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September 13, 2021

Global Witness: Record Number of Environmental Activists Killed in 2020
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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 a 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."


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