Difensori dei diritti della terra e dell'ambiente in pericolo: una panoramica su casi recenti

The report documents a global pattern of violence and legal harassment against land and environmental rights defenders in 2013. It argues that these individuals, often representing vulnerable indigenous or rural communities, are targeted by governments and corporations during conflicts over natural resources and large-scale development projects. The document provides specific case studies from Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia, detailing arrests, assassinations, and forced displacements linked to opposition to mining, hydroelectric dams, agribusiness, and oil exploration.

• Land and environmental rights defenders are identified as the second most vulnerable group regarding the risk of being killed.
• Defenders of land and environmental rights face a wide array of threats, including criminalization, arbitrary detention, violent attacks, and murder, often occurring within a climate of impunity.
• The vulnerability of these defenders is driven by global competition for land and resources, where national economic development often relies on exporting natural resources and implementing large-scale projects supported by states and multinational corporations.
• Human rights defenders opposing large-scale development projects are frequently stigmatized by authorities as being 'anti-government', 'contrary to development', or 'enemies of the State'.
• In the Americas, defenders in Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico have faced severe violence and legal persecution linked to opposition to mining (e.g., AngloGold Ashanti in Colombia), hydroelectric dams (e.g., Hidroituango in Colombia), and agribusiness (e.g., palm oil in Colombia and Philippines).
• In Asia, defenders in Burma, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, and the Philippines have been targeted for opposing 'land grabbing', mining (e.g., Letpadaung copper mine in Burma), and energy projects (e.g., Four Rivers project in South Korea).
• In Africa, defenders in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Nigeria have faced judicial persecution and intimidation, specifically regarding oil exploration in Virunga National Park and opposition to REDD programs.
• In Europe, the report highlights the arrest of 30 Greenpeace activists (the 'Arctic 30') in the Russian Federation for protesting against Gazprom's oil drilling and climate change.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). Difensori dei diritti della terra e dell'ambiente in pericolo: una panoramica su casi recenti. https://www.ciel.org/Publications/Difensori_diritti_ambientali_Dec2013.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Difensori dei diritti della terra e dell'ambiente in pericolo: una panoramica su casi recenti. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/Publications/Difensori_diritti_ambientali_Dec2013.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Difensori dei diritti della terra e dell'ambiente in pericolo: una panoramica su casi recenti |url=https://www.ciel.org/Publications/Difensori_diritti_ambientali_Dec2013.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawnddifensori, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Difensori dei diritti della terra e dell'ambiente in pericolo: una panoramica su casi recenti}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/Publications/Difensori_diritti_ambientali_Dec2013.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }