The Strategic Response on Environmental Conservation (STREC), a local civil society, has written a petition addressed to the WANG Dongjin, the Chairman and Secretary of Party Leadership of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) Group and Chairman of CNOOC Limited protesting the manner in which the oil company is acquiring land in Kikuube district.
The petition signed off by Cirrus Kabaale, the Chief Executive Officer of STREC, represents the interests of the Project Affected Persons (PAPs) whose land and property is being compulsorily acquired for CNOOC’s Kingfisher oil project in Buhuuka and Nkondo parishes in Kikuube district.
The petition requests the CNOOC boss to address the challenges the Host Communities have been facing from the time CNOOC started the process of compulsory acquisition of their land for the Kingfisher oil project in Kikuube.
The complaints that are contained herein were derived from the discussions and meetings with the Kingfisher oil project host communities, the petition reads in part.
Adding that the meetings and discussions, which STREC facilitated alongside other partners, took place in January, February, and March 2024 in Kyakapere A&B, Nsunsu A&B, Nsonga, Kyabasambu, Kyina, and Kyehoora upper and lower in Buhuuka and Nkondo Parishes in Kikuube district.
The petition reads: “Despite that the Kingfisher oil project is being advertised as an example of international cooperation to achieve development, CNOOC operations have violated Article 26 and 41 of the Uganda constitution, causing human rights violations, environmental degradation, and the disruption of community livelihoods in the region.”
“This is clearly in violation of Chinese policies such as Guidelines for Ecological and Environmental Protection of Foreign Investment and Cooperation Construction Projects issued in January 2022, which requires companies to ‘balance economic benefits with social and environmental benefits’, follow host country law (Article 17), and international best practices (Article 3,4,6,7). These guidelines also expect CNOOC to “strengthen communication with potentially affected communities” (Article 23).”
“While we acknowledge the importance of energy and natural resource development in the area, it is imperative that CNOOC strikes a balance between economic interest and long-term wellbeing of the local inhabitants of Buhuuka and Nkondo whose suffering is now being caused and exacerbated by the CNOOC oil operations in the region.”
“Therefore, through this petition, we implore your urgent intervention to address the grievances faced by Kingfisher PAPs due to compulsory land acquisition processes.”
The key concerns raised by Buhuuka and Nkondo community members regarding the Kingfisher oil project include the unfair compulsory land acquisitions, increased militarization and confiscation of local fishing equipment, forceful eviction of communities from their land, Noise pollution and Vibration from the oil rig, intimidation of Kingfisher Project Affected Persons, and Mistreatment of casual labour.
In the petition, STREC recommends that CNOOC respects and upholds the rights of affected communities and prohibit displacement of families without proper compensation and resettlement options.
It also recommends that CNOOC and the Ugandan government should comply with Ugandan laws and best international practices in respecting the rights of local communities, that CNOOC supports the fishing communities with alternative fishing areas, that CNOOC and government compensates PAPs for the loss of their land and livelihoods.
Also, STREC recommends that CNOOC urgently establishes and prioritizes hiring the Buhuuka community for skilled labor positions, including skill development programs, that will empower the affected communities to be gainful employed and that CNOOC also establishes an independent, fair grievance mechanism within the community to facilitate open communication and allow the community members to voice their concerns regarding the project and access compensation.