WHAT: Proxy shareholder questions to Macquarie Group's Annual General Meeting
WHEN: 10.30am, Thursday July 29
WHERE: Online
WHO: Northern Territory Traditional Owners, representatives of the Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, GetUp, Seed Indigenous Youth Climate Network
Traditional Owners and First Nations people across two continents have united to oppose Macquarie Group's funding of fracking projects in Australia and the United States.
Macquarie is a major shareholder of Empire Energy, which holds a fracking exploration permit over an area of the Beetaloo Basin twice the size of Tasmania. Macquarie is also helping to fund a fracking project in Texas' Rio Grande Valley. Both these fracking projects will destroy sacred lands, waters and culturally significant sites, and go against the express wishes of Traditional Owners.
Ahead of Macquarie's Annual General Meeting tomorrow, Traditional Owners from Borroloola in the Northern Territory and members of the Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas are preparing to question Macquarie executives on why they are funding these major fracking projects.
More than 18,000 Australians have signed a GetUp petition demanding that Macquarie withdraw funding from these destructive projects, divest itself of its Empire Energy shareholdings, and commit to working with First Nations people along the principles of free, prior and informed consent laid out by the United Nations.
GetUp First Nations Justice Campaign Director Larissa Baldwin said:
"Macquarie Group's Annual General Meeting tomorrow is the perfect forum to let shareholders know that their bank is funding massive fracking gasfield projects across two continents — against the express wishes of Traditional Owners and First Nations people.
"Macquarie is a major shareholder of Empire Energy. Empire has a fracking permit area almost twice the size of Tasmania in the Northern Territory. Fracking gasfields over an area that size would destroy the lands, water, cultural heritage, and communities of several Traditional Owner nations and countries, who have staunchly been saying no to fracking on their lands for over a decade.
"Macquarie is also helping fund the planned Rio Grande LNG project in south Texas. The Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas have opposed this project for years, which would be devastating to their sacred lands.
"Traditional Owners are putting Macquarie on notice — any corporation funding fracking gasfields that destroys First Nations country and communities are in for a fight."
Media contact: Alex McKinnon 0411 829 334
Spokespeople:
Larissa Baldwin, First Nations Justice Campaign Director at GetUp