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If two or more individuals have suffered actual and direct damage, or are likely to suffer damage in the future, as a result of JBIC’s non-compliance with its own Environmental and Social Guidelines regarding a project funded by JBIC, they may submit a complaint to the Banks’ independent examiner. The Bank’s independent examiner is then obliged to complete an investigation within three months after the acceptance of such a complaint.
Such an “Objection” may be submitted in Bahasa Indonesian, English, or Japanese, and should include:
1) The name and address of the complainant.
2) The project with respect to which the complaint is submitted.
3) A description of the substantial damage incurred by the complainant, or of the damage likely to be incurred by the complainant in the future, as a result of JBIC’s non-compliance with its guidelines.
4) The relevant provisions of JBIC’s guidelines that have been violated by JBIC, and the facts demonstrating this non-compliance. For example, the Bank’s guidelines include the following restrictions on involuntary resettlement:
- Involuntary resettlement and loss of means of livelihood are to be avoided where feasible, exploring all viable alternatives. When, after such examination, it is proved unfeasible, effective measures to minimize impact and to compensate for losses must be agreed upon with the people who will be affected;
- People to be resettled involuntarily and people whose means of livelihood will be hindered or lost must be sufficiently compensated and supported by the project proponents, etc. in timely manner. The project proponents, etc. must make efforts to enable the people affected by the project, to improve their standard of living, income opportunities and production levels, or at least to restore them to pre-project levels. Measures to achieve this may include: providing land and monetary compensation for losses (to cover land and property losses), supporting the means for an alternative sustainable livelihood, and providing the expenses necessary for relocation and the re-establishment of a community at relocation sites; and
- Appropriate participation by the people affected and their communities must be promoted in planning, implementation and monitoring of involuntary resettlement plans and measures against the loss of their means of livelihood.356
5) State the causal nexus between JBIC’s non-compliance with its guidelines and the substantial damage.
6) The resolution or solution desired by the complainant;
7) Detail the complainant’s consultation with the project proponent (e.g. the government of Indonesia), as the complainant is requested to endeavor to have a dialogue with the project proponent prior to the submission of a complaint. State in the objection letter the date and time, names of persons with whom the complainant had dialogues, the contents of response by the other party and other detailed facts concerning the complainant’s endeavors to have dialogues with the project proponent. If, however, there were unavoidable reasons why a complainant could not have dialogue with the project proponent, such reasons can be stated instead.
8) Similarly, detail the complainant’s consultation with the Operational Department of JBIC. The complainant may also state the reasons why the Operational Department’s response was considered to be insufficient. If the Bank’s public relations department receives an inquiry from an outside person, it must promptly introduce that person to the relevant Operational Department handling the project.
The complaint should be sent to: Office of Examiner for Environmental Guidelines, Japan Bank for International Cooperation, 4-1 Ohtemachi 1-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8144, Japan.
This summary is based on the procedures outlined by JBIC; further details, including a sample complaint form, are available on their website at http://www.jbic.go.jp/english/
environ/pdf/objection.pdf.
