Rapid Response Mechanisms

Once work began, however, the community reported that the company extended the boundaries of the land it was mining to encompass land that belonged to the community and local artisanal miners. [...] However, the community reported that: the company instead cleared ten hectares of land and instead started building a tree nursery; claimed the rights to 1,200 hectares; began clearing that land, despite the communities’ resistance; proceeded to sell the trees it had illegally logged; and used the saplings it had grown in the nursery to replant the area. [...] The sacred site is now a site of conflict, as the community, the former official/investor, and the local council (alerted to the value of the site) are all claiming rights over it. [...] How to set up a rapid response mechanism PRACTITIONER EXPERIENCE: Fear of reporting a conflict “When we held meetings [to investigate a reported conflict], we explained to the investor and the leaders that we have a hotline, that we advertised the project on the radio and invited people to report their grievances to us—we have to show them how we identified their case. [...] • See if the company is a subsidiary of a larger parent • Find out if the company is certified by a global company based in another country — and if so, what oversight and certification body (such as the laws in that country regulate the conduct of investors; Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil), and thus has an obligation to comply with the rules of that body; • Investigate who is financing the co.