oil production of this magnitude will severely impact the
Afro-Ecuadorian communities of Esmeraldas, who suffer from chronic contamination from the country's only refinery. I urge you to visit these communities to
listen to their protests.</p>

<p>I find unacceptable and incomprehensible the lack of transparency and accountability shown by OCP financiers. The German financing bank WestLB and the
major capital holders of the bank, the German Federal State of North Rhine Westphalia (NRW), represented by the government of NRW, made the decision to
finance the OCP project without ever having visited the region, consulted its population, or thoroughly reviewed the true impacts of the project.</p>

<p>The bank's claims that the OCP follows World Bank guidelines are unfounded. The OCP violates the Bank's Natural Habitat Policy. This policy requires that
critical habitats (such as the Mindo protected area) be avoided altogether. Furthermore, World Bank guidelines require that strategic environmental impact
assessments be carried out that assesses the long-term impacts-such as additional wells, flow lines, and refineries-and ensures that serious negative impacts
are mitigated or avoided. </p>

<p>It is a travesty of justice that WestLB and the government of NRW are willing to finance a project in Ecuador that would never be approved in Germany because
of egregious social, economical and environmental impacts. This pipeline project places fragile ecosystems, countless endangered and threatened species,
and hundreds of communities in jeopardy and could lead to irreversible destruction of Ecuador's national parks and frontier forests.</p>

<p>The OCP Environmental Impact Assessment, funded by the companies that will benefit from the project, is seriously flawed. In line with the concerns of Mrs.
Baerbel Hoehn, Minister of Environment for NRW, I urge you to cancel immediately all loan disbursement to the OCP project. I also call on you to end
financing of oil exploration and production in the Ecuadorian Amazon.</p>

<p>Sincerely, </p>

<p>[Date, your name and address]</p>