The project is the subject of an investment by SOCFIN Agricultural
Company Sierra Leone Ltd. (SOCFIN), a subsidiary of the Belgo-Luxembourgeois
company SOCFIN. The transnational corporation is also a subsidiary of the
French international investment and development group Bolloré, which claims to
follow the ethical business principles of
the Global Compact).
This SOCFIN project, which operates large-scale industrial palm oil
plantations in Malen Chiefdom, has deprived the communities living in the area
from their access to farmland and related natural resources. This has had
serious adverse impacts on their livelihoods and enjoyment of their human
rights, especially their right to food and nutrition. The affected communities
affirm that the land acquisition was not transparent, and that neither proper
community consultation nor participation in the decision-making process was
ensured.
The concerned coalition and local observers have witnessed an increasing
criminalization of community leaders and land rights activists who oppose this
land grab.
The signatories of the letter of concern addressed to President of the
Republic of Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma are members of the Global
Convergence of Land and Water Struggles in West Africa, the Global Network for
the Right to Food and Nutrition, the European Alliance “Hands on the Land for
Food Sovereignty” and other international social movements and civil society
organizations.
See the joint letter.
See further background on the related human rights
violations in Malen Chiefdom.
Support this case with your own letter through HLRN’s Urgent Action system.
Photo: Meeting of Sahn Malen farmers confronted by land grab. Source: My Development Diary blog.