Nearly 200 environmental activists killed in 2023, NGO says

Nearly 200 environmental defenders were murdered worldwide in 2023, the NGO Global Witness announced in a report published on Tuesday, September 10, compared to 177 in 2022. Around 85% of the 196 murders of environmental and land rights defenders committed last year were in South America.

The NGO is particularly alerting to the situation in Colombia, where 79 activists were killed in 2023, the highest number since Global Witness began producing its annual report in 2012. Most of these crimes occurred in regions located in the southwest of the country, while criminal organizations are suspected of having committed at least half of them. Colombia is due to host the United Nations conference on biodiversity (COP16) in the city of Cali in October and November, which raises concerns about the safety of participants.

The report also highlights the grim record in Honduras, which recorded 18 murders, the highest homicide ratio per capita. In Asia, the Philippines remains the most dangerous country, with 17 murders of environmental activists. In Africa, Global Witness recorded only four deaths, but warned that this figure was likely to be “vastly underestimated” due to the difficulty in collecting information.

The NGO also denounces British and American legislation which provides for harsher sentences for protesters and activists, as well as “draconian levels of surveillance” in the countries of the European Union.