GABON CRACKDOWN ON CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS
PROMPTS SWIFT OUTCRY FROM
PUBLISH WHAT YOU PAY U.S. COALITION

January 11, 2008

Government transparency and anti-corruption group calls for immediate reversal of activist groups' suspension

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Sarah Pray, PWYP U.S.
spray@pwypusa.org | (202) 375-1931

Washington , DC – The Publish What You Pay (PWYP) United States coalition condemns the recent decision of the government of Gabon to suspend the PWYP Gabon coalition, and calls upon the government to reverse this decision immediately and allow the PWYP Gabon coalition to resume its important work. We also call on the U.S. Government to appeal to the Gabonese authorities to lift the suspension order.

Publish What You Pay is an international coalition of over 300 NGOs calling for the mandatory disclosure of the payments made by oil, gas and mining companies to all governments for the extraction of natural resources. The coalition also calls on resource-rich developing country governments to publish full details on revenues.

The PWYP Gabon coalition focuses on the extractive industries in that country and promotes the disclosure of revenue information as a necessary first step towards a more accountable system for the management of those revenues.

The government of Gabon is a member of the board of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, a global initiative in which companies and governments publish their oil, gas and mining revenue data.

The commitment of Gabon’s government to EITI is seriously undermined by the suspension of PWYP Gabon, as the meaningful participation of civil society organizations is a crucial component of the multi-stakeholder nature of EITI.

The PWYP US coalition calls for the immediate reinstatement of the PWYP Gabon coalition and urges the Gabonese government to allow the coalition, and all legitimate civil society groups, to operate freely and without fear of harassment or interference from the government. Furthermore, the PWYP US coalition calls upon the EITI board to impress upon the government of Gabon that, unless immediate action is taken by the government of Gabon to rectify this unfortunate situation, the Board would consider taking proactive steps to ensure that the Gabon government’s participation does not undermine the legitimacy of the entire initiative.

Publish What You Pay U.S. is a coalition of U.S. human rights, development and environmental organizations seeking to ensure that extractive industry companies, international financial institutions and governments publish all natural resource payments, revenues, and contracts.

For more information, visit: www.pwypusa.org.