By IANS
New Delhi : NGOs from around the world have halted consultative talks with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) over the latter’s consultation paper on its policies on environment, involuntary resettlement and indigenous peoples.
The NGO Forum on ADB, a non-government and community based organisations network based in Manila that monitors policies of ADB, Friday asked the bank to stop its public consultations and revise the draft document known as the Safeguards Policy Statement (SPS) released in October 2007.
It said the document was “unacceptable and unsuitable basis for public review and consultation”.
According to a statement from the forum, several civil society organisations from Asia, Europe, Australia and the US urged ADB to resume public consultations only after it issues a re-written SPS that no longer promotes “weak protective measures” for the environment and people affected by its operations.