New research reveals UK banks, energy giants, and arms exporters such as BP, Unilever and HSBC practice savage colonialism in West Papua. Specifically, these global giants are profiting from resource extraction driving mass deforestation and displacement in and colonialism in West Papua. An audit documents the role of British corporations like BP and Unilever, and banks like HSBC, in palm oil, mining, gas, and logging projects linked to severe human rights abuses in West Papua. Meanwhile, Indigenous communities in West Papua face ongoing repression, UK-linked industries extract vast wealth, continuing a destructive colonial legacy. #HumanRights #BoycottPalmOil
#News: 🇬🇧🤮 #UK bank #HSBC, #fossilfuel giant #BP, and #Unilever are profiting from #ecocide in #WestPapua for #palmoil #mining. It’s a long story of #colonial #exploitation and #humanrights abuses. Demand justice! #BoycottPalmOil @palmoildetect 🌴☠️🚫 https://wp.me/pcFhgU-dyg
Saunders, S. H., & Whyte, D. (2025, October 9). The alleged British links to mass deforestation and displacement in a conflict few have even heard of](https://theconversation.com/the-alleged-british-links-to-mass-deforestation-and-displacement-in-a-conflict-few-have-even-heard-of-265212). The Conversation.
Finance giants and savage colonialism in West Papua
A new report from Queen Mary University of London has exposed the deep entanglement of UK banks, energy corporations, and arms manufacturers in one of the world’s least-known human rights and environmental crises in West Papua, Indonesia. The research documents for the first time how British firms and financial institutions are profiting from destructive industries driving mass deforestation, widespread displacement, and severe human rights violations of indigenous communities in West Papua.
Torture, forced evictions and killings of Indigenous communities in West Papua
The audit identifies major British companies, including BP and Unilever, and financial giants like HSBC, as key beneficiaries of mining, palm oil, gas, and logging operations. These projects proceed despite strong community opposition. They are linked to allegations of torture, forced evictions and killings in West Papua. For example, BP’s Tangguh liquefied natural gas facility is within one of the world’s largest mangrove forests where 1000’s of species struggle to survive. The project is estimated to release 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon over its lifetime. Indigenous communities in West Papua criticise the project for alleged ties to Indonesian security forces and the forced relocation of ten villages. As a result severing local people from their ancestral fishing grounds.
14 British investors in West Papuan palm oil plantations
Palm oil is another key driver of destruction in West Papua, which is the site of the world’s largest single deforestation project for industrial agriculture. The report identifies 14 major British investors in West Papuan palm oil plantations, and notes that Unilever sources its palm oil from two mills in the region.
Gold mining in West Papua: Greedy and destructive
The environmental cost is staggering. The Grasberg mine, the world’s largest gold mine, dumps an estimated 300,000 tonnes of toxic waste into the Ajkwa river system daily, devastating fish stocks and rendering the river unnavigable. Gold and copper from this mine are traded on London’s commodity exchanges.
A modern continuation of savage colonialism in West Papua
The modern-day exploitation of Indigenous communities in West Papua continues as a legacy of savage colonialism that began with Britain’s brief colonial claim on the territory in 1793. UK strategic interests during the Cold War helped facilitate Indonesia’s controversial takeover of West Papua in the 1960s through a UN-backed vote widely dismissed as a sham. This paved the way for the current model of development, where foreign-backed projects extract immense wealth while local indigenous communities in West Papua are evicted and impoverished.
60,000 to 100,000 Papuans displaced: UN refugee agency
The UN refugee agency estimated that between 60,000 and 100,000 Papuans were displaced between 2018 and 2022, with human rights defenders suggesting the true number is even higher. The report concludes that until the people of West Papua are given control over their own resources, there is little hope of ending the cycle of repression and destruction.
Saunders, S. H., & Whyte, D. (2025, October 9). The alleged British links to mass deforestation and displacement in a conflict few have even heard of](https://theconversation.com/the-alleged-british-links-to-mass-deforestation-and-displacement-in-a-conflict-few-have-even-heard-of-265212). The Conversation.
ENDS
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