The Norwegian Solidarity Committee for Latin America raises debates about the ethical principles behind Norwegian investments. They invited, together with a network of Norwegian organizations, people from Guatemala, Honduras, Brazil and Swedish Sami to present their stories, research and reflections to a popular court in March 2017. One of the cases discussed was the situation in the extreme south of Bahia, Brazil, where three of the world’s biggest pulp and paper-producing companies operate (Suzano, Veracel and Fibria). The national Oil Fund of Norway invests over 3.5 billion Norwegian crones in these eucalyptus plantation companies, despite the well-document impacts of monoculture plantations on forests, biodiversity, water sources and the destruction of local territories and livelihoods.
The popular court is part of a campaign to demand that the Norwegian Oil Fund pulls out from such investments. More importantly, they call for stricter and more transparent control of Norwegian investments.
http://www.latin-amerikagruppene.no/english/
The report from the popular court will be published soon in Portuguese and a video from the campaign can be watched here (with English and Spanish subtitles):
