EcoLur
The public representatives have addressed an open letter on Amulsar project to the Ombudsman Offices of International Finance Corporation, IFC, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, EBRD. IFC and EBRD are the main shareholders of Lydian International Company, which intends to develop Amulsar project. The letter says, “We are extremely concerned with how the opinions of the Environmental Expertise of Nature Protection Ministry on Amulsar project developed by Lydian International Company from August to October 2014. It’s noteworthy at the same time both offices are considering the complaints lodged by the public representatives on the incompliance of Amulsar project to the standards prescribed by both IFC and EBRD. In the complaint the public demands them to refuse from their shares and classify Amulsar project as category A, as a project with uncontrollable risks for the strategic resources of the country and region.”
Lydian International Company organized a number of public discussions, out of which two were held with the direct interference of the police. The public hearings on 25 August in Gndevaz Village started with the villagers’ protest and conflict with the rural administration of Gndevaz. The villagers accused the village head of bribery.
On 30 October REC Caucasus organized “public” hearings on Amulsar project, the format of which caused public protests. The access of the public and mass media representatives to the event was blocked by the police, who pushed the green activists away from the entrance of the hall, where the discussion was held.
In our opinion, such attempts to legalize Amulsar project through imitation public hearings with the interference of the police don’t comply with RA Law “On Assessment and Environmental Expertise” in the part of the public hearings, moreover, it doesn’t comply with the international standards declared in the liability report of the international financial institutions.
For more details of the incidents occurred during the public hearings, we would like to offer the videos and scripts made on 25 August and 30 October:
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/attempt-to-legalize-amulsar-project-failed-photo/6733/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/statement-of-the-civil-initiative-sos-amulsar/6731/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/minister-karen-tchshmarityan-mining-and-amulsar-project/6635/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/environmental-expertise-must-turn-down-amulsar-project/6620/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/amulsar-passions-transferred-to-yerevan/6530/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/why-did-gndevaz-villagers-get-angry/6526/
http://ecolur.org/en/news/amulsar/scandal-at-public-hearings-of-amulsar-project/6520/
Besides, the public attempts to get the copies of the minutes of the public hearings either from Geoteam company, or Nature Protection Ministry or the rural administration of the villager, where it was held, or the Scientific-Expert Committee on Lake Sevan were unsuccessful, as the requests were turned down.”
November 19, 2014 at 13:23