| Ecuador's Plan to Protect the Amazon Gets Deadline, Minister Resigns |
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| Friday, 15 January 2010 | |
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Treehugger, Fander Falconí, Foreign Affairs Minister of Ecuador, has resigned due
to differences with president Rafael Correa in the issue of the
country's plan to protect the Yasuni reservation at the Amazon forest.
The president of Ecuador has also set a deadline for the project.
If expectations not met, the Amazon gets it. According to Reuters: "Falconi headed Ecuador's effort to get international support for the initiative, but Correa said on Saturday the negotiations with donor nations were being handled "shamefully." The president said the committee headed by Falconi was not tough enough in negotiations and potential donors such as Germany and Belgium were attempting to dictate terms." Correa said the country would not take conditions. "They can keep their money," he commented according to the mentioned source. The president has also put a deadline to negotiations: if a deal is not struck by June, the government will exploit the oil reserves of the Yasuni region. Of course, one of the reasons of Falconí's resignation was this six-month time limit, which seems low for a deal involving almost seven billion USD. Can the world respond to this challenge and save the Yasuni reservation? |
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