Cambodia: Our rainforest needs protection
Cambodia has an extraordinary natural treasure: Prey Lang, the largest lowland rainforest on mainland Southeast Asia, and its wealth of animal and plant species, many of which are endangered.
Nevertheless, Prey Lang is being destroyed – for plantations and the export of precious woods. Local residents have established a network to protect it and ask for your support. Please sign their petition to the Cambodian government:
| TAKE ACTION |
Success in Brazil:
The authorities of the South American country have established the rights of two indigenous Guaraní-Kaiowá communities to over 40,000 hectares of land. more…
Thanks for being involved,
Reinhard Behrend
Rainforest Rescue (Rettet den Regenwald e.V.)
info@rainforest-rescue.org
www.rainforest-rescue.org
http://www.facebook.com/rainforest2rescue
“Too many forests have already disappeared,” says Vong Phan, a resident of the village of Stung Treng. “We cannot afford to lose another one – especially not one as important as Prey Lang.” The 56-year-old grandmother is expressing the feelings of most residents.
200,000 inhabitants, mainly of the indigenous Kuy people, depend on the Prey Lang forest. “We rely on it for our livelihoods,” says Prum Lom of the village of Spong. “We survive by using and selling the forest’s products: rattan, tree resin, fruit, game and medicinal plants.”
At around 360,000 hectares, Prey Lang is the last major lowland rainforest on the Southeast Asian mainland. Its diverse ecosystems are home to numerous Red List animal and plant species, including elephants, clouded leopards, Siamese crocodiles and pileated gibbons, as well as most of the trees felled there day after day. Its precious wood – rosewood, meranti and balau – is in worldwide demand as garden furniture and flooring materials.
Yet the indigenous peoples of Prey Lang will no longer tolerate brutal expulsion from their lands and the destruction of their livelihoods. Numerous communities have established a network under the auspices of the Natural Resource Protection Group (NRPG). The participants organize petitions and protests, as well as patrols to stop illicit lumberjacks and confiscate chainsaws that frequently belong to local officials.
The military and authorities are deeply implicated in the land grabs and plundering of natural resources. Draft legislation to protect Prey Lang has already been drawn up, but it has yet to be ratified by the government. Please help with your signature.