Ch’oc Offers Explanation as to F.P.I.C. Wording Change

Greg Ch’oc

On the issue of the name change from the Free and Prior Informed Consent Protocol to the Free and Prior Informed Consultation Protocol, Greg Ch’oc, Commissioner of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs offered a brief clarification.

Greg Ch’oc, Commissioner of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs

“There are those that have said it is consent, it shouldn’t be consultation, it should be consent. Consent, those of you speak Kechi, Consent Protocol could be translated as Ch’olk’anjel re naq TE’XK’ULUB’AN xch’ool k’alebaal.  Consultation Protocol could be translated as Ch’olk’anjel re PATZ’OK chi ru k’alebaal, if you ask. So, if you are doing a process to accept then there is no process to say I don’t want it. That is what was wrong with the first protocol. It is a protocol that gave the community towards consenting. There was no option to say, no we don’t want it.”