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The murders of land and environmental activists have increased in 2017. Mexico and the Philippines have recorded a worrying increase in this type of death and Brazil has been the country with the most of cases in a single year. Tuesday.
According to Global Witness, at least 207 people were protecting land and natural resources before commercial interests lost their lives last year, up from 201 in 2016. That made 2017 the year the deadliest since the group officially began collecting data in 2015.
This figure is certainly far below the reality because of the difficulties in identifying and confirming these murders, he added.
In many cases, consumer demand is helping to fuel pressures when farm businesses increase their production of coffee, palm oil, cane sugar and other profitable crops. For the first time, more activists who fought against this type of practice are dead than against mining interests, according to the report.
"The number of murders continues to increase, which clearly shows that governments and businesses have not given priority to this issue and have not shown the seriousness of the issue. "Stop," said Ben Leather, author of The fact that, for the first time, a greater number of deaths has been badociated with agribusiness "should serve as an alarm signal to businesses and to those who invest in large-scale farming to do better and make sure your money does not finance this violence. "
In Brazil, the struggle for control of the resources of the Amazon often leads to conflict, and remains the deadliest country for land activists, with 57 last year, the highest figure for a single country since the start of Global Witness registrations.
But there were also disturbing increases in the Philippines, which is the deadliest nation in Asia with 48 victims, 70% more and in Mexico, where 15 deaths were recorded. Of the 13 cases documented in the Democratic Republic of Congo, all but one were forest rangers who protected wildlife.
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