On 20th May, the National Court of Papua New Guinea ordered the State to cancel two massive land leases claimed by Malaysian palm oil giant Kuala Lumpur Kepong (KLK). A total of 38,350 hectares in size, the two large pieces of land provide the indigenous communities in Collingwood Bay with what they need for survival and they are the basis for the locals’ economy.
It is confirmed the Malaysian company has conceded in this legal case and the 38,350ha of forest is safe! It is extremely rare that landowners (‘local communities’) succeed to stop an oil palm project of this size. This victory for the people Collingwood Bay is not only extremely important but also a huge one. Most of the 38,350 ha of land consist of pristine tropical forest containing extremely high levels of biological diversity.
However, KLK claim to have rights over another 5,992 hectares of forest also within Collingwood Bay, of which most is primary forest. The indigenous locals also depend on the forest within the 5,992 ha of Portion 5 State Land as a source of their livelihoods & survival.
KLK is a member of the RSPO and recently a signatory of the Sustainable Palm Oil Manifesto (SPOM), which declared several commitments including no deforestation in High Carbon Stock (HCS) areas. RSPO Principles & Criteria also prohibits deforestation of primary forests.
Over 80% of forest in Portion 5 State Land is primary forest and High Carbon Stock (HCS) forest.
Please sign and share the petition to tell KLK to pull out from Collingwood Bay.