Bulletin Issue 132 – July 2008

Beijing: The carbon-cheating Games

According to the Chinese Technology Minister Wan Gang, the Beijing Olympic Games will result in the release of some 1.18 million tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere, “in part because
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Brazil: Amazon deforestation takes on new force

This month, provisional measure No.422 was adopted as law by the Brazilian parliament, providing for an increase in the area of the Amazon that may be granted for rural use
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Guatemala: Agrofuels cause deforestation and displacement

In Guatemala, like in several other countries of the South, indigenous communities and the environment are paying a high cost due to the expansion of agrofuels. Deforestation, forced displacement, threats,
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Malaysia: Sarawak forest peoples harassed by logging and dams

In last month’s WRM bulletin we recalled the long standing battle that local communities had waged for Sarawak’s forests, notably through road blockades for stopping the entry of logging trucks
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Peru: National strike demands respect for indigenous collective rights

This past 8-10 July, the Peasant Confederation of Peru and the National Agrarian Confederation, with the wide backing of a large number of indigenous and peasant organizations, carried out a
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Mangrove Loss and Climate Change – A Global Perspective

Mangroves are the rainforests by the sea. Large stretches of the sub-tropical and tropical coastlines of Asia, Africa, Oceania, the Americas and the Caribbean are fringed by mangroves, once estimated
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Brazil: Historic federal court decision sentences Veracel Celulose (Stora Enso-Aracruz) for environmental violations

On 17 June 2008, a federal court in the city of Eunápolis, in the state of Bahia, passed sentence in a public civil suit filed in 1993 by the Brazilian
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Chile: Documentary-maker jailed for filming a documentary on the Mapuche struggle against forestry companies

The occupation of the Mapuche peoples’ ancestral territories by large-scale eucalyptus and pine plantations belonging to major forestry companies such as CMPC and Forestal Bosques ARAUCO relies for its expansion
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Colombia: Oil palm grows by the force of violence

Since the beginning of the decade, all the areas of expansion of oil palm plantations have coincided geographically with areas of paramilitary presence and expansion, to the extent that some
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Malaysia: Blockades against Sarawak oil palm company

In Europe and the US, palm oil is being promoted as an agrofuel that will allegedly prevent the increase of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere. Of course, it is
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West Africa: Wilmar and Olam International ambitious expansion plans for palm oil

An article in June’s WRM Bulletin highlighted Unilever’s role in the threat to Tanoe Swamps Forest, one of the last remaining forest blocks in Cote d’Ivoire. Following international protests, Unilever
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Asian Civil Society Groups Call For ‘Climate Justice’

Over 170 activists who gathered in Bangkok from 12-14 July harshly criticised governments and corporations for their failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They called for “climate justice” and a
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