By: Kate Horner, former Executive Director & Igor Vejnovic This article originally appeared on Open Democracy. This week, activists from across the world are meeting in Tbilisi to share their experiences of resisting hydropower projects and the money that supports them. Free-flowing rivers are often the unsung heroes of the natural world. They support immense biodiversity, as…
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By: Maureen Harris, Programs Director “I cannot freely walk on my territory or swim in the sacred river and I am separated from my children because of the threats. I cannot live in peace, I am always thinking about being killed or kidnapped. But I refuse to go into exile. I am a human rights fighter…
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By: Peter Bosshard, former Executive Director This commentary first appeared in Mongabay When we learned that Berta Cáceres, a leader of the indigenous Lenca people, was murdered in Honduras, we were shocked but not surprised. A violent death is the all-too-frequent fate of indigenous activists who defend their rivers and lands against dams, logging and other forms of…
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By: Sarah Bardeen, former Communications Director In Sudan last week, dozens of peaceful protesters were injured when Sudanese police used force to break up a protest against the Kajbar and Dal dams. For some, it was deja vu – a painful echo of 2006-07, when Sudanese security forces took the lives of at least seven people who…
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By: Zachary Hurwitz In some countries, dams are being built without the basic protection of human rights. In Sarawak, Malaysia, the Murum Dam was built before even its environmental impact assessment was published or discussed with affected communities. In Brazil, the Belo Monte Dam was approved by the government in 2005 even before an EIA had been written in 2008;…
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By: Katy Yan Update: Twelve civil society organizations, including International Rivers, have sent letters to the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the UN Independent Expert on Human Rights and the Environment urging them to conduct formal investigations into the human rights impacts of the Barro Blanco dam located on the Tabasará River in Panama. The…
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