José Antonio Arreola remembers the early morning when he had to leave his home, his wife, and his young children, with only a fellow activist by his side for support. Threats from organized crime forced him to flee..
Tag: LDSF
Oil Extraction in Turkana: Community Rights, Broken Promises, and the Fight for Justice
In 2012, the discovery of oil in the Lokichar oil basin of Turkana County, northwestern Kenya, was heralded as a milestone for national development. Tullow Oil Company, granted extraction rights under a Compulsory Land Acquisition process led by..
Fred Kariankei and the fight against conservation elite in Kenya
Fred Simiren Kariankei, an Indigenous Maasai community land rights defender from southern Kenya, never imagined that defending his people’s land would land him in prison. But in 2021, when he exposed what he believed was systematic betrayal by..
The Enduring Fight for the Philippines’ 4th UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
“Even though I am already old, I still want to help our community in this struggle. I will contribute to the cause in my own ways, for the future generations,” said 84-year-old Rudy Taong, as he signed a..
Uganda: Threats failed to stop struggle for Indigenous land recognition
Proactively Protecting Ancestral Land in the Philippines: A Tagbanua Community’s Fight for Justice
In early 2024, a Tagbanua Indigenous community faced a critical challenge when a retired soldier claimed ownership of five hectares of their ancestral land. The community, recognizing the potential loss of their homes and livelihoods, decided to take..
