Perverting justice: The criminalisation of land and environmental defenders in Asia

Between 2018 and 2024, 341 land and environmental defenders were detained across 344 incidents in the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Vietnam. The report details how legal systems are weaponised through trumped-up charges, anti-terrorism laws, and defamation statutes to protect corporate interests in agribusiness and mining. Key tactics include 'red-tagging' in the Philippines, the use of 'National Strategic Projects' in Indonesia, and the application of vague penal codes in Vietnam.

• Between 2018 and 2024, 341 land and environmental defenders were detained or arrested across 344 separate incidents in the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Vietnam. Of these, 73% were men and 27% were women. Indigenous Peoples and farmers each accounted for 26% of cases where defender characteristics were reported.
• The majority of recorded detentions (59%) were linked to land struggles. In Indonesia, laws criminalising crop cultivation on public or plantation land are used to imprison defenders in land disputes, with potential sentences of up to four years. The 'Eco-City' project on Rempang Island, a 'National Strategic Project (NSP)', has led to the arrest of 50 defenders as of 2023.
• India is a primary site for protest-related detentions, accounting for 60 out of 67 cases where charges were linked to protests. Defenders in the Hasdeo region face harassment and criminal charges, such as fraud and rioting, for opposing coal-mining operations.
• Governments use speech-related laws to stifle dissent. In the Philippines, 'cyber libel' is used against journalists. In Vietnam, Articles 117 and 331 of the 2015 penal code, which criminalise 'abuses' of free speech or 'distorted information', were used in nearly two-thirds of all defender arrests in that country.
• Defenders are frequently branded as enemies of the state. In the Philippines, 'red-tagging' labels defenders as communists, often leading to official 'terrorist' designations under the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020. In India, the Unlawful Activities and Prevention Act (UAPA) is used to detain defenders without evidence and restrict bail.
• Due process violations are widespread, with 81% of cases where detention length was known involving pre-trial detention for a week or longer. In Vietnam, the government has used tax-evasion laws as 'shams' to imprison NGO leaders, such as Nguy Thi Khanh, who was sentenced to 24 months in prison.
• The military is heavily involved in criminalisation in the Philippines, where it was present at 27% of all documented arrests by Forum-Asia and involved in around two-thirds of all defender arrests in the country.

APA

Global Witness (2024). Perverting justice: The criminalisation of land and environmental defenders in Asia. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/perverting-justice-the-criminalisation-of-land-and-environmental-defenders-in-asia/

Chicago

Global Witness. Perverting justice: The criminalisation of land and environmental defenders in Asia. 2024. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/perverting-justice-the-criminalisation-of-land-and-environmental-defenders-in-asia/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Witness |title=Perverting justice: The criminalisation of land and environmental defenders in Asia |date=2024 |url=https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/perverting-justice-the-criminalisation-of-land-and-environmental-defenders-in-asia/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalwitness2024perverting, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{Perverting justice: The criminalisation of land and environmental defenders in Asia}}, institution = {Global Witness}, year = {2024}, url = {https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/land-and-environmental-defenders/perverting-justice-the-criminalisation-of-land-and-environmental-defenders-in-asia/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }