Thank you, John!

Global timber giant Samling has given in to international public pressure
and dropped its lawsuit against Borneo’s Forest Defenders. It’s a huge win
for Indigenous and environmental rights.

This lawsuit was designed to silence and bankrupt the small grassroots
organisation, Save Rivers, that exposed Samling for destroying Indigenous
land, deforesting huge swathes of rainforest, and pushing endangered
gibbons toward extinction.

The Indigenous led campaign was supported by the Ekō community all around
the world. More than 5,800 of us chipped in to help fund the Forest
Defender’s legal costs so they could keep fighting the lawsuit.

We helped shine a global spotlight on Samling with more than 33,000 Ekō
members signing the petition calling on Samling to drop the case. 5,400
people emailed Samling’s CEO directly amplifying this ask which put so
much pressure on Samling it went to the police and tried to file
harassment charges against Save Rivers (it didn’t work).

Here’s what a Forest Defender said after Samling dropping the lawsuit:

"We’re grateful for all the international support we received from various
organizations, prominent leaders, and the Indigenous peoples' communities.
Let’s all continue to fight for the rights of the Indigenous communities
and defend the environment."

[1]group of forest defenders

This a massive victory but the fight isn’t over – though Save Rivers no
longer face a lawsuit that would have bankrupted and silenced them,
Samling continues to destroy Indigenous land.

But the lawsuit being dropped is proof that when people come together and
take action we can win against multimillion dollar corporations. And it’s
not the only bad news for Samling. It’s also been revealed that the Forest
Stewardship Council has accepted a complaint against Samling for violating
its certificate of sustainability.

Samling says it will welcome constructive comments and feedback from the
local community in Borneo and it will engage with all relevant
stakeholders. And we will be holding them accountable to that.



Thanks for all that you do,
Nish, Angus and the team at Ekō


More information:

[ [link removed] ]Astonishing outcome! Timber giant withdraws lawsuit against indigenous
forest defenders
Aliran. 18 September 2023.

[ [link removed] ]Indigenous activists in Borneo claim win as logging firm removes
equipment from disputed area
Mongabay. 18 September 2023.
 
[ [link removed] ]Forest Stewardship Council launches new investigation into timber giant
Samling
The Borneo Project. 11 May 2023.
 

 

 

Ekō is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy.

Please help keep Ekō strong by chipping in $3. [link removed]