Protest against landgrabs by Socfin and Bolloré now also in Europe
1 January 2015
In solidarity with communities of five countries, on 27 May 2015 international NGOs protested against a European company grabbing land and failing to respect commitments. The protest took place outside the Luxemburg hotel where the palm oil company Socfin held its annual shareholders’ meeting. Activists expressed concerns about the impact of Socfin and Bolloré Group (one of Socfin’s main shareholders) operations on communities in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Cambodia and Sierra Leone (FW204).
Communities demand that Socfin honours the communities’ rights to use the land – essential for their livelihoods. They also ask Socfin to uphold commitments made earlier regarding community compensation. Concerned shareholders asked Socfin for explanations during the General Assembly, but Hubert Fabri, Socfin’s major shareholder does not seem to be open to negotiations. Fabri, prosecuted in Belgium for fraud and fiscal evasion, has been officially accused of corruption. A recently released documentary about communities resisting landgrabbing focuses, among other things, on the Socfin case.
Category: Cameroon