As rainforest habitats are destroyed in Indonesia, Indonesian and Chinese oil palm processing companies are switching focus towards Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Africa and South America to keep up with demand for palm oil.
Papua New Guinea and West Papua were divided up and taken by force colonial forces from Indonesia in the middle of last century, however for the indigenous owners of the islands of Papua and Melanesia, the Papuans who have lived the region for thousands of years simply call this region – home. Read more about this at the bottom of this page.
#PapuaNewGuinea and #WestPapua harbour unusual and beautiful #animals. All forest-dwellers are endangered by #palmoil #deforestation @RSPOtweets is #greenwashing #ecocide #FightGreenwashing with your wallet #Boycott4Wildlife
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#PapuaNewGuinea and #WestPapua harbour the most unusual and beautiful #wildlife in the world. All forest-dwellers are endangered by #palmoil #deforestation by big brands. @RSPOtweets certification makes no difference. #Boycott4Wildlife
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Rainforest animals and rainforest peoples in Papua are under attack from global palm oil plantations and industrial-military actions on their illegally taken land
Indigenous Melanesian peoples of West Papua and Papua New Guinea are the rightful and original custodians of Papuan rainforests. Their voices deserve to be heard in environmental campaigns.
Yet Indonesia has embarked on an extensive greenwashing campaign to make these people invisible. Papuans never ceded sovreignty of their land and they have a right to have it back. Palm Oil Detectives works in solidarity with Melanesian and West Papuan support networks to raise the voices of Papuan indigenous activists.
There are many ways you can join the fight too. Become a Palm Oil Detective and Take Action today!
On Twitter, a South East Asian couple wears Papuan indigenous traditional clothing in an obvious effort to erase Melanesian ethnicity and to normalise Indonesian rule – Spoiler: Papuans never ceded their sovereignty
More stories about Papua’s indigenous peoples and rare animals
Papua harbours uniquely beautiful animals including rare marsupials and birds not found anywhere else on the planet. In the lush and fertile forests of Papua live thinking, feeling and intelligent beings that love their children. Just like us, they just want to survive and have their animal families and communities left in peace. These animals live in Papua New Guinea and have a IUCN Red List status of Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable. Although animal conservation is still relatively new in Papua New Guinea, there is hope, with conservation foundations working to protect these species and the rainforest they live in.
Contribute in five ways
1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.
2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.
3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.
4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.
5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here
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