Four environmentalists a week, a total of 207 defenders, were murdered last year, according to watchdog group Global Witness, a slight increase to 2016’s deadly record of 200. This marks the sharp uptick in mass violence against those ranging from national park rangers in Africa to indigenous peoples in South America.
A culture of impunity is being blamed for the allowance of these crimes in the most dangerous countries, such as Brazil, the Philippines, Colombia and Mexico.
Global Witness said in its report agribusiness, which is any company or group gaining profit from mass-scale farms or livestock, is the most dangerous sector. It has overtaken mining and logging as the most violent sector against environmentalists, although those sectors also contributed.
Agribusiness is often married with cartels or governments in joint efforts to gain entry into protected lands like native reservations and park preserves. Agribusiness is a $5 trillion dollar industry and is expected to grow in countries like Brazil and Argentina.
At least 207 #EnvironmentDefenders were brutally murdered in 2017 – the deadliest year on record, with the rising death toll linked to demand for consumer goods like coffee, bananas and palm oil.
For the full picture see our report #AtWhatCost https://t.co/gWS9lWwVEF pic.twitter.com/JgcozuuokT
— Global Witness (@Global_Witness) July 24, 2018
While the U.N. says environmental rights are enshrined in the constitutions of over 100 countries, violent tactics of businesses, governments, and paramilitary groups are still used against environmentalists.
According to Global Witness, in one of the most brutal attacks, Gamela indigenous people were assaulted with machetes and rifles by Brazilian farmers, leaving 22 of them severely injured, some with their hands cut off.
Women who stand up to agri-cartels are threatened with the destruction of their families, as well as sexual violence. Neighbors are compelled by cartels to ask their community members to leave or face death, in a tactic used by these groups to compel natives of the region to obey to people they know.
Mass murder has increased as well. In just three incidents in Brazil, 25 environmental defenders were murdered. The Philippines, Mexico, Peru and the Democratic Republic of Congo all saw instances where four or more people were murdered at any one time.
EXPOSED: the massive rise in killings of #EnvironmentDefenders linked to consumer products – including brutal attacks on those defending their land from large-scale agriculture like palm oil and coffee plantations. #AtWhatCost https://t.co/yZwrln7Oos pic.twitter.com/T350vwIyY9
— Global Witness (@Global_Witness) July 24, 2018
Most of this violence is driven by a combination of poverty, business growth and lack of regulation. Countries like the Philippines and Mexico saw an increase in crimes against environmentalists, indigenous peoples, and local landowners while making corrupt practices stronger and allowing resource-based crimes to largely go unpunished when they seize land for farming or livestock.
Global Witness called on governments and corporations to embrace responsibility and not let murder and violence to go unchecked. It said, “Companies have a responsibility to their customers, who should have confidence that the products they buy are not fuelling human rights abuses, cultural destruction or environmental devastation. And consumers have a responsibility to demand that these companies live up to their responsibilities.”
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