Democratic Centre launches draft to regulate prior consultation

Senator Juan Espinal of Centro Democrático submitted a bill yesterday aimed at regulating the prior consultation process in Colombia. This mechanism grants ethnic communities the right to be consulted when initiatives directly affect them. Espinal emphasized the need to protect this valid tool while safeguarding investments made by both businesses and the state. He noted that only one in six processes initiated over the past four years reached an agreement, with just 16 percent achieving formalization. More than five thousand active processes remain unresolved, with 43 percent originating from energy, hydrocarbons, and mining sectors, excluding infrastructure, which is among the largest in the country. Espinal highlighted that the government lacks information on the costs and financing of these consultations, as well as the extent to which agreements are fulfilled. He stated that consolidated data on completed, partially completed, or unfulfilled agreements could not be obtained. Additionally, he pointed out that prior consultations often lead to delays in strategic projects. The proposed legislation aims to streamline the prior consultation process into an efficient administrative procedure without compromising the rights of communities. Key elements include establishing the System for Information on Prior Consultation (Sicop), which would centralize and georeference existing ethnic records and provide a public tracking module. It sets a six-month deadline for ethnographic and cultural characterization of communities, aiming to certify their presence. However, this timeframe seems short given the number of ethnic groups, geographic dispersion, and access challenges. The bill outlines clear administrative timelines without limiting community engagement. It proposes creating a facilitator team to strengthen the structure of prior consultations, a national registry for facilitators and technical advisors, a technical table to resolve blockages and controversies, and a fiduciary mechanism. The law seeks to establish a procedural framework that ensures efficiency without undermining the communities' right to consultation. According to the proposal, the Director of the Prior Consultation Authority, project companies, and community representatives must meet to reach an agreement. Concertation should be the primary decision-making method, attempted at least three times with a minimum one-month interval. If no agreement is reached after three attempts, the National Prior Consultation Authority will decide compensation through an administrative act subject to judicial review. In addition to the prior consultation regulation, Centro Democrático has introduced other legislative proposals. These include a counter-reform to the pension system following the Constitutional Court's approval of President Gustavo Petro’s reform, a "anti-hoodie" law targeting individuals who commit crimes during protests while concealing their identities, and measures to reduce campaign expenses by eliminating vote replacement in internal and inter-party consultations. The party argues that the current pension reform imposes burdens on future generations and seeks to return savings to those unable to retire, lower contribution thresholds, and allow individuals to choose between private funds or Colpensiones.