Due Diligence in Human Rights

Ecopetrol supports its due diligence, monitoring, and assessment of human rights, on its Integrated Risk Management System made up of three levels: strategic, process, and operational. It also has a Human Rights Risk Management Cycle Guide that seeks to define the criteria and processes through which human rights risks are planned, identified, evaluated, treated, and monitored. This identification is carried out in own operations and in those which involve partners or allied contractors.

It corresponds to all areas of the Company (strategic, process, and operational levels) to implement the Human Rights Risk Management Cycle Guide within the risk management principles, frameworks, and processes established by the Integrated Risk Management System.

Self-diagnosis in human rights

As a member of the Guías Colombia Guides initiative, Ecopetrol has applied the “Self-diagnosis tool to identify human rights management gaps” for three subjects:

• Purchase and acquisition of land rights and right of use
• Mechanisms for requests, complaints and claims
• COVID 19

Salient issues

As a result of the risk and impact assessment exercises that have been carried out periodically within the organization, a series of areas have been identified in which certain human rights may be negatively impacted, due to the nature of our activities or commercial activities.

Grievance mechanisms

Ecopetrol has accessible internal and external channels so that all Stakeholders can express their disagreements, expectations, and needs to the Company. This is how Ecopetrol manages, analyzes, and provides a timely and quality response to their requests.

Ecopetrol recognizes that access to these channels is not a condition or impediment for those who consider to be affected, to resort to the mechanisms provided by the State, for the attention of their requests, complaints, and claims.

Access to remedy

In cases where Ecopetrol identifies that it has caused or contributed to adverse impacts on human rights, the Company will provide, or reasonably cooperate in the compensation or remediation of impacts, through the operational grievance mechanisms provided or in the framework of any other legitimate process.
 

Guide on HHRR and Business | ES | EN | Code of Ethics and Conduct | ES | EN | Risk Management Cycle Guide | ES | EN |

Right of Petition

What is it?

It is a fundamental right, enshrined in the political Constitution, whereby “all persons have the right to submit respectful petitions to authorities for reasons of general interest, or particular interest, and to obtain an expeditious resolution”.

Ecopetrol guarantees the right to information, and has rendered several channels available for interest groups to be able to communicate their expectations, in conformity’s, and needs to the organization. These communications are managed in order to generate a response in a timely, clear, and in-depth fashion.

What laws regulate it?

- Article 23 of the political Constitution

- Code of administrative procedure and contentious administrative procedure (acts 1437/2011 and 1755/2015)

- Anti-procedure Law (act 962/2005 and Decree 19/2012)

Who can invoke this right?

Any individual can submit respectful petitions before Ecopetrol, whether verbally or in writing, personally or through a proxy.

What procedures does it useful in?

• The recognition of a right
• Solving a legal situation
• The provision of the service
• Requesting information
• Consulting examining and requiring copies of documents
• Reporting regular facts
• Submitting complaints (manifestation of the protestation, censorship, discontent or in conformity) and claims (amending a solution vis-à-vis the undue or untimely provision of a service within the framework of an agreement)
• Submitting technical consultations
• Filing appeals with regard to decisions of the agency, inter alia

What are the terms to respond?

In accordance with the type of petition filed, response times may vary from 10 to 30 business days. This term may be expanded up to twice the initial term. The table below shows attention times under the law.

Does this procedure have any cost?

Submitting a petition has no cost whatsoever; however, when document copies are required, the petitioner shall bear the cost of same.

Neither does the petitioner have to bear attorney costs to receive attention, as any citizens can act in a direct manner.

What information must the Right of Petition include?

It is not necessary to fill out any specific form in order to submit right of petition; therefore, these petitions can be filed either verbally or in writing, in compliance with the minimum requirements below:

1. The designation of the authority to whom the petition is addressed. Be sure you submit your petition before the corresponding person or agency. If you do not know the name of the person to whom you should address your petition, mentioning the name of the agency – i.e. Ecopetrol S.A. should suffice in our case.
2. Petitioner’s full name. In the event of acting through an attorney or representative, you should also include their full name.
3. ID type and number. Foreigner citizens must include their passport or foreign ID number. Minors should include their birth certificate or underage ID number.
4. The address for notifications. You can include your phone number, your fax, or your email. It is important that you do provide effective contact information for any potential clarifications and to receive your response in a timely fashion.
5. The subject matter of the petition. It is necessary to specify what it is that is being required – i.e. information, a claim, a report, etc.
6. Substantiate your petition. Your argumentation should be clear, concrete and explain the subject matter of your petition.
7. Attach any documents as deemed appropriate to begin the procedure. In some cases, the law demands the submittal of additional documentation. For example, in the petition filed is related to ownership of the property, you will be required to submit documentation that accredit such condition of ownership, i.e. the public deed or the real estate registration number of the property.
8. Petitioner’s signature. If you are petitions being submitted verbally, by email, or through the web tool for this purpose, your signature will not be necessary

Security and Human Rights

The activities carried out to promote the security of our workers, operations and infrastructure, are developed in accordance with our guidelines on human rights and especially, in accordance with the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights, also attending to the general interest of those living in our areas of operation.

In this sense, actions are carried out for the implementation of these guidelines in relation to the Law Enforcement Agencies, Private Security and actions to prevent risks in matters of security and Human Rights.

Law Enforcement Agencies:

The agreements and cooperation agreements with the Law Enforcement Agencies have Human Rights clauses in which the commitment of the counterpart to train its personnel in the matter is established.

Human Rights training for the Law Enforcement Agencies covers the following topics:

Private security:

Compliance by the private security contracted by Ecopetrol with the human rights clause included in the contracts is managed in monitored. In this regard, a report is issued with a series of recommendations that allow to adjust the human rights policies of the contractors with the Company’s work.

The verification process of compliance with the HR clause was carried out with the 10 private security companies, which have complied with the recommendations made.

Risk prevention and management:

The Management focused its efforts on the implementation of risk prevention plans in Security and Human Rights.

This analysis includes all the people who work in physical security in the regions where the company is present. The regional approach allows a differentiated analysis of the territorial context, dynamics of violence and identifying subjects at risk and targeting relevant actions.

The analysis begins with two workshops with GSF security leaders, officials and contractors, to determine basic concepts regarding risks, voluntary security principles, obligations of companies in respect of human rights, due diligence, early prevention, urgent prevention and lessons learned.