Forests and Logging

Cambodia - Major breakthrough in mediation between Hoang Anh Gia Lai company and fourteen indigenous villages

whit — Mon, 21 Sep 2015 11:11:22 +0100

Siem Reap – A major breakthrough was reached in the mediation between fourteen Cambodian indigenous communities and the Vietnamese rubber firm Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL), during meetings held this week in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

On 15-19 September 2015, community representatives of fourteen indigenous villages affected by HAGL’s land concessions in Ratanakiri province, company representatives of HAGL and its subsidiaries, and the communities’ advisors, including Inclusive Development International, met in Siem Reap.

Land Rights: An Essential Global Indicator for the Post-2015 SDGs

whit — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 16:24:42 +0100

Secure land rights for all are a critical component of a transformational agenda of the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets.

Indigenous people fighting for their culture in Cambodia

whit — Mon, 31 Aug 2015 10:33:14 +0100

by Alex Blair, a former press officer for Oxfam America’s Extractive Industries team.

Gold mining threatens rights and livelihoods of local communities.

In the far northeast of Cambodia, the forest is disappearing. On my first visit there, I expected to see thick, dense forests everywhere. Instead, most of the land has been cleared for large rubber and cassava plantations. The remaining forests are central to the daily lives of the local people, their livelihoods and culture.

Indonesia: Promised task force on indigenous rights in Indonesia hits snag

whit — Tue, 25 Aug 2015 12:27:17 +0100

Indigenous leaders were expecting the Environment and Forestry Minister to announce the formation of the task force in a speech at the Nusantara Festival in Bali last week.

Instead, the minister asked for trust and patience while the government ‘harmonizes’ the proposal.

The task force’s mandate would include recommending pardons for wrongfully convicted citizens and working with the legislature to pass a draft bill on indigenous rights.

Last Sunday on the Indonesian island of Bali, the country’s environment and forestry minister had the uncomfortable task of telling hundred

Cambodia - Going straight in the 'forest of gold'

whit — Sat, 01 Aug 2015 04:49:26 +0100

Mondulkiri province – Until recently, the illegal mining community at the remote village of Poutung did their digging at risk of arrest. They have since become the first to be given official sanction.

BHP to open new coal mine in Borneo amid concern for orangutans

whit — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 00:06:32 +0100

If you thought Shenhua and Adani had raised hackles with their plans to develop new coal mines in controversial parts of Australia, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

In a move likely to enrage environmental campaigners, BHP Billiton quietly flagged on Wednesday that it would soon start production of coal at the Haju mine in Indonesian Borneo.

Haju will initially produce about 1 million tonnes of coal a year, which is pretty small compared to the coal mines BHP already operates in Queensland.

But Haju could be the start of a much larger coal project for BHP in Indonesian Borneo known as

Pope Francis asks pardon for church's 'crimes' against indigenous peoples

whit — Sat, 11 Jul 2015 10:45:22 +0100

Francis acknowledged ‘crimes committed against the native peoples during the so-called conquest of America’

Pope Francis apologized Thursday for the sins, offences and crimes committed by the Catholic Church against indigenous peoples during the colonial-era conquest of the Americas, delivering a powerful mea culpa on the part of the church in the climactic highlight of his South American pilgrimage.

History’s first Latin American pope “humbly” begged forgiveness during an encounter in Bolivia with indigenous groups and other activists and in the presence of Bolivia’s first-ever in

Guyana: Gold For Green Forests

whit — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 10:43:33 +0100

[This article first appeared in Norway’s Bergens Tidende magazine on 3rd May 2015. It is translated and reproduced here (in abridged form) with the kind permission of Bergens Tidende. Text by Atle Andersson (original in Norwegian)]

The large-scale hunt for gold not only destroys rainforest in Guyana, it also threatens a deal for billions in funds from Norway

Kevin Ramkissoon is standing halfway buried in white mud. He controls the intake of the pump, a dangerous part of the job as gold miner in the Amazon jungle. His leg can break like a match if it touches the device.

Solidarity statement with Cambodian human rights defender Mr Ny Chakrya

whit — Fri, 10 Jul 2015 08:08:53 +0100

We, the undersigned civil society organizations from across Asia and the Pacific call on the government of Cambodia to immediately and unconditionally drop all charges against Mr Ny Chakrya, which are an attack on his lawful activities as a human rights defender.

Indonesia: Palm oil giant Wilmar resorts to dirty tricks

whit — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 09:27:54 +0100

World’s largest palm oil trading company, Wilmar International Ltd., under scrutiny as communities accuse its suppliers of harassment, deception and rights abuses.

Jakarta: Oil palm giant Wilmar International Ltd. (F34.SI / WLIL.SI) stands accused of resorting to ‘dirty tricks’ in its dealings with communities. The allegations come from community leaders and non-Governmental organisations who have tracked the company’s operations on the ground in Borneo, Sumatra, Uganda and Nigeria.

Indonesia: Kalimantan Villagers Lodge Land Claim Against BHP Billiton Coal Project

whit — Sun, 14 Jun 2015 17:49:31 +0100

“We welcome mining as long as they respect our way of life, our livelihood, our customary land. When they don’t, we’ll fight to the end,” says village headman Suwanto.

Murung Raya, Central Kalimantan.

Indonesia - AMAN reminds Jokowi about pledge to forest people

whit — Mon, 08 Jun 2015 10:43:24 +0100

An NGO group on indigenous people has urged the government to establish a rights task force that it had already promised.

The NGO, called the Alliance of Indigenous People (AMAN), which has a network of around 2,253 indigenous groups across Indonesia who mostly live inside or around forests, said that indigenous people could not wait any longer to have their rights protected after being ignored for more than 70 years since independence.

“I want to emphasize that this is not an ordinary case. This is not just about past treatment of the indigenous.

Panama: Banks failed to comply with standards in financing the Barro Blanco dam

whit — Tue, 02 Jun 2015 10:24:52 +0100

Independent report finds Dutch and German development banks failed to comply with environmental and human rights standards in financing the Barro Blanco dam in Panama

Indigenous communities and civil society shocked by the banks’ inadequate response to the findings

Kiad, Panama/Amsterdam/Bogota – Last Friday, a long-awaited report by an independent panel found that FMO and DEG, the Dutch and German development banks, violated their own policies by failing to adequately assess the risks to indigenous rights and the environment before approving a US$50 million loan to GENISA, the dev

Indonesia: Palm oil regulator asked to investigate illegal land grabs by Wilmar Group supplier

whit — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 15:59:18 +0100

Borneo human rights organization files complaint alleging multiple breaches of RSPO standards by palm oil supplier PT. Swadaya Mukti Prakarsa / First Resources.

Kalimantan – Acting on behalf of local indigenous communities, on 11th May 2015 human rights and environmental organization Lingkaran Advokasidan Riset (LinkAR) Borneo delivered a complaint letter to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) alleging multiple violations of RSPO requirements by PT. Swadaya Mukti Prakarsa (PT. SMP) – a key Wilmar Group supplier and subsidiary of First Resources Group.

PT.

Global Witness report shows increased killings of environmental activists, with indigenous communities hardest hit

whit — Mon, 20 Apr 2015 09:44:38 +0100

New report shines spotlight on Honduras – the most dangerous country to be an environmental defender

Killings of land and environmental activists in 2014 reached an average of more than two a week, a new Global Witness report reveals – an increase of 20% from 2013. How Many More?

Indigenous Controlled Mining Under Fire in Colombia

whit — Fri, 10 Apr 2015 09:11:58 +0100

At 8pm Tuesday April 7, Fernando Salazar Calvo, human rights defender and community member of the Resguardo Indígena Cañamomo Lomaprieta (Caldas) in Colombia, was gunned down brutally outside his home.

A long time member of the Resguardo’s Ancestral Miners’ Association (ASOMICARS), 52-year old Fernando Salazar played a key role as a spokesperson for implementing the Traditional Authorities’ rules and regulations for ancestral mining taking place within Resguardo Territory.

While the facts are not yet clear on why Salazar was killed, several members of ASOMICARS and the Cabildo, the h

India: Government against consent of tribals for displacement

whit — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 10:20:00 +0100

The NDA govt is on the verge of passing executive orders that would do away with the veto powers of tribals that protect their forestlands in most cases

New Delhi – India has told the World Bank that it is not ‘comfortable’ with mandatory need for free, informed and prior consent of tribals who are displaced for projects funded by the Bank.

Cambodia: Indigenous rights ‘denied’

whit — Fri, 03 Apr 2015 14:39:48 +0100

Despite Cambodia’s indigenous peoples being legally recognised and protected under the country’s Forestry and Land Laws, limited implementation combined with a lack of coordination have resulted in many indigenous communities being denied their land and legal rights, according to a report released this month by the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

The German think tank says that land concessions and economic development have trampled efforts by the country’s indigenous communities to secure customary lands.

“Indigenous peoples are estimated to be managing more than 4 million hectares

Colombian tribe scores ‘historic’ victory versus Big Gas

whit — Sat, 28 Mar 2015 17:26:18 +0000

The indigenous U’wa people living in north-east Colombia have won what observers call an “historic” and “decisive” victory after state oil and gas company Ecopetrol dismantled a gas drilling site in their territories.

The U’wa Association of Traditional Authorities and Councils (Asou’wa) reported in February last year the arrival of an “avalanche of heavy machinery” and increasing numbers of soldiers at the site, called Magallanes, where Ecopetrol intended to drill three wells.

India: #LandBill: Amendments do not address key issues related to FPIC and SIA

whit — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 18:54:59 +0000

Amendments to India’s Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 passed by the Lok Sabha on Tuesday do not address key issues related to consulting communities and conducting social impact assessments, said Amnesty International India today.

“Some of the amendments passed by the Lok Sabha are progressive, but others are merely cosmetic,” said Aruna Chandrasekhar, Business and Human Rights Researcher at Amnesty International India.

“The amendments require social infrastructure projects to obtain the con

Indigenous tribes in Suriname ask gov't to protect their lands

whit — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 10:06:12 +0000

The Trio and Wayana tribes are asking Suriname’s National Assembly to take steps to protect some 72,000 sq. kilometers (28,000 sq.

Malaysia: Orang Asal want ADB loan to Sarawak Energy cancelled

whit — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 09:26:57 +0000

40 organizations have issued a letter to ADB on the reputation and financial risks associated with the loan.

KUCHING: Orang Asal representatives from Sarawak are en-route to the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila to raise concerns about a US$45 million loan being proposed for Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) to build a high voltage transmission line.

At the ADB, the delegation will be submitting findings of the research conducted along the transmission line route and meeting with the Bank’s Executive Directors, the Office of Anti-Corruption and Integrity, and sen

Venezuela: Yanomami march for health and justice, while illegal mines in Caura reach flashpoint

whit — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 14:54:28 +0000

Yanomami from their organization, Horonami, marched through the regional capital in the Venezuelan Amazon on 20th February demanding better health-care and respect for their culture and dignity. Noting the problems they suffer from introduced diseases and lack of consistent health care, they issued a statement demanding a roundtable to address their problems.

Indonesia: Pulpwood company may be denying Sumatran community rights to their land

whit — Sat, 07 Feb 2015 09:45:05 +0000

For over a decade, a conflict has been brewing between the local community of Senyerang in Sumatra, Indonesia, and a major pulpwood plantation company, Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), according to NGOs operating in the area.

Cambodia - Ministry Sets Record Straight on Mining License

whit — Fri, 16 Jan 2015 15:08:42 +0000

The Ministry of Mines and Energy on Tuesday held a press conference to refute a Radio Free Asia broadcast late last month claiming that the ministry had granted a mineral company a license to mine for gold in Ratanakkiri province before an environmental impact assessment had been completed, company and ministry officials said Wednesday.

Jean-Paul Dau, vice president of operations for Angkor Gold, which in partnership with Mesco Gold is developing the 12- square-km Phum Syarung site in Ratanakkiri’s O’Yadaw district, said the ministry was “up in arms” over the December 25 broadca

Constant Conflict? Unresolved Land Disputes Still Haunt Asia Pulp and Paper

whit — Wed, 21 Jan 2015 21:08:59 +0000

On-the-ground interviews with 17 affected Indonesian communities reveal policy implementation problems while hundreds of unresolved land conflicts remain

Nearly two years after Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) made groundbreaking commitments to transform its notoriously destructive business practices, Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has partnered with one international and nine local Indonesian allies to produce a report that documents the company’s performance in meeting its social responsibility promises.

Eye on Ecuador: Racking Up the China Debt and Paying It Forward with Oil

whit — Sun, 18 Jan 2015 15:45:51 +0000

Ecuador’s President Correa was well-rewarded for his trip last week to China, but this could have grave impacts for the Amazon and the people who live there. On Wednesday, Beijing agreed to lend Ecuador $7.53 billion to help the heavily oil-dependent economy cope with the recent drop in global crude prices. This latest sum – the largest China has ever lent Ecuador – brings Chinese financing to Ecuador to nearly $25 billion, over a quarter of the nation’s GDP.

Peru: Chota, Manuin, Chaupe and Buendía… notable characters of 2014

whit — Mon, 05 Jan 2015 10:28:49 +0000

- A tribute to four consistent and committed indigenous leaders in Peru.

The year 2014 comes to an end and the personalities of Edwin Chota, Máxima Chaupe, Santiago Manuin and Ruth Buendia stand out for impeccable trajectory in the public eye and advocacy in favor of their peoples.

While it may seem unfair to highlight individuality, behind these names are noble and social causes that result from collective action.

Indigenous Rights Get Little Mention In Climate Agreement

whit — Fri, 09 Jan 2015 15:42:06 +0000

Indigenous groups called for international climate change agreements to respect human rights and land rights at a United Nations summit here, but the meeting ended with an agreement that made little mention of those issues.

Their call was underscored by the recent deaths in Peru and Ecuador of indigenous leaders who had been defending their territories or natural resources.

Negotiators at the summit, held December 1 – 12 in Lima, Peru, were to lay the groundwork for a new international treaty to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases that cause global warming.

Ecuador: José's murder is more blood on Canada's hands

whit — Fri, 19 Dec 2014 09:40:01 +0000

José Tendetza should have been in Lima, Peru last week at the climate change talks as one of the powerful Indigenous voices speaking about the destruction that the mining and energy agenda of countries like Canada is bringing upon his and many other communities in the Global South.

José Tendetza was a Shuar indigenous community leader from Zamora Chinchipe, Ecuador who refused to give up his land for the illegal gold and copper Mirador project currently under construction.

Indonesia: Central Kalimantan Railway Gets Thumbs Down from Jokowi Administration

whit — Thu, 11 Dec 2014 11:37:47 +0000

Jakarta – The Minister for National Development Planning (Bappenas), Adrinof Chaniago, said last week that he would not put the Central Kalimantan Railway in the Medium Term Development Plan for 2015-2019, thus withdrawing all central government support for the project. The project would not get the status of a Public Private Partnership and would not be provided with government guarantees.

The statement was made by Mr.

“Indigenous Peoples Are the Owners of the Land” Say Activists at COP20

whit — Tue, 16 Dec 2014 12:55:02 +0000

LIMA (IPS) – The clamor of indigenous peoples for recognition of their ancestral lands resounded among the delegates of 195 countries at the climate summit taking place in the Peruvian capital.

Ecuador: Anti-mining activist killed on eve of Lima meetings

whit — Mon, 08 Dec 2014 10:33:39 +0000

On December 3, the body of anti-mining activist José Isidro Tendetza Antún was identifed. José Isidro was a member of the Shuar community of de Yanúa, the district of El Pangui, province of Zamora. He had disappeared on November 28 on his way to an Assembly convened by the Shuar Association of Bomboíza, where they were to discuss themes related to mining exploitation in the province.

Peru: Ombudsman Urges Peru's Congress to Recognize Indigenous Rights

whit — Sat, 06 Dec 2014 17:14:35 +0000

Peru’s government is urged to recognize indigenous communities’ rights to free, prior, and informed consent.

As Peru still does not guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples on their ancestral lands, the country’s Ombudsman Eduardo Vega asked the Congress to correct this Wednesday.

Vega stated that the legislators needed to debate a reform guaranteeing rights recognized by International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 169, signed by Peru in 1994.

Is Peru’s President Humala serious about Indigenous Peoples’ rights?

whit — Thu, 04 Dec 2014 19:32:59 +0000

In September 2014, Peru and Norway signed an agreement to reduce deforestation in Peru.

Assault on the Commons: Deforestation and the Denial of Rights in Indonesia

whit — Thu, 04 Dec 2014 12:09:09 +0000

Indonesia is losing its forests faster than ever. Government efforts to halt the hand out of industrial permits for logging and plantations are failing. Despite its promises to cut back on greenhouse gas emissions, the country is experiencing a run-away process of forest clearance for oil palm estates and pulpwood plantations.

This new report from Forest Peoples Programme exposes the underlying cause of forest loss in Indonesia: the denial of the rights of the tens of thousands of customary law communities (‘indigenous peoples’) who inhabit the forests.

Peru exploiting own failures to demarcate indigenous territory

whit — Wed, 19 Nov 2014 12:53:00 +0000

Peru is facing a wave of environmental conflicts as extractive industries expand into land whose ownership remains legally unclear and a new report by Global Witness highlights how this process will become potentially bloodier through laws recently passed in Lima.

The report “Peru’s Deadly Environment” [http://www.globalwitness.org/perudeadlyenvironment/] states that 57 environmental defenders have been killed since 2002 with 60% of these occurring in the last four years, and that Indigenous Peoples have been among the most exposed to the new violence.

Indonesia: Recognizing Indigenous Rights

whit — Fri, 21 Nov 2014 13:00:49 +0000

Indonesia’s first-ever national inquiry delves into dozens of land disputes involving indigenous peoples and customary forest rights. The target: new President Joko Widodo.

The Pagu woman raised her voice in the presence of officials from the mining company that had caused her so much grief.

To cement her tribe’s territorial claim, she invoked centuries-old place names and a landmark Constitutional Court ruling from last year.

“This is our land, not the state’s land!” Afrida Erna Ngato hollered in the hearing room in Ambon, Maluku.

Brazilian Judge Sides With Tribe Over Land Threatened by Dams

whit — Sat, 08 Nov 2014 08:56:54 +0000

BRASILIA, Brazil – In a struggle between a Brazilian indigenous tribe and the federal government over two dams that would flood lands claimed by the tribe, a federal judge has ruled that the government must immediately publish its report delineating the tribe’s territory that has been withheld for more than a year.

Last week, in response to a lawsuit filed by the Federal Public Prosecutors’ Office, federal judge Rafael Leite Paulo issued a ruling that requires FUNAI, the federal agency responsible for indigenous people, to publish its report within 15 days and determine the final deci

India: Changes to environment, land acquisition laws jeopardise human rights

whit — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 11:50:56 +0000

New Delhi/ Bangalore – Recent changes made and proposed to India’s environment and land acquisition policies strike at the right of communities to be consulted on decisions affecting them, Amnesty International India said today.

India’s Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has in recent months weakened requirements for public consultation with communities affected by mining and other infrastructure projects, and sought to dilute provisions mandating the free, prior and informed consent of Adivasi (indigenous) communities.

The Ministry of Rural Development has

Mexico - Police Arrest Eight Indigenous People for Defending Communal Forest

whit — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 16:53:28 +0000

Approximately 600 state riot police invaded the territory of the indigenous community of San Francisco Xochicuautla, arresting eight people committed to the defense of the ancestral Otomí-Mexica forest.

Eight Ñatho (Otomi) indigenous people were arrested while peacefully blocking the way of a bulldozer belonging to the Autovan company that is destroying communal forest land to build a super highway from the Toluca Airport to Naucalpan in the central State of Mexico.

A statement issued by the Indigenous Peoples’ Front in Defense of Mother Earth charges that community members were arb

Sarawak villagers’ dam blockade removed again, as heavy machinery move in

whit — Sat, 01 Nov 2014 14:39:24 +0000

The year-long blockade by native villagers who are against the proposed Baram hydroelectric dam in Sarawak ended today with forestry officers, backed by armed policemen, removing the barricades in place.

This was the third time that the authorities have removed the logs and fencing which the anti-dam natives had put up across the road near Long Kesseh leading to the dam site.

No violence was reported and Peter Kallang, chairman of the non-governmental organisation Save Sarawak Rivers, said the forest concessionaire Autorich Sdn Bhd and its contractor M M Golden (M) Sdn Bhd have already m

Attempt to Expel Indigenous Peoples from Proposed Baram Dam Site Denounced By Human Rights Groups

whit — Sat, 25 Oct 2014 18:13:22 +0100

Government and Companies Complicit in Violating Freedom of Assembly and Land Rights

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian and international human rights organizations have united to publicly condemn the actions taken by authorities and logging company representatives to intimidate Indigenous Peoples in Sarawak at the proposed site of the Baram Dam.

Peru - Shipibo community sues Peruvian government for failure to title traditional lands

whit — Fri, 24 Oct 2014 11:30:52 +0100

Pucallpa: The Shipibo indigenous community of Korin Bari today filed a law suit against the Peruvian government for its failure to title its traditional territory resulting in the repeated invasion of community lands by illegal loggers and coca growers threatening the lives of community members who protest.

The community has presented formal applications for a land title in the Calleria river basin since 2010 but while the government has recognised the existence of the community its land title remains pending, exposing the community and its lands to continued insecurity.

Thailand: Karens seek to make a living in forest zones

whit — Sun, 12 Oct 2014 14:47:35 +0100

Chiang Mai – A GROUP of Karen people in Chiang Mai province has asked for the right to continue using forest zones – where their families have lived for generations – for their livelihood.

“We need a guarantee that we can continue living in our home area,” Wilas Wiwednaro, one of the group’s leaders, said last week as his group submitted a request to the Royal Forest Department (RFD).

His group comprises Karen members from forest zones in Ban Kiao Bong, Chiang Mai’s Galyani Vadhana district.

“Our families have lived here for a long time already. We have not destroyed the forest.

Ministry of Forestry obstructs law on indigenous peoples’ rights in Indonesia

whit — Wed, 08 Oct 2014 15:53:36 +0100

In 2003, at its second congress the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN) made its first demands for a special law on indigenous peoples. Since then huge progress has been made on indigenous rights in Indonesia.

But the law on the Recognition and Protection of Indigenous Peoples’ Rights (PPHMHA Bill) is still in draft form.

A brief history of the (PPHMHA Bill)

Yance Arizona and Erasmus Cahyadi are two Indonesian lawyers. Arizona works at the Epistema Institute and Cahyadi is Advocacy Manager at AMAN.

Time is right for global focus on forest land rights

whit — Sat, 20 Sep 2014 17:04:53 +0100

Without recognised land rights, indigenous peoples’ way of life could be threatened, warn campaigners

Recognising the land rights of local people could provide cost-effective protection for many of the world’s tropical forests, a report says.

But existing initiatives to tackle deforestation were poorly suited to deal with the issue, it added.

However, there was an “unprecedented opportunity” to act as more nations were willing to acknowledge indigenous peoples’ right to own and control land.

Recognizing Indigenous and Community Rights: Priority Steps to Advance Development and Mi

World Bank Turns Its Back on Rights Protections for the Poor

whit — Wed, 30 Jul 2014 21:21:26 +0100

Global civil society response gathers momentum

New York, London, New Delhi – Civil society organisations around the world are decrying a leaked draft of the World Bank’s proposed new policies to avoid harmful impacts from the development projects that it finances. Despite earlier commitments by Bank President Jim Yong Kim that the policies would not be diluted and that safeguards on land rights would be strengthened, the proposed changes have gutted essential requirements that are necessary to prevent displacement, impoverishment, and environmental damage.

IACHR Publishes Report: “Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact in the Americas”

whit — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 12:37:22 +0100

Washington, D.C.- The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) today published the report “Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact in the Americas,” which addresses the situation of peoples who were not colonized and who do not have permanent relations with today’s predominant national societies. Many of these peoples have disappeared, and the few that survive are in a unique situation of vulnerability because they cannot advocate for their own rights.

Pluspetrol Expanding into Manu National Park

whit — Wed, 23 Jul 2014 13:15:42 +0100

Rumors were circulating about the Peruvian government’s plan to create gas concessions bordering or including parts of the Manú National Park in early 2013. Although the rumors had not been confirmed, arguments for and against those plans had been expressed by the consulting firm for Pluspetrol (the gas company hoping to be approved for these gas concessions) and anthropologists and researchers who fear for the health and safety of not only the isolated and Indigenous people living in Manú, but the parks unique ecology there as well.

Indian forest villagers rise up to halt UK firm's bid to clear land for mining

whit — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 08:39:09 +0100

British firm Essar Energy’s plans for open cast mine in Mahan forest plans could destroy villages and 5m trees.

India’s new government faces a crucial test of its support for big business over plans to let a British-registered energy company cut down a tract of forest to make way for an open cast coalmine.

Essar Energy – owner of the UK’s Stanlow oil refinery – and its partner, the Hindalco company, were granted permission to mine in the Mahan forest of Madhya Pradesh after a lobbying campaign which reached right to the top of the previous government.

In letters to senior figure

Indonesia probes violations of indigenous rights in contested forests

whit — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 11:04:25 +0100

JAKARTA – Indonesia’s Human Rights Commission has launched the country’s first national inquiry into alleged human rights violations related to land conflicts involving indigenous people.

“It is the first inquiry into these (land conflict) cases on a national scale because we have indications of the same patterns (of human rights violations) for these conflicts,” said Sandra Moniaga, a member of the commission, which is known as Komnas HAM, before the launch of the initiative in Jakarta on May 20.

Public hearings will be held in seven regions – Sumatra, Java, Bali-Nusa, Sul

A hunger for coal threatens the Heart of Borneo

whit — Fri, 23 May 2014 11:43:30 +0100

Kalimantan – The project could see more than a billion tons of coal dug up from an area of global significance, where indigenous people have lived for generations amid the forests and rivers.

“We heard on the news that Kalimantan was the heart of the world, but we never heard about our village being part of the ‘Heart of Borneo’,” Maruwai village secretary Timor Banafi says, laughing.

Maruwai, a settlement of around 700 people in the remote north of Central Kalimantan, sits near the border of the Heart of Borneo, a more-than-220,000-square-kilometer zone where Indonesia, Brunei

Rubber Company Suspends Projects as World Bank Investigates

whit — Tue, 13 May 2014 19:12:06 +0100

WASHINGTON DC — A World Bank-supported rubber company accused of land grabs has suspended some of its projects, as an investigation by the bank continues.

The Hoang Anh Gia Lai company, which received support from the bank’s International Finance Corporation, said in a decision following an April 2 meeting that it has halted some operations.

Nguyen Van Su, general director for the company, said in a decision following the April meeting that operations in three projects in Ratanakkiri province will be suspended from May 1 through Nov.

Indigenous populations disproportionately hit in environmental conflicts

whit — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 14:04:23 +0100

In the EJOLT Atlas, www.ejatlas.org, which is such a success, we can trace whether indigenous populations are involved or not in the one thousand conflicts we have collected so far. We have two questions on this issue in the Database Form. One asks whether Ethnically Discriminated populations are implicated, the other asks whether Indigenous or Traditional Communities are implicated. The two questions are in an open list together with other, they are not mutually exclusive.

Forest peoples demand their rights be made central to global efforts to curb deforestation

whit — Wed, 19 Mar 2014 09:52:59 +0000

International workshop on Deforestation and the Rights of Forest Peoples issues Palangka Raya Declaration

Jakarta, Indonesia, and Moreton-in-Marsh, UK – After a major inter-continental gathering on Deforestation and the Rights of Forest Peoples held between 9 and 14 March 2014 in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, indigenous and forest peoples called on the international community, governments and international organizations to secure and respect their customary rights to their forests, lands, territories and natural resources in conformity with international law.

They issue

Indonesia: Indigenous Peoples Urge Implementation of Constitutional Court Ruling and Adoption of Indigenous Peoples Law

whit — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 10:11:04 +0000

More than one thousand indigenous peoples and allies gathered in the city centre of Jakarta, while thousands of others gathered in provinces, districts and communities across Indonesia, to urge the government to implement a landmark Constitutional Court Ruling (Ruling No 35/2012) delivered last May and the National Parliament to adopt an Indigenous Peoples Law.

Ruling No 35/2012 found in favour of three joint petitioners, Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara (the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN)), and two indigenous community representatives, deleting the word “state”

Two lawsuits to stop Peru’s biggest gas project in indigenous reserve

whit — Thu, 27 Feb 2014 09:00:43 +0000

Operations by gas consortium in Amazon reserve for vulnerable indigenous peoples met with legal action

Three Peruvian judges are scheduled to meet on 1 April following a lawsuit filed to stop a gas consortium from operating in a reserve in the Amazon created for indigenous peoples living in “initial contact” and “voluntary isolation.”

There are already wells in the west of the reserve where gas has been produced for years, and last month the Energy Ministry approved the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the expansion of operations involving more wells, a pipeline extension

Brazil land disputes spread as Indians take on wildcat miners

whit — Fri, 21 Feb 2014 13:07:35 +0000

As Brazil struggles to solve land disputes between Indians and farmers on the expanding frontier of its agricultural heartland, more tensions over forest and mineral resources are brewing in the remote Amazon.

The government of President Dilma Rousseff gave eviction notices to hundreds of non-Indian families in the Awá-Guajá reserve in Maranhão state in January and plans to relocate them by April, with the help of the army if necessary, Indian affairs agency Funai says.

The court order to clear the Awá territory follows the forced removal of some 7,000 soy farmers and cattle ranche

UK Government set to examine Soco's activities in Virunga National Park

whit — Wed, 19 Feb 2014 12:39:45 +0000

The UK Government is set to examine the activities of Soco, a London-based oil company, over alleged violations of environmental protections and human rights abuses in a protected African World Heritage Site.

It was announced today that a complaint filed by WWF has been accepted, and issues related to respect for human rights and the environment in Virunga National Park, will be thoroughly examined for the first time. WWF officially filed an OECD complaint against Soco, the oil company threatening Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in late 2013.

World Bank Group implicated in illegal seizures of indigenous land in Cambodia and Laos

whit — Mon, 10 Feb 2014 10:00:33 +0000

Cambodian indigenous communities call for Bank’s help to get their land back

Phnom Penh – Representatives of seventeen indigenous communities from Cambodia’s Ratanakiri province filed a complaint to the World Bank’s private lending arm today, describing illegal seizures of their farming and grazing land and destruction of their forests and sacred sites.

Indicative Map of Indigenous Territories Launched

whit — Wed, 29 Jan 2014 11:46:21 +0000

Bogor – Indonesian Network for Participatory Mapping (Jaringan Kerja Pemetaan Partisipatif, JKPP) launched indicative map of indigenous territories in Indonesia during the seminar on “Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesian Economic Development (MP3EI) and Living Space Sovereignty of Rural People of the Archipelago” in Bogor, Wednesday (29/1).

The indicative map of indigenous territories was an initiative of JKPP and Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago (Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara, AMAN), Simpul Pemetaan, SEKALA, UKP4, Ford Foundation and Samdhana Institute.

Indonesia: Violence Against Indigenous Peoples Continues to Increase

whit — Sun, 02 Feb 2014 11:01:55 +0000

In 2013 AMAN has handled 143 cases of violence against indigenous peoples

Violent conflict in indigenous territories in the form of seizures of land, territory and natural resources, will continue to increase this year if the government is not serious in following up on the Constitutional Court Decision No.35/PUU-X/2012, which saw the Court historically rule that indigenous forests are no longer state forests.

The struggle for indigenous peoples rights was outlined in the Press Conference, ‘AMAN 2013, a year in review: historical milestones and futures steps’.

Violating rights and threatening lives: The Camisea gas project and indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation

whit — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 20:34:56 +0000

Groundbreaking research reveals severe impacts of the Camisea gas project on isolated indigenous peoples in the Peruvian Amazon

Oxford, UK – A Forest Peoples Programme report published today reveals the severe impacts of Peru’s biggest gas project on indigenous peoples in “voluntary isolation” (isolated peoples) in the Amazon, including epidemics, disease and forced and hostile contacts caused by project operators.

The report is published at a crucial time as the project consortium led by Pluspetrol is seeking approval for a massive planned expansion.

Kenya: UN rights expert calls for the protection of indigenous people facing eviction

whit — Tue, 14 Jan 2014 16:54:12 +0000

Embobut Forest:

GENEVA – A United Nations independent expert has urged the Government of Kenya “to ensure that the human rights of the Sengwer indigenous people are fully respected, in strict compliance with international standards protecting the rights of indigenous peoples.”

The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, James Anaya, expressed deep concern about reports that police are poised to forcibly evict Sengwer indigenous people from their homes in the Embobut Forest in the Cherangani hills, in western Kenya.

“Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly reloca

Ecuador Cracks Down on Indigenous Leaders Opposed to Oil

whit — Sat, 11 Jan 2014 09:01:16 +0000

Following the close of the 11th Round oil auction on November 28th, 2013, plain-clothes officers in Quito, Ecuador summarily closed the offices of Fundación Pachamama, a nonprofit that for 16 years has worked in defense of the rights of Amazonian indigenous peoples and the rights of nature.

Imminent forced eviction by Kenya threatens indigenous communities' human rights and ancestral forests

whit — Wed, 08 Jan 2014 16:37:46 +0000

The Kenyan government has sent police troops to Embobut forest area (in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Western Kenya) to forcefully evict thousands of the indigenous inhabitants of the Sengwer and Cherangany communities from their ancestral forestlands. The eviction is expected to commence as early as tomorrow.

Reports from community members in Embobut tell of a chaotic situation, as people are threatened and are fleeing their homes with their children and belongings in fear of their safety.

Peru’s Culture Ministry blocks expansion of country’s biggest gas project – but for how long?

whit — Fri, 06 Dec 2013 17:39:34 +0000

Peru’s Ministry of Culture (MINCU) has issued a report that blocks, at least temporarily, the expansion of the country’s biggest gas project in the Amazon rainforest in a Reserve set aside for the protection of isolated indigenous peoples.

Fundación Pachamama Requests Solidarity

whit — Fri, 06 Dec 2013 10:27:58 +0000

The Ecuadorian government has other NGOs in its sights

QUITO – On Wednesday, December 4th, 2013, plain-clothes police officers appeared at the offices of Fundación Pachamama and proceeded to shut down the facilities, leaving a resolution from the Ministry of Environment ordering the dissolution the organization.

Indonesia: Indigenous Peoples Fight for Rights Online

whit — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 09:27:57 +0000

Indonesia loves its social media.

Indigenous groups in Latin America, Africa and Asia offer model for saving world’s forests, bulwarks against climate change

whit — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 11:27:18 +0000

New book reveals that their ability to preserve forests is under threat from land grabs by governments and developers

WARSAW, Poland—Through the conservation and protection of forests by traditional forest management approaches, indigenous peoples of Latin America, Africa and Asia demonstrate best practices for staving off the threatening impacts of changing climate patterns, such as the typhoon that recently ripped through the Philippines, say indigenous scholars in a new book.

31 percent of timber, mining, agriculture concessions in 12 nations overlap with local land rights

whit — Fri, 20 Sep 2013 10:28:56 +0100

Billions of dollars in investment risk ignored; financial report released on eve of global conference

Interlaken, Switzerland — A new analysis of land-use concessions in emerging market economies (EMEs) in Africa, Asia and Latin America shows that at least one out of every three hectares licensed for commercial exploitation is overlapped by indigenous community land.

The quantitative analysis found that land tenure is a statistically significant source of investment risk in emerging market economy concessions and extends across all land-dependent sectors, regardless of concession type.

Americas: Governments Must Stop Imposing Development Projects on Indigenous Peoples’ Territories

whit — Sun, 01 Sep 2013 14:22:27 +0100

Governments across the Americas continue to discriminate against Indigenous peoples by denying their right to have a say on decisions which may have devastating consequences for their cultural survival. Motorways, pipelines, hydroelectric dams and open-cast mines are some of the development projects which governments continue to carry out on or near Indigenous territories without obtaining their free, prior and informed consent.

The right to consultation, as established in various international human rights standards, is key for Indigenous peoples.

Indonesia: Indigenous people ask for govt apology

whit — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:06:50 +0100

Jakarta – A group of indigenous people said the government should apologize for neglecting their rights following the Constitutional Court ruling last month that annulled the government’s ownership of the nation’s customary forests.

The court decided to scrap the word “state” from Article 1 of the 1999 Forestry Law, which says “customary forests are state forests located in the areas of custom-based communities”.

The decision was made under the consideration that classifying customary forests as state forests led to the government denying indigenous people of their rights.

Indonesia: Govt to revoke concessions in customary forests

whit — Thu, 30 May 2013 12:40:41 +0100

The government has said it will revoke business permits it has given to companies operating in customary forests after the Constitutional Court annulled its ownership of customary forests.

Forestry Ministry’s secretary general, Hadi Daryanto, said on Monday that the government would rescind all plantation and mining concessions that have been granted to businesses in customary forests that have been legally recognized by the local administrations.

“We’ll get them [businesses] out.

UN Urges Peru to Suspend US$480m Gas Plans 'Immediately'

whit — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 17:19:25 +0000

The United Nations’ Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is urging the Peruvian government to ‘suspend immediately’ plans to expand the country’s biggest gas project.

CERD’s request was made in a letter dated 1 March to Peru’s Ambassador to the UN, Luis Enrique Chavez Basagoitia, expressing concern over government plans to expand the Camisea gas project in the Kugapakori-Nahua-Nanti Reserve for indigenous peoples living in ‘voluntary isolation’ in the Amazon.

‘The Committee is concerned at the possible discriminatory impact on the indigenous inhabitants of the re

Press Statement: Asia Indigenous Peoples’ raise alarm on the worsening landgrabs and violation of their rights

whit — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 11:31:55 +0000

Indigenous peoples in Asia are raising alarm on the worsening violation of their collective rights. With Asia becoming the new economic hub for extractive industries and foreign investments, landgrabbing of indigenous lands is now becoming the order of the day such as in India, Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines and Malaysia. The growing physical and economic displacement of indigenous peoples is being ignored inspite of the protests and objections of indigenous communities.

COONAPIP, Panama’s Indigenous Peoples Coordinating Body, withdraws from UN-REDD

whit — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:58:49 +0000

Panama – COONAPIP, the National Coordinating Body of Indigenous Peoples in Panama, has withdrawn from the UN-REDD process in Panama.

Indigenous leader speaks out on Ulu Masen: “We’ve never seen anything from REDD. It’s like the wind."

whit — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:29:30 +0000

On 6 February 2008, Ulu Masen became the first REDD project to be validated under the Climate Community and Biodiversity Standards. Last month, five years later, it became the first REDD project to lose its CCB validation status.

Today, the Ulu Masen REDD project is at a complete standstill. “Ulu Masen is like a dream. It is unclear,” Anwar Ibrahim, the Head of the Mukim Association in Aceh Jaya, told REDD-Monitor in December 2012. “We’ve never seen anything from REDD. It’s like the wind. We can’t see it, can’t touch it.”

How did it come to this?

Activists blast World Bank on continued support of industrial rainforest logging

whit — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 08:22:26 +0000

Two environmental activist groups blasted the World Bank over its reported decision to block a probe into its support of industrial-scale rainforest logging.

Greenpeace and Global Witness issued a statement condemning last Friday’s decision by The World Bank Board of Directors not to pursue a review of its lending to industrial logging companies.

First Nations leaders: Canada must obey international law

whit — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 13:47:19 +0000

Chief Doug White says Prime Minister Stephen Harper is wrong in claiming that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples doesn’t apply in Canada.

Ladysmith lawyer Robert Morales tells a B.C. history story that’s rarely taught in the province’s schools. At a recent Amnesty International forum on indigenous rights at Vancouver Community College, he described how B.C. gave Canada a 64-kilometre-wide strip of land from Victoria to Comox-more than 800,000 hectares-when the province joined Confederation in 1871.

“Canada used it to negotiate…a railway,” Morales said.

Guyana court ruling violates indigenous peoples' rights

whit — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 10:15:13 +0000

Controversial Court decision favours miners over indigenous peoples as country sinks to new low on double standards on human rights and development

On 17 January 2013, the Guyanese High Court ruled in favour of a miner who has a mining concession on titled indigenous lands.

Ecuadorian tribe gets reprieve from oil intrusion

whit — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 18:08:54 +0000

Residents of Sani Isla have built up an arsenal of weapons to fend off Petroamazonas, in a confrontation which did not take place as expected

An indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Amazon has won a reprieve after building up an arsenal of spears, blowpipes, machetes and guns to fend off an expected intrusion by the army and a state-run oil company.

The residents of Sani Isla expressed relief that a confrontation with Petroamazonas did not take place on Tuesday as anticipated, but said the firm is still trying to secure exploration rights in their area of pristine rainforest.

“W

Canada's First Nations protest heralds a new alliance

whit — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 18:14:37 +0000

The grassroots IdleNoMore movement of aboriginal people offers a more sustainable future for all Canadians

Canada’s placid winter surface has been broken by unprecedented protests by its aboriginal peoples.

Grassy Narrows Anti-Logging Blockade Marks Ten-Year Anniversary

whit — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 16:28:03 +0000

In remote northwest Ontario, a crackling bonfire and story-telling quietly marked the 10-year anniversary of the longest protest blockade in Canada’s history, one that has become an iconic Native land defense battle.

On December 2, members of Asubpeeschoseewagong (Grassy Narrows) First Nation gathered at the ongoing logging blockade near their reserve as supporters across Canada began a week of events, including lighting a sacred fire outside the provincial legislature, honoring what has become an internationally recognized struggle that has seen the small community stand in the way of gi

Precautionary measures urged for isolated indigenous peoples

whit — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 16:39:46 +0000

Organizations demand protection from the IACHR for ethnic groups at risk of extinction.

South America indigenous representatives pushed for precautionary measures to protect the isolated native communities during the 146th session of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, or IACHR, which is taking place in Washington, DC, from Oct. 29 to Nov.

Peru top court puts tribal sovereignty ahead of mining, logging

whit — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 17:42:39 +0100

LIMA (Reuters) – Peru’s top court has affirmed the right of an Amazon indigenous community to block outsiders from entering its lands – a ruling that could foil resource extraction in tribal areas, experts said on Wednesday.

The ruling by the constitutional court in favour of the Tres Islas community sets a precedent for tribes trying to halt mining, logging or oil drilling on their lands.

“We think this will serve as an example for other indigenous groups to take their cases to the top court,” said Jaime Tapullima Pashanase, president of the Kechwa peoples council.

Brazil a step closer to fully mine the Amazon

whit — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 13:27:15 +0100

A controversial project to mine Brazil’s vast indigenous territories in the Amazon, to be presented at the South American country’s Congress in October, has revived a long-dragged confrontation among authorities, environmentalists and local communities.

The bill, which aims to revoke Brazil’s indigenous groups “inalienable rights” over their lands, granted by the 1988 constitution, would allow mining in a vast area that covers nearly 13% of the country, or an area almost twice the size of Spain.

In an interview with local radio station Folha AM, Edio Lopes, the congressman who prop

Free, prior and informed consent in REDD+

whit — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 09:46:36 +0100

“The government took our forest land to create a forest reserve and the same government confiscated our land for planting trees.

Judge halts rail project close to Earth’s most threatened tribe

whit — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 08:30:19 +0100

A judge has ordered Brazil’s largest mining company to suspend plans to double a controversial railway track, which would have put the livelihoods of Earth’s most threatened tribe in jeopardy.

In a major setback for mining giant Vale, the ruling demands an immediate freeze on expansion work along the Carajás railway, and sets a daily penalty of US$25,000 for any breach.

The forest home of Brazil’s Awá tribe lies next to the existing railway, along which 2 km-long trains run to the world’s largest iron ore mine.

The Indians have vocally contested the mining giant’s plans,

Oil Company Under Fire in Amazon: New Inquiries, Exposés and Penalties Fuel Indigenous Movement

whit — Sat, 04 Aug 2012 14:18:51 +0100

IQUITOS, Peru—The world that PlusPetrol has built in Peru’s Amazon over the last 16 years seems to be crumbling under the weight of the company’s alleged crimes.

The Argentinian oil company – notorious for allegedly spilling oil, dumping toxic petro-chemicals and production waters into streams used by indigenous communities – is finally getting the attention it deserves.

On the pleading of indigenous leaders whose people have suffered four decades under the oil regime in the region of Loreto, a congressional investigation finally led to the arrival of four members of Congress w

Quebec Police Threaten Arrest of Barriere Lake Algonquins for Anti-Logging Protest

whit — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 14:08:27 +0100

The Sûreté du Québec (Quebec Provincial Police) has threatened members of the First Nations Algonquins of Barriere Lake community with arrest if they interfere with a private company’s logging activities on their territory.

The police warning came during the evening of July 9 after a group of Algonquins of Barriere Lake (ABL) community elders and leaders earlier in the day wrote a letter to Vincent Laurin, an official with the Quebec Ministry of Natural Resources, opposing his decision to issue logging permits to Resolute Forest Products to clear cut an unknown quantity of trees on A

Indigenous peoples insist on rights-based approaches and respect for traditional knowledge and practices in Rio+20 outcomes

whit — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 17:31:50 +0100

Rio de Janeiro – As government representatives start formal negotiations in Brazil to seek agreements on so-called ‘green economy’ policies and to assess progress in fulfilling commitments on environment and development made at the Rio Earth Summit twenty years ago, indigenous peoples from all over the world have come together at the Rio+20 global summit to put forward their own solutions for sustainable development and to flag serious risks associated with government ‘green’ proposals.

Green economy is a diversion from the principles of the Earth Summit of 1992

whit — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:18:12 +0100

Accra, Ghana – Members of FoE Africa from Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Swaziland Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda met and reviewed global issues with particular focus on those that confront the African continent.

The politics of scrambling for African natural resources, intense oil and gas extraction, land grabbing, forest and biodiversity degradation and dangerous climate change are among the issues that continue to confront the continent.

Amazon Indigenous Groups Fight New Law That Would Allow Foreign Companies on Their Land

whit — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:50:30 +0100

It has been said that oil and gas companies follow a bible of sorts here in the jungles of Peru, a universal playbook of their most effective methods for convincing locals that a project will bring them development or—if the locals can’t be convinced of that—to get their way through less benign tactics.

The playbook, a spin-off of tactics that date back in spirit to the conquistadores, has worked well until recently, when Indigenous Peoples started comparing notes.

Brazil: Munduruku Chief Clarifies REDD Contract with Celestial Green Ventures, Calls It a 'Tale'

whit — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:07:55 +0100

It created waves of headlines around the world when the Munduruku, an indigenous nation of approximately 13,000 living in the state of Para, Brazil, signed a carbon credit sales contract (REDD) with Celestial Green Ventures.

But it wasn’t the community , that signed the contract.

I uncovered this fact during my 2 1/2 month visit to Para where I was investigating the Belo Monte dam issue and the human rights situation of the indigenous peoples that would be directly impacted. Also the Munduruka are trying to combat a dam in their area.

Wapichan people in Guyana showcase community proposal to save tropical forests on their traditional lands

whit — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:03:39 +0000

Georgetown: The indigenous Wapichan people of Guyana, South America, will make public today a locally-made digital map of their traditional territory alongside a ground-breaking community proposal to care for 1.4 million ha of pristine rainforest for the benefit of their communities and the world. The territory’s rich variety of rainforests, mountains, wetlands, savannah grasslands and tropical woodlands are the homeland of 20 communities, who make a living from small-scale farming, hunting, fishing and gathering, which they have practised over the whole area for generations.

As tensions mount over proposed highway in Bolivia, UN expert calls for dialogue

whit — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:20:15 +0100

A United Nations human rights expert called for negotiations between indigenous people and Bolivian authorities today after protests against the construction of a highway in the Amazon turned violent last Sunday.

Around 1,500 protesters clashed with police, resulting in a high number of detainees and injured individuals as well as possible casualties, according to a press released by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples James Anaya called for the Bolivian Government to “take all the necessary measu

Respect the rights of Sarawak's indigenous communities, says NGO

whit — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 07:18:04 +0100

Exclude NCR land from provisional lease

KUALA LUMPUR: Sarawak Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and company have come under attack for issuing provisional leases (PL) to oil palm companies to continue destroying forests in the Baram region.

Environmental group, Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM), wants the state government to rescind the PLs and exclude all native community territories from these plantation licenses.

Said SAM president SM Mohamad Idris: “Taking into consideration all the complaints and hardship suffered by affected communities, as well as their legal rights to their land, we urge t

Climate Changes Bring Harsh Reality for Native Americans

whit — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 12:31:39 +0100

NEW YORK, Aug 4, 2011 (IPS) – In Shishmaref, an Inupiaq village on an Alaskan barrier island north of the Bering Strait, a way of life is gradually disappearing due to higher temperatures, rising sea levels, declining numbers of sea animals to hunt, and shrinking shorelines wrought by climate change.

The effects of climate change may be felt across the globe, but in the United States, compared to the general population, indigenous peoples feel the impact disproportionately, a report published Wednesday by the National Wildlife Federation concluded.

Because they are dependent on it for th