The New Snake Oil? Violence, threats & false promises driving rapid palm oil expansion in Liberia
As Liberia emerges as a new frontier market for the world’s cheapest, most popular vegetable oil, The New Snake Oil details how state officials are said to be helping the palm oil company Golden Veroleum (GVL) harass communities into signing away their land and crush dissent. The report also documents the huge foreign investment, state-sanctioned violence, and regulatory black holes that are making this possible. Global Witness reveals how GVL (whose parent company is the Indonesian Golden Agri-Resources) accelerated its operations at the peak of Liberia’s 2014 Ebola outbreak. This report comes at a point when ten percent of Liberia has been designated for agricultural plantations, despite the lack of a legal framework to regulate how companies acquire contracts, operate and remain accountable for their activities (www.globalwitness.org, 2015).
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Territories of Life
The Territories of Life toolkit is a series of 10 short videos that share stories of resistance, resilience and hope with communities on the front-line of the global rush for land. These videos, available in English, Spanish, French, Indonesian and Swalhili and are currently being disseminated widely by community facilitators.