After travelling through the territories of Cauca, Tolima and Sumapaz in Colombia, La Vía Campesina delegates verified that there is “lack of compliance with the implementation of the points included in the Peace Accords (signed between FARC and the government) and a general questioning about the accords and the peace process” by representatives of Iván Duque´s administration. “We´ve experienced, lived…
With an opening press conference, a meeting with members of Congress at the National Parliament Building and a meeting with social organizations, Vía Campesina´s 3rd International Mission to Colombia was launched. The goal? To verify compliance with the Peace Accords signed in 2016 by the government (then led by Juan Manuel Santos) and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC,…
Vía Campesina´s 3rd Solidarity Mission will take place from March 29 to April 2 in three Colombian regions: Cauca, Tolima and Sumapaz. Nury Martínez, member of the Agricultural National Union Federation (FENSUAGRO) and the Political Coordination of La Vía Campesina South America, shared details about the Mission with Real World Radio. In order to verify if -and how- the Peace…
Water is more than a basic need: it is a right. In the struggle for this recognition there are many communities facing governments and corporations that attempt to take away this common good from them. Friends of the Earth Latin America and the Caribbean (ATALC) published at the end of 2018 the report Public Policy and the Fundamental Right to Water in…
March 21 marks the International Day of Forests. This date was chosen by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in order to raise awareness about the importance of forests. This year, the theme is “Forests and Education”. However, for the World Rainforest Movement (WRM) the first who needs to be educated is the FAO, since its…
The Federal Court, the highest court of Malaysia, unanimously dismissed an appeal filed by Raub Australian Gold Mining (RAGM), a gold mining company that had sued activist Sherly Hue for defamation. Hue is part of the resistance against the company´s operations in Bukit Koman, Pahang State. The Court´s decision issued in mid-February, which puts an end to the suit that…
On March 18th, Sergio Rojas, a Bribri indigenous leader, was murdered after being shot 15 times in Yeri, Salitre area, in southern Costa Rica. As a member of the National Coordination of the National Front of Indigenous Peoples (FRENAPI), Rojas fought for the restitution of ancestral lands and the conservation of native ecosystems. Local organizations condemned this “vile murder” and…
March 14th marks the International Day of Action against Dams and for Rivers. Mobilizations around the world denounced the socioenvironmental impacts of these construction works that operate in hydroelectric and mining projects. The Climate Justice and Energy Program of Friends of the Earth International expressed its solidarity with the communities affected by hydroelectric dams, especially the Lenca indigenous people defending…
The thermal power plant located in Gacko municipality has caused multiple human health problems since it was built in 1983. It is the second biggest polluter in the Western Balkans due to its emission of fine particles (PM10). In 2016 alone it caused 158 deaths, 331 cases of bronchitis in children and 83 cases of chronic bronchitis in adults, 3371 children with…
Retired military police officer Ronnie Lessa (48) and former military police Élcio Vieira de Queiroz (46) were arrested in the early morning of March 12, accused of being the ones who executed Marielle Franco, councilwoman of PSOL Party and her driver, Anderson Gomes, almost a year ago. The arrest was made by the Homicide Division of the Civil Police of…
