Top: Dennis Broh of Nitrian Community files a complaint against GVL with the EPA as SDI’s Sampson Williams looks on. The DayLight/Harry Browne.
By Esau J. Farr
MONROVIA – The Nitrain Community Forest in Sinoe County has filed a complaint against Golden Veroleum Liberia (GVL) over alleged land grab and human rights abuses. Margibi-based NGO Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) filed the complaint on behalf of the community with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Monrovia recently.
“The Liberian government should ensure GVL restores the forests it has destroyed and provides measurable compensation for lands taken from communities without their consent,” said Dennis Broh, a Nitrain leader. “The forests of Liberia should benefit the people, not a company that treats the people and environment with contempt.”
The complaint alleges that GVL’s operations may violate several Liberian environmental laws. It called on the EPA to investigate and hold the company accountable. It accuses GVL of encroaching on Nitrain’s land, which it alleges violates the Land Rights Act and other laws.
In 2018, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) found GVL guilty of land grabs and other rights abuses in Sinoe. The RSPO mandated the Malaysian oil company to renegotiate with affected communities, but that has not happened.
Like RSPO, the High Carbon Stock Approach, which focuses on deforestation and climate change, confirmed in 2021 that GVL cleared 1,000 hectares of forestland in Nitrain without locals’ consent. It mandated GVL to restore the cleared forest area, but GVL has failed to do so, according to the complaint.
Nitrain said it was tired of waiting for international watchdogs to speak on its behalf. Now was the time to take action nationally. However, the community urged the EPA to collaborate with the RSPO and the HCSA in redressing the matter.
“It’s no secret that GVL has destroyed Liberia’s rich forests, grabbed land from communities, and failed to deliver on its promises…,” said James Otto, a lead campaigner at SDI.
“Despite being ordered to restore 1,000 hectares of forests it destroyed, GVL has not complied,” added Otto.
GVL signed an agreement with the Liberian government in 2010 for 220,000 hectares of land for 65 years. The Indonesian palm oil company has the largest palm oil plantation in Liberia. Allegations of land grab and human rights abuses have marred its operations. GVL did not reply to queries for comments in this story.
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