227 conservationists murdered around the world in 2020
Supporters for environmental activist Berta Caceres gathered during the trial of Roberto David Castillo in Tegucigalpa, Honduras on Monday, July 5, 2021. AP - Elmer Martinez
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
The planet is in bad shape and those who defend it are sometimes targeted.
Last year, 227 environmental activists were murdered around the world.
This is what emerges from an edifying report by the NGO Global Witness.
These attacks are always linked to the excessive exploitation of natural resources and they particularly affect South America.
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Colombia holds the sad record for assassinations of environmental defenders, 65 dead last year.
Most denounced the intensive exploitation of natural resources in areas where armed groups often rule.
Indigenous peoples are particularly targeted.
Louis Wilson, spokesperson for the NGO Global Witness, explains that “
indigenous groups are particularly affected in countries like Colombia because they are the stewards of the land and, of course, they have less legal protection in places like Colombia. countries like Colombia and therefore we see this disproportionate violence for indigenous communities.
"
In South America, as in Asia or Africa, environmental activists are being killed.
And in the vast majority of cases, justice is absent.
As for the South African Fikile Ntshangase.
“
She was a grandmother, an activist against the expansion of a coal mine.
It's a terrible case, she was murdered in her living room in front of her grandson.
There have been no arrests and no justice.
Despite the dangers, her daughter keeps her legacy alive.
"
His daughter has resumed the fight but it promises to be difficult.
Against governments that are often linked with industries, the NGO Global Witness calls for the mobilization of the international community.
This figure represents an average of four people killed each week throughout the year.
This is the worst we have recorded since we started this census.
The more the climate threat gets out of control, the more people who defend the environment are threatened.
Laura Furones, member of the NGO Global Witness
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