A record number of environmentalists, land and water defenders were assassinated in 2020 — with advocates in the Global South disproportionately targeted with violence

New York, September 12 (RHC)-- A record number of environmentalists, land and water defenders were assassinated in 2020 — with advocates in the Global South disproportionately targeted with violence.  That’s according to an annual report by Global Witness, which documented that at least 227 environmental activists were murdered last year. 

More than one-third of the killings involved Indigenous leaders.  Colombia, Mexico, the Philippines and Brazil recorded the most murders as local communities resist mines, deforestation and other destructive industries that contribute to the climate crisis. 

The report says: “As the climate crisis deepens, forest fires rampage across swathes of the planet, drought destroys farmland, and floods leave thousands dead, the situation for frontline communities and defenders of the Earth is getting worse.”