A/HRC/36/46 108. Alleged human rights violations include evictions and forced displacements, suppression of the freedom of expression and assembly, arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial executions. Indigenous peoples who defend the right to their lands are increasingly coming under threat and being persecuted in the context of investment projects, which may include climate change mitigation measures. As a result, projects may come to a halt and result in the withholding of financial support by multilateral funds, as was the case in Honduras. A. Barro Blanco hydroelectric project in Panama 109. Test flooding at the Barro Blanco reservoir project in 2016 prompted allegations of displacement and negative impacts on the traditional lands and cultural sites of the Ngäbe peoples. The project was eligible for carbon credits and registered under the Clean Development Mechanism, which, as previously noted, does not have standards to protect against human rights violations, nor does it provide a forum for affected communities to register complaints. In late 2016, under pressure from indigenous communities and international organizations, Panama withdrew the project from the Mechanism’s registry.63 The Center for International Environmental Law reported that this was the first time that a host country had taken such action because of human rights concerns. 64 B. Water Tower Protection and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Programme in Kenya 110. Despite the Sengwer people’s strong ties to their ancestral lands in the Embobut forest, members of the community have been subjected to numerous displacements by the Kenyan authorities since the 1970s. An escalation of the situation took place in December 2016, despite ongoing judicial proceedings to clarify the rights of the Sengwer to remain in the forest. Conservation projects in the past have resulted in loss of access to the forest, as recognized by the World Bank Inspection Panel in the context of activities undertaken by the Natural Resource Management Project run by the World Bank from 2007 to 2013. A World Bank investigation report65 concluded that the project had neglected the customary rights of the Sengwer and that the implementation agent, the Kenya Forest Service, then funded by the World Bank, had applied a policy based on undertaking evictions, in violation of World Bank safeguards and international law. 111. In the context of climate change projects, concerns about the intensification of forced evictions and the threats to the Sengwer people’s rights to lands and livelihoods remain. Allegations have been received regarding the Water Towers Protection and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Programme, which is supported by the European Union. The Kenya Forest Service is among the implementation agencies. The project has reportedly failed to consult adequately with the indigenous peoples affected and to undertake an assessment of the human rights impacts. C. Agua Zarca hydroelectric project in Honduras 112. The Agua Zarca dam in Honduras is another emblematic case of violence, impunity and lack of access to justice that threatens indigenous peoples in the context of climate change-related investment projects. Following her country visit to Honduras in 2015, the Special Rapporteur drew attention to the impacts generated by investment projects on the lands, natural resources, cultures, spirituality, social coexistence, lives and personal integrity of the indigenous peoples in Honduras. Between 2010 and 2014, 101 human rights 63 64 65 See http://carbonmarketwatch.org/press-statement-in-landmark-decision-panama-withdraws-unregistration-for-barro-blanco-hydrodam-project/. See www.ciel.org/panama-withdraws-problematic-barro-blanco-dam-project-cdm-registry/. World Bank, Kenya: Natural Resource Management Project: Management Report and Recommendation in Response to the Inspection Panel Investigation Report (Washington, D.C., 2014). 19