Barro Blanco documentary nominated for Prix Europa
The radio documentary about the Barro Blanco hydroelectric dam in Panama that I produced for NTR radio in Holland has been nominated for the Prix Europa, at the European broadcast festival that will be held in Berlin in October.
In the piece I investigated, together with colleague Gilles Frenken, the greenwashing of this environmentally and socially disastrous project in which Dutch semi-government bank FMO is heavily invested. We discovered that local indigenous people had never been consulted and face forced displacement, there are serious environmental consequences left out of a doctored impact study and the Dutch bankers didn’t seem to fully understand what they were investing in.
The documentary led to questions in the Dutch parliament soon after it was aired.
“Barro Blanco” has been nominated in the category, “Best European Radio Investigation of the Year 2013”.
Haven’t heard it yet? You can listen to the documentary here.
4 Comments
Okke, It would seem that your persistence, acute research, and social conceiousness has paid off. Very pround of your efforts and thrilled to call you friend. Congrats!!!!!!!! KJ
Okke, very well done. Will there be a followup? What is the fallout on a story such as this? Please let us know the results of the nomination.
I’m also curious to know what impact, if any, European interest in a Panamanian project will have in Panama? And has there been any response at all in Panama?
Seems like, as the French phrase goes, (plus les choses changent, plus elles restent les mêmes) “The more things change, the more they remain the same.”
Was this ever recorded in English? I am fascinated by this story but do not understand what is being said 🙁