Issued on: 13/09/2021
The so called Odami sawmill in Para, Brazil. A Global Witness report published on September 12, 2021, said Latin American forest defenders were particularly targeted in 2020.
© Raphael Alves, AFP (file photo)
Text by: NEWS WIRES
A record 227 people were killed worldwide in 2020 for their defense of nature -- more than four a week on average, and almost three-quarters of them in Latin America, environmental rights organization Global Witness said Sunday.
For the second year in a row, Colombia was the country with the highest number of killings -- 65 -- while Nicaragua had the highest per-capita rate, with 12 murders up from five in 2019, the group said in its annual report.
Seven of the 10 deadliest countries for land and environmental defenders were in Latin America, with 165 killings recorded, though Global Witness said the number was "almost certainly" an underestimate.
After Colombia, Mexico had the second highest number of deaths globally, with 30.
It was followed by the Philippines (29), Brazil (20), Honduras (17), the Democratic Republic of Congo (15), Guatemala (13), Nicaragua (12), Peru (six) and India (four).
"This is a crisis against humanity," said the report.
"Land and environmental defenders that have stood up to powerful interests have paid a heavy price -- with their freedom, livelihoods and even their lives."
Repressive governments, added Global Witness, used the global coronavirus outbreak "as an opportunity to clamp down on civil society as companies pushed ahead with destructive projects."
Many activists and communities also experience attempts to silence them through death threats, surveillance, sexual violence or arrests, said the report.
The majority of victims -- 71 percent -- had been working to protect forests, while others died for their work to conserve rivers, coastal areas and the oceans.
Text by: NEWS WIRES
A record 227 people were killed worldwide in 2020 for their defense of nature -- more than four a week on average, and almost three-quarters of them in Latin America, environmental rights organization Global Witness said Sunday.
For the second year in a row, Colombia was the country with the highest number of killings -- 65 -- while Nicaragua had the highest per-capita rate, with 12 murders up from five in 2019, the group said in its annual report.
Seven of the 10 deadliest countries for land and environmental defenders were in Latin America, with 165 killings recorded, though Global Witness said the number was "almost certainly" an underestimate.
After Colombia, Mexico had the second highest number of deaths globally, with 30.
It was followed by the Philippines (29), Brazil (20), Honduras (17), the Democratic Republic of Congo (15), Guatemala (13), Nicaragua (12), Peru (six) and India (four).
"This is a crisis against humanity," said the report.
"Land and environmental defenders that have stood up to powerful interests have paid a heavy price -- with their freedom, livelihoods and even their lives."
Repressive governments, added Global Witness, used the global coronavirus outbreak "as an opportunity to clamp down on civil society as companies pushed ahead with destructive projects."
Many activists and communities also experience attempts to silence them through death threats, surveillance, sexual violence or arrests, said the report.
The majority of victims -- 71 percent -- had been working to protect forests, while others died for their work to conserve rivers, coastal areas and the oceans.
'Extractive economic model'
A third of fatal attacks targeted indigenous peoples, who make up only five percent of the world's population.
"We are indigenous... we know that only the environment can sustain us," Celia Umenza, who agitates against mining and sugarcane farming in the violent southwest of Colombia, told AFP.
She has survived three attacks.
In Mexico, where lethal attacks increased 67 percent from 2019, the Kumeyaay people have organized against a brewing company they accuse of hoarding drinking water. One of their leaders, Oscar Eyraud, was assassinated last year.
"It was very shocking. A group of people came to his house and killed him with big guns," a friend, Diana Aranguren, told AFP, adding there has been "no progress" in the investigation.
The report blamed corporations that it said operated "with almost complete impunity" in countries rich in natural resources.
"It's clear that many companies engage in an extractive economic model that overwhelmingly prioritizes profit over human and environmental harm," said the report.
Global Witness said 23 people worldwide were killed in 2020 for their activism against logging -- the biggest single category -- 20 in disputes over water and dams and 17 each for challenging the agribusiness and mining sectors.
'Impunity'
"Businesses have profited from human rights abuses and environmental damage with relative impunity for far too long," said the report.
It also criticized governments for being "all too willing to turn a blind eye."
Global Witness has been collecting data on these types of attacks since 2012.
Among its recommendations, it said the United Nations should "fill a glaring gap" by formally recognizing the human right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment.
Global Witness said the data in its report did not capture the true scale of the problem, given press restrictions or a lack of independent monitoring of attacks in some countries.
A third of fatal attacks targeted indigenous peoples, who make up only five percent of the world's population.
"We are indigenous... we know that only the environment can sustain us," Celia Umenza, who agitates against mining and sugarcane farming in the violent southwest of Colombia, told AFP.
She has survived three attacks.
In Mexico, where lethal attacks increased 67 percent from 2019, the Kumeyaay people have organized against a brewing company they accuse of hoarding drinking water. One of their leaders, Oscar Eyraud, was assassinated last year.
"It was very shocking. A group of people came to his house and killed him with big guns," a friend, Diana Aranguren, told AFP, adding there has been "no progress" in the investigation.
The report blamed corporations that it said operated "with almost complete impunity" in countries rich in natural resources.
"It's clear that many companies engage in an extractive economic model that overwhelmingly prioritizes profit over human and environmental harm," said the report.
Global Witness said 23 people worldwide were killed in 2020 for their activism against logging -- the biggest single category -- 20 in disputes over water and dams and 17 each for challenging the agribusiness and mining sectors.
'Impunity'
"Businesses have profited from human rights abuses and environmental damage with relative impunity for far too long," said the report.
It also criticized governments for being "all too willing to turn a blind eye."
"They (governments) are failing to protect defenders -- in many cases directly perpetrating violence against them, and in others arguably complicit with business."
Global Witness has been collecting data on these types of attacks since 2012.
Among its recommendations, it said the United Nations should "fill a glaring gap" by formally recognizing the human right to a safe, healthy and sustainable environment.
Global Witness said the data in its report did not capture the true scale of the problem, given press restrictions or a lack of independent monitoring of attacks in some countries.
Death stalks Colombian defenders of nature
Issued on: 13/09/2021 -
Issued on: 13/09/2021 -
Death is a constant companion for indigenous defenders of nature in violence-ridden Colombia, and Celia Umenza has already survived three attempts on her life
LUIS ROBAYO AFP
Toribío (Colombia) (AFP)
As the sound of gunfire erupts near her office, Celia Umenza takes the briefest of pauses from discussing her battle against farming expansion and mining that threaten indigenous land and water in Colombia.
Death is a constant companion for indigenous defenders of nature in the violence-ridden country, and Umenza has already survived three attempts on her life.
While speaking to AFP, bursts of gunfire and explosions reverberate in the mountains near her office in Toribio, in the rural Cauca department.
She stops speaking for just a moment before resuming the interview, seemingly indifferent to the looming threat that has become a part of life for many in Colombia.
In a report released Sunday, the non-governmental group Global Witness said Colombia was the most dangerous country for land and environment defenders for the second year in a row in 2020, accounting for 65 of the 227 killings reported worldwide.
"We have the threat of government repression, of retaliation by the guerrillas and also by the paramilitaries," said Umenza, 48.
The most recent attack on her life was in 2014.
"A neighbor was driving me in a van... they riddled the van with bullets," she said.
According to Global Witness, 2020 was the deadliest year on record for environmental activists since 2012, when its records begin.
A third of deadly attacks were on indigenous peoples, and many were linked to opposition to logging, mining, agribusiness, hydroelectric dams and other infrastructure threatening natural resources that communities have relied on for generations.
- 'Preserving the water' -
Since the 1970s, the indigenous peoples of the Cauca region of southwest Colombia have been fighting an expansion by sugarcane growers they say are driving them from the fertile lowlands they rely on for survival, and destroying the forest.
"We no longer have those forests that used to exist, we no longer have that fauna, that flora. It is really worrying," said Umenza.
Toribío (Colombia) (AFP)
As the sound of gunfire erupts near her office, Celia Umenza takes the briefest of pauses from discussing her battle against farming expansion and mining that threaten indigenous land and water in Colombia.
Death is a constant companion for indigenous defenders of nature in the violence-ridden country, and Umenza has already survived three attempts on her life.
While speaking to AFP, bursts of gunfire and explosions reverberate in the mountains near her office in Toribio, in the rural Cauca department.
She stops speaking for just a moment before resuming the interview, seemingly indifferent to the looming threat that has become a part of life for many in Colombia.
In a report released Sunday, the non-governmental group Global Witness said Colombia was the most dangerous country for land and environment defenders for the second year in a row in 2020, accounting for 65 of the 227 killings reported worldwide.
"We have the threat of government repression, of retaliation by the guerrillas and also by the paramilitaries," said Umenza, 48.
The most recent attack on her life was in 2014.
"A neighbor was driving me in a van... they riddled the van with bullets," she said.
According to Global Witness, 2020 was the deadliest year on record for environmental activists since 2012, when its records begin.
A third of deadly attacks were on indigenous peoples, and many were linked to opposition to logging, mining, agribusiness, hydroelectric dams and other infrastructure threatening natural resources that communities have relied on for generations.
- 'Preserving the water' -
Since the 1970s, the indigenous peoples of the Cauca region of southwest Colombia have been fighting an expansion by sugarcane growers they say are driving them from the fertile lowlands they rely on for survival, and destroying the forest.
"We no longer have those forests that used to exist, we no longer have that fauna, that flora. It is really worrying," said Umenza.
Near Toribio, where Celia Umenza lives and works, illegal gold mining contaminates water with mercury; further north, pesticides used in the cultivation of marijuana poison the soil
LUIS ROBAYO AFP
The dispute is also about water, she said.
Unlike the native vegetation, she explained, the sugar cane "draws a lot of water and little by little" has been drying up the streams.
In its report, Global Witness said 17 people worldwide were killed in 2020 for their activism against agribusiness, and 20 in disputes over water and dams.
"Companies have been acting irresponsibly for decades, contributing to, and benefiting from, attacks on land and environmental defenders," it noted.
- In the crosshairs -
Near Toribio, where Umenza lives and works, illegal gold mining contaminates water with mercury. Further north, pesticides used in the cultivation of marijuana poison the soil.
Both illegal activities finance dissident FARC guerillas, who rejected a peace pact with the government in 2016 to end a near six-year civil war, as well as fighters of the last remaining rebel group the ELN and paramilitary forces that are still active.
The dispute is also about water, she said.
Unlike the native vegetation, she explained, the sugar cane "draws a lot of water and little by little" has been drying up the streams.
In its report, Global Witness said 17 people worldwide were killed in 2020 for their activism against agribusiness, and 20 in disputes over water and dams.
"Companies have been acting irresponsibly for decades, contributing to, and benefiting from, attacks on land and environmental defenders," it noted.
- In the crosshairs -
Near Toribio, where Umenza lives and works, illegal gold mining contaminates water with mercury. Further north, pesticides used in the cultivation of marijuana poison the soil.
Both illegal activities finance dissident FARC guerillas, who rejected a peace pact with the government in 2016 to end a near six-year civil war, as well as fighters of the last remaining rebel group the ELN and paramilitary forces that are still active.
Since the 1970s, the indigenous peoples of the Cauca region of southwest Colombia, where Celia Umenza lives, have been fighting an expansion by sugarcane growers they say are driving them from the fertile lowlands they rely on for survival
LUIS ROBAYO AFP
According to the Global Witness report, paramilitary and criminal groups have increased their control of rural areas through violence.
"Those seeking to protect their land and environment are increasingly being caught up in the crosshairs of this violence –- with those protecting indigenous land particularly at risk," it said.
Frequently the victims are community members seeking to benefit from a government program to convert illegal coca crops, from which cocaine is derived, into legal ones.
The situation was worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, with official lockdowns leading to defenders being targeted in their homes, and government protection measures being cut.
To make matters even more complicated, Umenza says legal companies benefit from the illegal gold extraction, buying at low prices.
She is protected by the Indigenous Guard, a self-defense organization that confronts perceived intruders armed with batons and two-way radios, but no guns.
"In the indigenous territories we have fortunately managed to keep mining out," said Umenza.
But the price is high, with one member of the Guard killed every week so far this year, she added.
- 'A moving target' -
Umenza says she has received countless death threats since 2001.
The first attempt on her life came in 2005, she says by FARC guerillas, who shot at her while she was walking in the countryside.
Five years later, continued threats forced her to move -- the first of several involuntary relocations, the most recent of which was in January this year.
In 2011, the government's National Protection Unit assigned a vehicle escort to protect Umenza and four other threatened people in the Toribio region.
A few months ago, it offered her a bodyguard and a bullet-proof vest.
She "did not accept because walking around in the vest makes me feel more vulnerable," like a moving target, she told AFP.
Since 2009, Umenza's three children have been living far away for their own safety, and she says their father left her because he "could not stand" the constant threats, attacks and regular uprooting.
She has a new partner today -- but she is realistic about her happy ever after.
"It is not easy living with someone who today takes you on the run, and tomorrow, who knows," she said.
© 2021 AFP
According to the Global Witness report, paramilitary and criminal groups have increased their control of rural areas through violence.
"Those seeking to protect their land and environment are increasingly being caught up in the crosshairs of this violence –- with those protecting indigenous land particularly at risk," it said.
Frequently the victims are community members seeking to benefit from a government program to convert illegal coca crops, from which cocaine is derived, into legal ones.
The situation was worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, with official lockdowns leading to defenders being targeted in their homes, and government protection measures being cut.
To make matters even more complicated, Umenza says legal companies benefit from the illegal gold extraction, buying at low prices.
She is protected by the Indigenous Guard, a self-defense organization that confronts perceived intruders armed with batons and two-way radios, but no guns.
"In the indigenous territories we have fortunately managed to keep mining out," said Umenza.
But the price is high, with one member of the Guard killed every week so far this year, she added.
- 'A moving target' -
Umenza says she has received countless death threats since 2001.
The first attempt on her life came in 2005, she says by FARC guerillas, who shot at her while she was walking in the countryside.
Five years later, continued threats forced her to move -- the first of several involuntary relocations, the most recent of which was in January this year.
In 2011, the government's National Protection Unit assigned a vehicle escort to protect Umenza and four other threatened people in the Toribio region.
A few months ago, it offered her a bodyguard and a bullet-proof vest.
She "did not accept because walking around in the vest makes me feel more vulnerable," like a moving target, she told AFP.
Since 2009, Umenza's three children have been living far away for their own safety, and she says their father left her because he "could not stand" the constant threats, attacks and regular uprooting.
She has a new partner today -- but she is realistic about her happy ever after.
"It is not easy living with someone who today takes you on the run, and tomorrow, who knows," she said.
© 2021 AFP
Wildcat Gold Mining Is Devastating the Amazon
Sep 11, 2021
Inside Edition
Illegal mining is booming in the Amazon, and that’s bad news for one the earth’s most important natural spaces. The Amazon is home to an incalculable array of plants and animals. A number of indigenous communities also make their home in the world’s largest rainforest, which spans several countries in South America. Every year, the Amazon absorbs billions of tons of carbon dioxide, making it a crucial hedge against human-caused climate change.
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