Relationship of Extractive Industry to Exploitation of Nations: A Graphic Reality

Irene Delfanti

Abstract

Transnational and domestic corporations engaged in the exploitation of lands, resources and peoples in indigenous territories poses a challenge to understanding the complex relationships between the businesses, states’ governments, militias and gangs, indigenous
communities, poverty, climate change, shortages of food and water and environmental degradation. “Extractive industries are generally unregulated inside the country where they are a registered business or in the country where they engage in resource exploitation. As a matter of reality while a few corporations engaged in resource exploitation many attempt to avoid adverse consequences of their business, most do not. The principle of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) is available to corporations to smooth relations with indigenous nations through negotiations, but most do not.
To help describe the efects of unregulated corporate exploitation of resources in indigenous territories now operating in 63 countries according to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund we present diagrams to illustrate the web of relationships between Extractive Industry and the social, economic, political, cultural and security realities of indigenous nations and their territories. A general web of relationships and then (1A) relationships of proft and power, (2A) relationships to the prostitution of women, (3A) relationships to corporations not obtaining the negotiated consent of nations to access resources and land and the lack of civil lawsuits, and (4A) relationships to indigenous nation leaders. We
provide a legend for graphic characters used in the corporate webs to further explain the
relationships.