Struggles for the Forests

When corporations destroy forests, or restrict or even prohibit access to forest peoples' territories, they place communities' ways of life and their very existence at risk. WRM supports forest peoples' struggles to defend their territories, and their right to decide how to live, and how to use the forests they depend on.

Bulletin articles 24 October 2024

PODCAST - Indonesia: Dayak Women Defend the Forest of Tambun Bungai

This article tells the story of a Podcast that is being jointly launched with Solidaritas Perumpuan, a feminist organisation from Indonesia. This espisode is the third in the series “Women’s struggles for land”, produced by WRM together with organisations from different countries. This one tells the story of women's resistance to oil palm plantations, REDD and a large-scale project for food production (Food Estate) in three villages in Central Kalimantan.

Articles 9 May 2024

The lack of transparency behind Indonesia's New Capital project and how the false rethoric of "Sponge City" is used to hide violations against the Balik People

JATAM East Kalimantan denounces the recent move of the Indonesian Minister of Public Works and Public Housing, Basuki Hadimoeljono, to appeal against the decision of a State Administrative Court in Jakarta that the government should make public a number of documents that it had kept secret.

Bulletin articles 19 December 2023

The Industrial Park KIPI reveals the dirty and destructive face of Indonesia´s “green” transition

President Jokowi calls the Kalimantan Industrial Park Indonesia (KIPI) “the largest green industrial area in the world”. But in reality, there is nothing green about the KIPI. It will lead to massive fossil fuel use, land and water grabbing, while threatening thousands of people in coastal communities with forced eviction. (Available in Indonesian).

Multimedia 7 November 2023

Indonesia: Protests against mining for electric vehicles

On October 28th, thousands of residents from Sagea, Gemaf and other villages on the island of Halmahera entered in shock with security forces when they occupied the installatioins of PT IWIP (Industrial Weda Bay Industrial Park) to protest against the company´s nickel mining activities that are destroying their land.

Other information 25 October 2023

Papua: The Moi Tribe Opposing Timber Corporate Giants

Alamindo Lestari Sejahtera (ALS) Group, that owns and controls at least three timber companies and industries in Papua, is expanding the business of timber forest products exploitation in the customary area of the Moi Tribe through a company called PT Hutan Hijau Papua Barat (HHPB).

Articles 13 March 2023

Indonesia: Indigenous Balik reject the plan to evict their villages along the Sepaku river

Indigenous people from Balik tribe in Sepaku Lama Village, North Penajam Paser Utara Regency, East Kalimantan, carried out an action rejecting the plan to evict their villages around and along the Sepaku river for the project management of Floods or normalization of the Sepaku River center of Indonesia new capital city.

Bulletin articles 12 September 2022

Oil Palm Plantations and Water Grabbing: Ivory Coast and Gabon

Industrial palm oil production in West and Central Africa is mainly controlled by five multinational corporations, and could continue expansion. Plantations take up large tracts of land. Land and water are interdependent. Yet, the current water crisis in these territories would not exist if corporations had not grabbed the land from communities.

Bulletin articles 12 September 2022

Struggling to Stay Afloat: The People of Pari Island, Indonesia, against Injustice

People in Pari Island are seeing their houses and business more frequently under water. Besides their struggles against corporate-led tourism, four Island’s residents are taking legal action against one of the major emitters of carbon dioxide in the world and hence a major responsible for their situation: the Holcim cement corporation.

Multimedia 31 March 2022

Watch the press conference: NO to Nature Based Solutions!

On 15 March, over 360 organisations launched a statement exposing that "Nature Based Solutions" will cause huge new land grabs and promote harmful practices like monoculture tree plantations and industrial agriculture.

Bulletin articles 4 January 2022

The Coercion of the Indonesia’s New Capital City Mega-Project and the Neglect of the Balik People’s Voices

The Balik People will bear the impacts of the plans to build a New Capital City mega-project in Borneo, Indonesia. Government officials and business elites in the country are certainly among those who will enjoy the benefits.
Available in Bahasa Indonesia.

Action alerts 26 November 2021

Gabon: Communities Say NO to the Great Mayumba Project

Communities in Nyanga province, Gabon, released the Bana / Mayumba Declaration in which they call for the suspension of the GRANDE MAYUMBA project, a multi-concession megaproject marketing as a so-called Nature-Based Solution.