Vanguardia Reporting on March 18 MeetingA second story on yesterdays meeting
Delimitation of the pramo de Santurbn would go to a permanent audience in Santander
The second hearing is binding, of consultation and participation; hence, the need to be certain of the positions, proposals for delimitation and protection of Santurbn.
The constant disapproval on the part of the assistants did not allow to the minister of Environment, Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia, to take part in the meeting of information on the delimitation of the pramo of Santurbn, a demand of the Constitutional Cut.
A permanent participatory audience starting tomorrow, which seeks to clearly define the proposals of the actors involved in the demarcation project of Santurbn, proposed the Governor of Santander, Didier Alberto Tavera Amado.
The foregoing, before the suspension of the information meeting convened yesterday by the Ministry of the Environment that sought to publicize the methodology that the Constitutional Court demanded when knocking down the demarcation of the Santurbn pramo, in essence, because the Minambiente "did not carry out a public and open call to start a dialogue with the community. "
Yesterday, thunderous jeers did not allow Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia , at least, to expose the new methodology, which led to the suspension of the contest, held at the Edmundo Luna Santos Coliseum, of the Royal Citadel of Mines.
The proposal of Tavera Amado, shared with the mayor of Bucaramanga, Rodolfo Hernandez, who considered it as successful.
The governor of Santander stressed that "it is important to clearly define the proposals of the actors involved in the demarcation project of the Santurbn pramo. It must be defined where and who will participate in this permanent hearing. No matter how long it takes to take place, the important thing is to have clear proposals for the second hearing of the Minambiente, "he added.
In his speech, the incoming mayor Bucaramanga marked his position on the subject by stating: "our gold is water."
The local president said that for the "Santurban mega-mining is a business, for us it is a matter of life or death."
He also stated that now that they can participate in this process of the new delimitation given to them by the Constitution and the Law, they have the opportunity to act actively and in solidarity in defense of the pramo; nevertheless, he declared that it must be done with ideas and proposals, and not with shouts.
Referring to the meeting with the Minambiente, Erwin Rodrguez-Salah, director of the civic movement Civic Awareness, MCC, estimated that it should be called "theater of the absurd of Santurbn", because the pramos were already delimited in Colombia and the "Conscientious National Government of that there was a legal impediment to mining, he committed the barbarity of redirecting them, which in practice served to legalize mining companies in the area."
Rodriguez-Salah said that the Government has moved away from the technical criteria of the Alexander von Humboldt Institute and left out (of what is pramo) more than 30 thousand hectares, a figure quite similar to the number of hectares that are concessioned in mining titles.
"The delimitation that the Government made in 2014 and that was declared vitiated by the Constitutional Court, was constituted in the biggest deception in the environmental history of the country," said the representative of Civic Civic Awareness Movement.
The Collective Bar Association, Luis Carlos Prez and the Committee for the Defference of Water and Pramo de Santurbn , proposed to socialize the scope of the sentence of the Constitutional Court, since a process of information and pedagogy with the communities is required; in addition, of broad calls.
Likewise, they estimate that the methodology should not generate simultaneous calls in any of its phases; and participation in technical and follow-up meetings should be allowed. Likewise, they consider that there must be clarity and certainty of which will be the substitution and reconversion programs of that region.
The Minister of Environment, Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia, said that the meeting (yesterday) was intended to initiate the consultation and participation requested by the Constitutional Court in the application of its ruling reviewing the demarcation of the Santurbn wasteland.
"In this first moment the methodology would be exposed, simply, to present the technical criteria of delimitation so that people understand and can have positions in favor against. There are some actors who are playing with this and do not allow dialogue, "he said.
In his concept, the participation scenario was raised; but a space will be redefined in a framework of civility and constructive dialogue, in order to have a participation process. He clarified that it was the Court that defined the methodology to be followed.
Medinate a press release, the Minister of Environment, Luis Gilberto Murillo , said that "in the absence of conditions by some attendees, the meeting was adjourned in agreement with the Mayor of Bucaramanga, leaving evidence before the Attorney, the Ombudsman and other control entities, that this node was previously arranged with representatives of the community and the actors . "
Luis Gilberto Murillo indicated that "I reject any aggression that invalidates the participation and that it lacks the respect of the citizens and the participants," said the official and reminded the public that he must know the arguments that were taken into account for that delimitation. We remain open to a dialogue that takes place within the framework of civility and that is a constructive dialogue that helps us to comply with the sentence, as it develops at this time in the nodes of Guaca and California, where we hold a dialogue with community".
The Minister of the Environment emphasized that "despite the fact that the Ministry listened carefully to the leaders of the community, they refused to receive the information that was to be delivered to them." This prevented a constructive dialogue from taking place, and even several aggressions by some of the people who made a presence at the Edmundo Luna Santos Coliseum of the Royal Citadel of Minas".
"There was intolerance on the part of a group of attendees, but we know that this does not reflect the will, nor the character of the citizens of the Bucaramanga plateau, " said the Minister of the Environment and called for a balance between development economic, social and environmental in the construction of a country that seeks to move forward in times of peace.
https://www.vanguardia.com/economia/local/427794-delimitacion-del-paramo-de-santurban-iria-a-audiencia-permanente-en-santander