Human Rights


Chile mobilizes for peace, solidarity and dignity

The Chilean Central Union of Workers (CUT) will peacefully mobilize this Wednesday 30 throughout the country in the framework of a national strike called by the Social Unity Platform. In Santiago, the march will start at 11 am with posters and banners from unions, student, environmental and feminist organizations. Mobilizations have been taking place, uninterrupted, since October 18, when students…

Historic legal action against Total in France for operations in Uganda

Four organizations from Uganda and two from France filed a lawsuit against oil giant Total in French court on Wednesday,  accusing the company of not taking the necessary measures to respect human rights and the environment in its oil megaproject in Uganda. To make way for exploratory works for oil drilling, Total evicted approximately 5000 people from their lands, before…

5th Session of UN negotiations on Binding Treaty and Human Rights came to an end

The negotiations of the UN Human Rights Council Working Group towards a legally Binding Treaty on transnational corporations and human rights abuses perpetrated by them drew to a close Friday in Geneva, Switzerland. Several social movements and organizations, gathered in the Global Campaign to Dismantle Corporate Power and Stop Impunity, welcomed the advance of the process. Nevertheless, they expressed concern…

Threats and abuses of the growing gas industry in Mozambique

Mozambique is rapidly becoming one of the Liquified natural gas (LNG) giants of the world. With little international media coverage, oil and gas monsters such as Exxon, Eni, Chevron, Shell and BP are rubbing their hands at the million dollar business prospects in this African country. Ongoing projects, whilst still in their exploration and construction stages, are already displacing local…

Hard blow for communities suffering human rights violations at global level

“The attempts to establish the supremacy of human rights over corporate logic are not covered in the entire text of the Draft 1”, warned Brazilian expert Manoela Roland about the new document presented by the Ecuadorian Chair in UN negotiations for a legally binding treaty on transnational corporations and human rights. “In addition, the scope of the future treaty has…

Plastic waste trade: one of the most cynical businesses in the capitalist world

“We are calling for an end to all plastic waste trade. We find that some of the developed countries are still trying to dump their waste into other countries. Do not dump your waste into developing nations”, (This is what said on Monday environmental activist Mageswari Sangaralingam of SAM - Friends of the Earth Malaysia in an interview with Real…

UN scientific report warns about historic environmental devastation

A scientific report issued on Monday states that the natural world is in a dire situation and that human actions have significantly altered nature in different parts of the world. “Human actions threaten more species with global extinction now than ever before. Around 1 million species already face extinction, many within decades, unless action is taken to reduce the intensity…

“Peasants are the ones who are standing up to a rise of fascism”

April 17 marks the International Day of Peasant Struggle to remember the 19 peasants  of the Landless Rural Workers Movement of Brazil who were murdered in 1996 in the “Massacre of Eldorado dos Carajas”. That day, tens of police officers attacked 1500 landless peasants in Eldorado dos Carajás. Since then, every April 17, there are thousands of demonstrations around the…

Malaysian Court rules in favor of activist accused of defamation by transnational mining company

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…

Highlights of Friends of the Earth International’s work through communications

Take a journey through our campaigns and top moments from 2017 and 2018: demonstrations and public actions, work programs and the hottest topics, the painful and most rewarding moments. This film was shared in November 2018 at Friends of the Earth International’s General Meeting - the highest decision-making body of the federation, as part of a communications’ report.