The government of India has launched, in the name of ‘development’, several processes that remove or dilute legal protection of forest communities’ rights and their biodiverse environment. Among them, hard-won recognition of forest peoples’ rights in the Forest Rights Act. This Act has been crucial in supporting forest communities demanding control over the land they depend on. Implementation of the Forest Rights Act has been slow and is continuously being disrupted by the Forest Department and other agencies of the Indian government. An international appeal aims to prevent indigenous forest communities’ rights and their biodiverse environment from being displaced and destroyed by industrial expansion.
Read full appeal here: http://adivasi-info.net/Appeal_to_India_&_UN_on_Forest_Communities.pdf
