2023-04-04
First Nations Traditional Owners from the Tiwi Islands have today filed a series of human rights complaints against members of a syndicate of 23 international banks. This US$1 billion dollar syndicate loaned money to Santos for its Barossa Gas Project, despite the Tiwi Islander people taking Santos to the Federal Court and subsequently winning their case.
These banks have human rights policies that are in line with international human rights standards. That means they should be assessing and avoiding human rights impacts created by the companies and projects they fund.
The complaints are made using internal ‘grievance mechanisms’ and have been initially sent to 12 banks from Japan, South Korea, Europe, Asia, North America, and include Australia’s big four banks.
Complaints will also be filed with a number of public export credit agencies in Japan and South Korea.
The complaints outline:
- How the Barossa Gas Project and Santos’ actions are impacting the human rights of the Tiwi Islanders;
- How funding the project means the banks do not comply with their own policies and international human rights standards;
- A demand that the banks pull out of the US$1 billion loan that was finalised in September 2022 and not enter into any future loans concerning the Barossa project.
The financial institutions receiving the human rights complaints are:
Private banks
ANZ (Australia), CBA (Australia), Westpac (Australia), NAB (Australia), ING (Netherlands), DNB Bank (Norway), Citigroup (USA), Royal Bank of Canada (Canada), DBS Bank (Singapore), MUFG (Japan), SMBC (Japan), Mizuho (Japan)
Export Credit Agencies
KEXIM (Republic of Korea), K-SURE (Republic of Korea), JBIC (Japan)
The traditional owners will be asking these financial institutions to:
- Withdraw from all financing for the Barossa Gas Project;
- Apologise to the harm caused to the Tiwi Islander people who continue to fight to protect their Sea Country and way of life;
- Donate any profit generated from the loan to the Tiwi Islands; and
- Produce internal documentation, such as loan contracts, that indicated how decisions were made to support the project.
Quotes attributable to Australian Greens spokesperson for Resources and First Nations, and Yamatji Noongar woman, Senator Dorinda Cox:
“First Nations Traditional Owners from the Tiwi Islands have today filed multiple human rights complaints against international banks and Australia’s Big Four Banks.
“US$1 billion dollars has been loaned to Santos for its Barossa Gas Project, despite the Tiwi Islander people taking Santos to the Federal Court and subsequently winning their case.
“These banks have human rights policies that are in line with international human rights standards. That means they should be assessing and avoiding human rights breaches when funding companies and projects.
“Free, Informed, Prior Consent was never given by Tiwi Traditional Owners, yet their sacred sites and Sea Country have been put under serious threat. We will not stand by and allow fossil fuel companies to disregard human rights while destroying First Nations cultural heritage and way-of-life.”
“The call to action to everyone with an account at NAB, ANZ, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank, is to contact them and ask them why they’re not adhering to their own human rights policy, and if you don’t get a straight answer, close your account.
“This is how ordinary, everyday people take climate action and human rights action and stand in solidarity with the people of the Tiwi Islands whose way of life is under threat.
“There’s a movement building across this country, ignited by the courage and resilience of the eight Tiwi Island clan groups led by the Munupi clan who have been unafraid to take on Santos."