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Land Rights Now!
Our GOAL is to work hand in hand with all indigenous brothers and sisters across the globe, in collaboration with other sectors, groups and advocates to secure the collective land rights of more than 370 million indigenous peoples around the world.
Food not Bullets!
Drought-stricken Farmers & Lumads seeking Food Aid, Killed & Dispersed
International organizations condemn the murder of Indigenous Leader Bertha Cáceres in Honduras
Berta Cáceres, indigenous leader and spokeperson for more than 20 years of the Civic Council of Popular and Inigenous Organizations of Honduras (Consejo Cívico de Organizaciones Populares e Indígenas de Honduras – Copinh), was murdered on 3rd March while she was...
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Land Rights Now!
Our GOAL is to work hand in hand with all indigenous brothers and sisters across the globe, in collaboration with other sectors, groups and advocates to secure the collective land rights of more than 370 million indigenous peoples around the world.
Food not Bullets!
Drought-stricken Farmers & Lumads seeking Food Aid, Killed & Dispersed
International organizations condemn the murder of Indigenous Leader Bertha Cáceres in Honduras
Berta Cáceres, indigenous leader and spokeperson for more than 20 years of the Civic Council of Popular and Inigenous Organizations of Honduras (Consejo Cívico de Organizaciones Populares e Indígenas de Honduras – Copinh), was murdered on 3rd March while she was...
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Land Rights Now!
Our GOAL is to work hand in hand with all indigenous brothers and sisters across the globe, in collaboration with other sectors, groups and advocates to secure the collective land rights of more than 370 million indigenous peoples around the world.
Food not Bullets!
Drought-stricken Farmers & Lumads seeking Food Aid, Killed & Dispersed
International organizations condemn the murder of Indigenous Leader Bertha Cáceres in Honduras
Berta Cáceres, indigenous leader and spokeperson for more than 20 years of the Civic Council of Popular and Inigenous Organizations of Honduras (Consejo Cívico de Organizaciones Populares e Indígenas de Honduras – Copinh), was murdered on 3rd March while she was...
Nepal cable car case: Calling for a full compliance investigation
The Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) has released an Assessment Report on the Nepal Pathivara cable car complaint, and transferred it to compliance appraisal. The complaint relates to a $156,746 International Finance Corporation (IFC) advisory project to IME Cable Car, a subsidiary of IME Global – a major conglomerate in Nepal.
The Assessment Report details complainants’ allegations that the IFC-backed project failed to uphold their right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent as Indigenous Peoples, and furthermore, encroach on their cultural heritage in the sacred Mukkumlung mountain. The report also summarises the complainants’ concerns about the impacts of the project on the forest, wildlife, flora and fauna, the lack of project information disclosure, and the violent repression they have faced for opposing the project.
Despite millions of dollars of support from the IFC over the years and still being an active IFC client, IME Group refused to talk to the CAO or participate in the assessment process, meaning the CAO has had to transfer the complaint to compliance appraisal.
“It is essential that our case now proceeds to full compliance investigation,” says Advocate Shankar Limbu of the Lawyers’ Association for Human Rights of Nepalese Indigenous Peoples (LAHURNIP), who is Legal Counsel to the complainants. “This will enable the IFC’s role in the project to be fully explored. We also hope it can help to stop the violence and end the repression of the Indigenous communities who are trying to save our sacred mountain.”
“This project has been shrouded in secrecy,” says Prabindra Shakya of Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNEE), advisor to the complainants. “It is time for the IFC to disclose publicly all documents relating to its involvement with the IME Group, to show how and why it did not apply its Performance Standards that should have required protection and respect for Indigenous Peoples.”
“A CAO compliance investigation of this case can offer vital lessons for the IFC as it undergoes the review of its Sustainability Framework,” says Kate Geary of Recourse, advisor to the complainants. “How can the IFC improve disclosure, strengthen protection of biodiversity, guarantee Indigenous Peoples’ rights and respect cultural heritage – especially in advisory projects? These are all questions this case can help to answer.”
Indigenous leaders from the Limbu (Yakthung) nation in Nepal filed the complaint to the CAO in August 2025, with the support of their legal counsel LAHURNIP and AIPNEE and Recourse as their advisors. We thank the CAO for its work on the Assessment Report and are now calling for a full compliance investigation. Click here for the full case information on the CAO website.
There are also lessons in this case for the IFC to inform the current review of its Sustainability Framework, on how it applies its standards in advisory projects, and how the institution and its clients engage with Indigenous Peoples in project areas.
Banner Image: Limbu locals stage protest againts the project. Image Courtesy of Mukkumlung Protection and Struggle Committee
[Briefing] Nepal: Pathivara Cable Car Case – IFC Advisory Project Threatens Indigenous Rights
Indigenous Peoples’ organizations from Nepal filed a complaint to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) in August 2025 concerning the Pathivara cable car project in the sacred Mukkumlung mountain area, which is revered by the Indigenous Limbu (Yakthung) people. The project, intended to serve pilgrims to the Pathivara temple, has caused environmental destruction and proceeded without the Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of affected communities.
Between 2022 and 2024, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) provided advisory support to IME Cable Car, a subsidiary of IME Group, including technical analysis, environmental assessment gap analysis, and investment facilitation.
Communities assert that the project has resulted in the felling of more than 10,000 trees in a sensitive forest ecosystem that is habitat for endangered species such as snow leopards and red pandas, and that it encroaches on the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area.
There have also been intimidation, violent repression, and the presence of armed security forces during protests. The consultation requirements were not met, environmental impact assessments were inadequate, and Indigenous cultural heritage tied to Mukkumlung was ignored.
As of April 2026, the case is in the CAO compliance appraisal stage, with complainants seeking a full investigation, suspension of construction, withdrawal of security forces, and protection of the sacred site.
Download the full briefing here.
[Statement] Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNEE) For the 42nd People’s Cordillera Day
The Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNEE) extends its warmest greetings of solidarity to the Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA) and the Indigenous Peoples of the Cordillera as we celebrate the 42nd Annual People’s Cordillera Day. We join in spirit in the events from April 22 to 25 marking the Day across the provinces of Benguet, Kalinga, Abra, Mountain Province, Ifugao, Apayao, and Baguio City, as well as those of the global Cordillera community in Hong Kong, Canada, and beyond.
Honoring a Legacy of Resistance
April 24 remains an important date as we honor the martyrdom of Ama Macli-ing Dulag, whose sacrifice in the struggle against the Chico River dams sparked the birth of the Cordillera mass movement. Today, we are reminded of the resistance that forged a formidable unity and successfully stopped the project to inspire the founding of the CPA in 1984. The 42nd Cordillera Day continues this legacy, transforming a historic memorial into a powerful symbol of solidarity and self-determination.
Asserting Rights Amidst Modern Threats
We stand firmly with the theme this year: “Assert our Right to Land, Life, and Livelihood!”. AIPNEE recognizes that the challenges facing the Cordillera today are as grave as they were during the martial law era. The region remains a target for plunder through the proliferation of large-scale mining and aggressive energy projects that threaten ancestral domains; the systematic subversion of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) to facilitate corporate entry; and, the rampant red-tagging, tribal conflict provocations, and the impacts of rising economic costs that further marginalize Indigenous communities.
Solidarity for Self-Determination
As a network focused on the impacts of extractive and energy projects, AIPNEE sees the Cordillera struggle as our own. The “development aggression” faced in the Philippines is mirrored across Asia, where Indigenous lands are treated as mere resources for profit rather than the foundation of life and culture.
• In India, we support the Adivasi resistance to corporate tourism backed land-grabs in Kaziranga National Park in Assam while the Indigenous Peoples in the country have recently issued the Guwahati Declaration against harmful hydropower and mining projects across Northeast India.
• In Indonesia, we are working with the Cek Bocek people in Sumbawa affected by the copper mining of the PT AMNT for advocacy for their rights with the certifier and relevant international buyers of the company. We are also preparing our assistance for geothermal exploration affected Toraya people in Sulawesi.
• In Nepal, we stand with the Yakthung nation in their fight against the World Bank supported cable car project encroaching their sacred Mukkumlung mountain and assist Majhi and other communities affected by various hydropower projects along the Koshi River also involving Asian Development Bank and other multilateral financiers.
• In Pakistan, we assist Indigenous Torwali people affected by World Bank financed Madyan Hydropower Project in their struggle for recognition and rights in the context of the cascade dams program.
AIPNEE remains deeply committed to supporting our Philippine affiliates, most notably the CPA, by providing international visibility for communities in Abra and Benguet against large-scale mining and assisting the Isnag of Apayao in their brave resistance to the Gened mega-dams. Beyond the Cordillera, we extend our active support to the Indigenous Peoples of Palawan in their critical struggle against the encroachment of nickel mining and the destruction of their ancestral forests and biodiversity. We continue to monitor the hundreds of extractive projects targeting these regions while documenting the systematic criminalization and judicial harassment of indigenous human rights defenders who stand at the frontlines of “development aggression.”
Cordillera Day is more than a gathering; it is a political statement. It is an affirmation that the struggle for social justice, genuine development, and democracy is far from over. We salute the CPA for its unwavering commitment to defending ancestral domains and pursuing the aspirations that Macli-ing Dulag and all Cordillera martyrs fought for.
Assert our Right to Land, Life, and Livelihood!!
Defend Ancestral Domain and Self-Determination!
Long live international solidarity!
Read the full statement here.
