Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Amnesty International –

Iraq’s government must deliver on its human rights commitments to end systemic impunity for human rights violations, uphold women’s and girls’ rights, and guarantee fundamental freedoms, Amnesty International said today in an open letter to Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi marking three months since the adoption of a new ministerial programme. 

Three months after launching the government’s 2026–2029 Ministerial Programme on 14 May 2026, little progress has been made on delivering on promises to strengthen human rights, empower women, and bolster independent civil society.  

Despite commitments to address the scourge of violence against women and girls, survivors are left with little redress and protection, including from femicides, as draft domestic violence legislation – introduced more than a decade ago – remains stalled in Iraqi parliament. Further, amendments to the Personal Status Code adopted in August 2025—based on Jaafari Shia jurisprudence— continue to undermine the equality of women and girls before the law.  

Independent civil society activists, journalists, and human rights defenders face intimidation, judicial harassment, and physical violence for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly. Peaceful protesters demanding basic rights, including during demonstrations in June and July 2026 against electricity cuts in the southern city of al-Kut, continue to be met with unlawful force by security forces and detentions. 

This Government must chart a new course for Iraq, in particular for those whose human rights have been violated with impunity for too long: women and girls, detainees, those forcibly disappeared and their relatives, human rights defenders, activists and media workers

Razaw Salihy, Amnesty International

“This Government must chart a new course for Iraq, in particular for those whose human rights have been violated with impunity for too long: women and girls, detainees, those forcibly disappeared and their relatives, human rights defenders, activists and media workers,” said Razaw Salihy, Iraq Researcher at Amnesty International. 

“The Prime Minister must prioritize the adoption of comprehensive legislation against gender-based violence, ensure prompt and impartial investigations into attacks on activists, end the use of ‘public morality’ campaigns that undermine freedom of expression and peaceful dissent and remove restrictions and any form of interference on independent media.”   

Human rights defenders, especially women’s rights defenders, journalists, and activists, continue to face persistent attacks, intimidation, and judicial harassment simply for doing their job. The first half of 2026 saw escalating attacks, including the 2 March assassination of activist Yanar Mohammed in the capital city of Baghdad. Investigations were announced, but no information has been publicly shared on their progress. Another activist survived an attempted killing on 21 April in Babel governorate. Instead of ensuring accountability for these targeted attacks, the Iraqi authorities are actively shrinking civic space by enforcing vague “indecent content” rules, imposing punitive restrictions on independent media, using “dormant arrest warrants” to instil fear, and deploying unlawful force against peaceful protesters. 

In prisons across Iraq, overcrowding, inadequate sanitation, and a critical lack of access to healthcare make conditions cruel and inhuman. Families of detainees routinely report the ill-treatment of their loved ones as well as denial of or delays in accessing medical care. Furthermore, despite well-documented fair trial violations, thousands, primarily convicted of terrorism-related offences, remain at risk of execution.  

“This Government must demonstrate unequivocal resolve in ending the long-standing denial of truth and justice to the anguished families of the thousands of victims of enforced disappearance by revealing their fate and providing adequate reparations for the harm suffered,” said Razaw Salihy. 

“Iraq’s Prime Minister must also break with the past by immediately establishing an official moratorium on all executions and guaranteeing justice for survivors of torture, which must be stamped out without further delay.” 

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Greenpeace has delivered a powerful message to Andy Burnham in a land artwork on the site of an extinguished wildfire in North Wales, urging the new PM to take serious action to address the climate impacts battering the country and reject more oil and gas drilling. 

High-resolution images and video footage of the action are available here. 

Activists installed the land art on Sychnant Pass (within Eryri National Park) in Conwy, Wales, where “terrifying” wildfires recently incinerated vast parts of the landscape. Greenpeace used the scorched earth as a canvas to send a message to the new PM: “Our house is on fire Andy”, accompanied by an illustration of Burnham poised to pour oil and gas over the flames.

The 1,120 m² artwork, made using eco-friendly, plastic-free paint, draws on Greta Thunberg’s famous speech in 2019, where she urged world leaders to take action to stop climate change. 

The protest lands at the end of a summer defined by climate extremes. Following successive heatwaves throughout June, July and August, the UK is on track to record its warmest summer on record. Drought conditions now grip almost three-quarters of the country, with over 27 million facing water restrictions. These extreme conditions have proven deadly, with May and June’s heatwaves accounting for an estimated 2,700 excess deaths. 

It also lands on the final day of a public consultation on whether to approve Rosebank, a controversial oil field branded a “carbon bomb” by campaigners and “climate vandalism” by Ed Miliband. Consultation for Jackdaw, another gas field in the North Sea, closed a week before.  

Despite Labour’s stated climate commitments, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has left the door open to approving these licenses under the guise of a “pragmatic” approach to energy security.

“The PM wants to be pragmatic, but there is nothing pragmatic about watching communities be battered by climate chaos while the Prime Minister flirts with expanding the very industry driving it. This summer has been an endless showreel of fossil-fuelled disasters playing out across the country. As the Conwy community reels from their own, we’re urging Andy to see through the self-serving promises of Big Oil and take an honest look at the real world consequences of more North Sea drilling.

“More drilling means more heatwaves, more droughts, more wildfires, and more suffering for the communities Burnham represents. The climate crisis is already hitting working people hardest — firefighters on the front line, bus drivers exposed to inhumane conditions, nurses collapsing on the job. 

“Does the Prime Minister really want to stand with the oil companies making billions, rather than the millions already paying the price? Our message is simple: be brave – say no.”

The environmental and moral consequences of more drilling in the North Sea are significant. Estimates show that the Rosebank project would generate a total of 254 million tonnes of CO₂ over its lifetime – equivalent to nearly 70% of the UK’s entire annual emissions in 2024. 

Oxfam research suggests that if both the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields are approved, their combined lifetime emissions would contribute to an estimated 65,495 excess heat deaths globally – equivalent to wiping out the entire population of Clacton-on-Sea.

Evidence also shows that approving Rosebank would not lower energy bills, nor meaningfully impact the UK’s energy security – with 80% of Rosebank’s oil reserves destined for export and all of it sold at global market prices. The government’s own energy factsheet confirms this, saying: “We are price-takers, not price-makers.”

ENDS

Contact: 

Molly Robson, Press Officer at Greenpeace UK

press@greenpeace.org or 020 7865 8255 

Source: Amnesty International –

Representatives from Latin American and Caribbean states will meet in Montevideo (Uruguay) from 18 to 20 August 2026 to participate in the sixth session of the Regional Conference on Population and Development (CRPD). 

This United Nations Conference is intended to follow up on the Montevideo Consensus, one of the region’s most significant agreements for guaranteeing the rights of different population groups, including women, girls, children and adolescents, older persons, migrants, Afro-descendant and Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities and LGBTQIA+ persons, among others.  

“Amid a relentless wave of attacks on the rights of women, girls and adolescents, the Montevideo Consensus must continue to be a roadmap for the protection of human rights and not a mere list of outstanding promises. Current challenges require concrete actions, adequate resources and effective accountability mechanisms”, said Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International. 

Amid a relentless wave of attacks on the rights of women, girls and adolescents, the Montevideo Consensus must continue to be a roadmap for the protection of human rights and not a mere list of outstanding promises.”

Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International. 

This Conference comes amidst growing rhetoric that seeks to discredit decades of progress in gender equality and restrict the work of those who defend such rights. In much of the region, the dismantling of public policies essential for guaranteeing sexual and reproductive rights, such as comprehensive sexuality education, access to contraception, information on sexual and reproductive health and access to legal abortion, has intensified, limiting the ability of women, girls and adolescents to make free and informed decisions regarding their bodies and their life projects.  

These measures disproportionately affect adolescent girls, who still suffer high unintended pregnancy rates that condition their life choices, their access to education and employment, and their right to equality. They also affect migrant women, who experience greater barriers in access to maternal, sexual and reproductive health as a result of discrimination associated with their origin and/or legal status.  

With regard to sexual violence against girls, Latin America and the Caribbean is the region in the world with the second highest pregnancy rates among girls. The Girls, Not Mothers (Niñas, No Madres) campaign has documented for years how justice, health and social protection systems systematically fail to guarantee the rights of girls who are victims of sexual violence, denying them timely access to information, comprehensive care, justice and reparations. In addition, girls face institutional neglect, stigmatization, educational barriers, permanent impacts on their physical and mental health and the imposition of motherhood in the midst of their childhood.   

“The region must stop normalizing an intolerable reality. No girl should be forced to become a mother. The prevention of sexual violence, comprehensive sexuality education, access to health services and justice, and the guarantee of comprehensive reparations must be centre stage in the Conference agenda”, said Lucía Pérez Chabaneau, executive director at Amnesty International Uruguay. 

 The prevention of sexual violence, comprehensive sexuality education, access to health services and justice, and the guarantee of comprehensive reparations must be centre stage in the Conference agenda”. 

Lucía Pérez Chabaneau, executive director at Amnesty International Uruguay. 

The Americas region is experiencing a worrying increase in rhetoric that seeks to discredit and criminalize the reporting of gender-based violence, and this extends in some countries to proposals for legislation. According to UN Women, the evidence indicates that false reports account for only a tiny fraction of all reports and do not constitute a widespread problem, much less one associated with sexual or gender-based violence. On the contrary, violence against women continues to be underreported. 

Legal initiatives in this regard reinforce discriminatory stereotypes and have a chilling effect on those who already face more obstacles to reporting, greater difficulties in providing evidence and an increased fear of not being believed, which in turn results in silence and impunity. This trend is particularly serious when disappearances and feminicides continue to claim thousands of lives in the region. 

“The Regional Conference on Population and Development must consolidate institutional progress aimed at guaranteeing the rights of women, girls and adolescents. This begins with making gender justice a priority for states and ensuring that the institutions tasked with safeguarding women’s rights are not dismantled, defunded, subordinated to or merged with other bodies”, said Jennie Dador, executive director at Amnesty International Peru. 

The Conference must consolidate institutional progress aimed at guaranteeing the rights of women, girls and adolescents. This begins with making gender justice a priority for states and ensuring that the institutions tasked with safeguarding women’s rights are not dismantled, defunded, subordinated to or merged with other bodies”.

Jennie Dador, executive director at Amnesty International Peru. 

In recent years, feminist organizations, women searching for disappeared persons, women human rights defenders and civil society organizations have faced increasing restrictions and attacks in carrying out their work. In various countries across the region, legislative reforms and initiatives, stigmatization campaigns and excessive administrative requirements have been implemented against organizations working to promote access to justice, gender equality, sexual and reproductive rights and support for victims of gender-based violence.  

Women defenders often face gender-specific risks. In addition to threats, surveillance or criminalization, they are frequently the target of smear campaigns against their work and their personal lives. In many cases, these assaults include sexist language, attacks on their reputation, and the calling into question of their legitimacy to participate in the public debate. In contexts of criminality, impunity and institutional ineffectiveness, this violence has become lethal.  

Continued restrictions on civil society have direct consequences for the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus. Women’s organizations have played a decisive role in promoting legal reforms and access to sexual and reproductive health, supporting victims, searching for disappeared persons, producing evidence, monitoring public policies and demanding accountability.  

“The Montevideo Conference must send a clear message: every woman, girl and adolescent must be able to make free and informed decisions regarding their bodies, every woman survivor of violence must have support and protection from the state, and every woman defender must be able to demand justice and equality without fear of reprisals”, said Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International. 

Every woman, girl and adolescent must be able to make free and informed decisions regarding their bodies, every woman survivor of violence must have support and protection from the state, and every woman defender must be able to demand justice and equality without fear of reprisals”.

Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International. 

The Regional Conference on Population and Development can be followed online via the official channels of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). On 18 August, a civil society statement agreed by feminist networks will be delivered. Amnesty International will join advocacy, communication and mobilization actions to demand that states reaffirm and strengthen the Montevideo Consensus in favour of gender equality in the region. 

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact [email protected] 

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in Manila office

About the Role

The Assistant to the Country Representative provides administrative, logistical and operational support to the Country Representative (CR) and the GPSEA-PH Programme Team. Ensures efficient workflow, programme calendar management, documentation, meeting coordination, and smooth internal communication across units.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assess, refine, and maintain executive administrative workflows, digital tracking systems, and document management frameworks to support CR / Programme operations.
• Proactively identify operational bottlenecks and conceptualize streamlined administrative protocols to continuously elevate the quality, efficiency, and alignment of programme operations.
• Manage the CR’s calendar, meeting schedules, official correspondence, expense report, reimbursements and travel/logistical arrangements.
• Provide ad-hoc administrative and backup support to the Programme team across various campaign and project initiatives as required.
• Arrange logistics and coordinate schedules during program events, strategic planning sessions, workshops and campaign activities. 
• Coordinate procurement documentation (RFPs, RFQs, VSFs and related approvals) in accordance with GPSEA Procurement Policy. Procurement decisions remain with the designated budget holder and approving authorities
• Prepare / coordinate Programme meeting agenda; document meeting minutes, maintaining systematic monitoring to follow up on action points and ensure timely execution across teams
• Collaborate effectively with GPSEA regional teams and country offices to advance One GPSEA priorities.
• Serve as administrative liaison between the CR, CCT members, country programme staff, and regional administrative support departments.
• Organize and document Country Coordination Team (CCT) meetings, tracking action points and follow-ups.
• Coordinate meeting logistics, protocol invitations, and official communications with external partners, volunteers, government agencies, suppliers, and visitors.
• Ensure prompt scheduling, timely minute-taking, fast-track processing of financial claims, and efficient logistics coordination.
• Maintain high accuracy in official documentation, secure archival filing systems, and strict adherence to internal administrative and financial protocols.

Skills and Experience Requirements:

Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.

Deadline for applications: 23 August 2026

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Source: Greenpeace Statement –

This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in Manila office

About the Role

The Programme Officer supports programme planning, grant development, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL), knowledge management and adaptive learning across all country programmes. The position requires workload arrangement flexibility within the program portfolios and is eligible to be part of GPSEA’s staff pool list for Global Project Staffing (GPS)-assignments in a certain period reviewed and agreed by direct Line Manager

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assist Country Representative (CR) and GPSEA-PH programme team in program development, synthesizing campaign and project performance data, evaluating key metrics, and translating project outcomes into conceptual frameworks for funding proposals.
• Maintain an understanding of donor requirements, MEL methodologies, and institutional grant management.
• Draft narrative and technical components of MGF grant proposals, concept notes, and funder reports in collaboration with project leads and fundraising team.
• Track and maintain country MEL frameworks, consolidating project outputs, outcomes, and impact indicators.
• Collaborate effectively with GPSEA regional teams and country offices to advance One GPSEA priorities.
• Collaborate closely with CR, Campaigners, project leaders, project consultants, the regional MGF Unit, Regional Strategy & Analysis (S&A) and Engagement teams, Regional MEL point of contacts to gather project data and track key performance indicators.
• Coordinate with partner organizations, grant contacts, and external evaluators to collect reporting information, project verification documentation and grant-related data.
• Deliver high-quality grant reports, proposal drafts and MEL tracking updates strictly within established deadlines.
• Ensure high precision, clarity, and consistency in all documentation, adhering to donor guidelines, GPSEA brand standards, and reporting protocols.

Skills and Experience Requirements:

Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.

Deadline for applications: 23 August 2026

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Jobs

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Source: Greenpeace Statement –

This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in Manila office

About the Role

The Communications and Digital Campaigner develops, executes, and evaluates integrated media, public relations, and digital marketing strategies across campaign projects. Drives audience reach, deepens online engagement, leads media outreach, and manages brand positioning to support campaign impact. The position requires workload arrangement flexibility within the program portfolios and is eligible to be part of GPSEA’s staff pool list for Global Project Staffing (GPS)-assignments in a certain period reviewed and agreed by direct Line Manager.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Design integrated, audience-centric communication and digital marketing strategies, framing narratives and digital supporter growth models.
• Analyze issue conversations, social media analytics, media trends, and breaking news moments to identify framing and outreach opportunities.
• Produce digital and traditional media assets: write/edit press releases, op-eds, external Q&As, talking points, social media copy and email campaigns.
• Oversee platform optimization (SEO/SEM, website management, social platform growth) and manage digital engagement campaigns and paid promotion budgets.
• Supervise the briefing and production of multimedia content (videos, graphics, interactive tools) via creative vendors or internal teams.
• Collaborate effectively with GPSEA regional teams and country offices to advance One GPSEA priorities.
• Collaborate with Campaigners, Regional Digital/Comms Teams, and Fundraising specialists to ensure message alignment across all digital and media touchpoints.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with print, broadcast, and digital journalists, news editors and media decision-makers. Identify, recruit, and manage relationships with key influencers (KIs), digital creators, agencies, and creative freelancers.
• Execute multi-channel communications plans on schedule and deliver fast-response media materials during breaking news events
• Ensure strict adherence to GPSEA legal, editorial, privacy, and brand standards across both official organizational channels (website, social media) and external media coverage (press, news, partner features); track and report on key digital and media performance metrics.

Skills and Experience Requirements:

Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.

Deadline for applications: 23 August 2026

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Jobs

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Source: Greenpeace Statement –

This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in Manila office

About the Role

The Public Engagement and Action Campaigner leads public engagement, movement building, field logistics, and Non-Violent Direct Action (NVDA) design and execution. Mobilizes communities, strengthens activist networks, and manages action assets to amplify campaign impact through People Power. Spearheads volunteer engagement and leadership development at the core of campaign execution. The position requires workload arrangement flexibility within the program portfolios and is eligible to be part of GPSEA’s staff pool list for Global Project Staffing (GPS)-assignments in a certain period reviewed and agreed by direct Line Manager.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Develop public engagement strategies, volunteer journey models, movement-building approaches and creative NVDA tactical plans integrated into campaign theories of change.
• Design activist capacity-building programs, leadership development frameworks and risk assessment protocols. Organize offline community events, youth mobilization initiatives, volunteer workshops, and public rallies.
• Proactively identify strategic outreach opportunities to recruit new volunteers, promote and facilitate core onboarding and skills training programs, and steward volunteers through an end-to-end volunteer journey to maximize retention, leadership development, and campaign impact. 
• Lead the logistical planning, preparation, risk mitigation, and execution of NVDAs, direct communications, field tactics, and rapid response activities.
• Oversee the warehouse/hub, managing action equipment, tactical tools, and logistics inventory.
• Manage volunteer and activist tracking databases to maintain accurate, up-to-date records of supporter statuses and campaign involvement.
• Collaborate effectively with GPSEA regional teams and country offices to advance One GPSEA priorities.
• Work closely with Campaigners, the Regional Public Engagement & Actions (PEA) network, and Security focal points to integrate offline actions and volunteer pathways into campaign projects.
• Build, network, and maintain active relationships with local communities, volunteer hubs, youth organizations, allied NGOs, and activist networks.
• Ensure action readiness, timely deployment of field activities, prompt volunteer training delivery and fast execution during reactive opportunities
• Enforce strict non-violence principles, high safety and security compliance, comprehensive risk assessments, and rigorous debrief/evaluation cycles for all actions.
• Ensure volunteer safeguarding, wellbeing and inclusion throughout engagement and Non-Violent Direct Action (NVDA) activities

Skills and Experience Requirements:

Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.

Deadline for applications: 23 August 2026

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Jobs

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Source: Greenpeace Statement –

This is a 1-year fixed-term position based in Manila office

About the Role

The Senior Environmental and Political Campaigner Leads the formulation and execution of high-impact political, legislative, climate justice, and environmental campaign strategies for GPPH. Line manages specialized project consultants and drives policy interventions to achieve systemic policy and environmental wins. The position requires workload arrangement flexibility within the program portfolios and is eligible to be part of GPSEA’s staff pool list for Global Project Staffing (GPS)-assignments in a certain period reviewed and agreed by direct Line Manager.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Formulate advanced political, legislative, climate liability, and environmental campaign strategies, theories of change, and policy positions aligned with national and regional objectives.
• Analyze political dynamics, regulatory frameworks, legislative trends, and mindset/social sciences to identify strategic advocacy levers.
• Direct campaign projects from conception to completion, managing project budgets, timelines, and implementation plans.
• Line manage short-term/consultancy project roles.
• Produce fact sheets, policy submissions, legal/technical briefings, and campaign reports.
• Co-develop Non-Violent Direct Action (NVDA) concepts and tactical field interventions in coordination with action leads.
• Collaborate effectively with GPSEA regional teams and country offices to advance One GPSEA priorities.
• Lead cross-functional campaign project teams; keep the CR, regional campaign leads, and project members updated on strategy and risk changes.
• Collaborate with Communications, Engagement and Fundraising teams to integrate political messaging across all public-facing assets.
• Participate proactively in and as a member of GPSEA Strategy and Analysis (S&A) community team and contribute to delivery of the development and implementation of GPSEA regional-global Programme strategy priorities.
• Act as primary campaign spokesperson for environmental and climate issues with media, government decision-makers, and public forums.
• Build and catalyze strategic political alliances, grassroots networks, impacted community groups, human rights advocates, academic institutions, etc.
• Ensure timely deployment of campaign plans, policy submissions, and fast-response advocacy during reactive political moments.
• Maintain high strategic rigor, policy accuracy, political risk mitigation, and robust MEL framework evaluation for campaign outputs

Skills and Experience Requirements:

Greenpeace’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Greenpeace values diversity as essential to its mission and success. The organisation fosters an inclusive environment that respects varied cultural experiences and perspectives, promoting solutions rooted in social and environmental justice.

Deadline for applications: 23 August 2026

---

Jobs

Do you have a passion for this planet and want to do more? Work with us!

TAKE ACTION

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

Yaoundé, 14 August 2026 — As Cameroon celebrates the extraordinary journey of the Indomitable Lionesses, who transformed an unexpected opportunity into a place in the final of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) and qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup, Greenpeace Africa believes their remarkable story carries a powerful lesson beyond football.

Just as the Lionesses seized a second chance and inspired an entire nation, Ebo Forest also deserves a second chance.

The Ebo forest is rich in primates, featuring four nocturnal species (Galagoides thomasi, Arctocebus calabarensis, Sciurocheirus alleni, and Perodicticus edwardsi) and ten diurnal species, including two African great apes (Gorilla gorilla spp. and Pan troglodytes ellioti), one drill (Mandrillus leucophaeus leucophaeus), one mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus), one colobus (Piliocolobus preussi), and five guenons (Allochrocebus preussi, Cercopithecus nictitans, C. mona, C. erythrotis, and C. pogonias). The Black and White monkey (Colobus guereza) is nowadays considered locally extirpated, and five other species are becoming rare or very rare.

Home to exceptional biodiversity found nowhere else on Earth and the ancestral homeland of the Banen people, Ebo remains under continued pressure from industrial logging despite its immense ecological, cultural and global importance. For Greenpeace Africa, the determination shown by the Lionesses reflects the resilience of the communities who have spent decades defending one of Cameroon’s most valuable forests.

“The Lionesses have reminded every Cameroonian that setbacks do not define our future. They believed in themselves, they persevered, and today they have inspired an entire nation. Ebo Forest deserves that same opportunity. We still have the chance to choose protection over destruction and to leave future generations a forest they can be proud of.” declared Richard Ndi,  Forest & Biodiversity CampaignerGreenpeace Africa

Stretching across approximately 140,000 hectares in Cameroon’s Littoral Region, Ebo Forest shelters globally threatened wildlife including gorillas, Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees, drills and numerous endemic species. Beyond its extraordinary biodiversity, it is also the ancestral home of the Banen communities, whose culture, identity and livelihoods remain inseparable from the forest. Despite repeated public concern, logging concessions continue to threaten this globally significant ecosystem.

For Banen traditional leaders, the future of Ebo is by far more than protecting trees.

“For the Banen people, Ebo is not just a forest. It is our history, our cultural identity, and a sacred heritage bequeathed to us by our ancestors. Just as the Lionesses never gave up on their dream, we will never give up on protecting this forest. We remain hopeful that Cameroon will choose the path of courage by granting Ebo the lasting protection it deserves.” declared His Majesty Victor Yetina , traditional Leader of the Banen People

Greenpeace Africa stresses that protecting Ebo is not incompatible with development. On the contrary, safeguarding one of the Gulf of Guinea’s richest forests strengthens Cameroon’s commitments to biodiversity conservation, climate resilience and community-centred development while protecting the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.

“Great nations are distinguished not only by their sporting victories, but also by the decisions they make to protect their natural heritage. While we applaud the Lionesses for bringing glory to Cameroon, we also call on our leaders to take another historic step: giving the Ebo Forest a second chance by cancelling the permits granted to Greenfield SA, an agri-industrial palm oil company in Cameroon. By protecting Ebo today, Cameroon will protect its natural heritage, its communities, and its future.” concluded Richard Ndi.

As the nation rallies behind the Indomitable Lionesses ahead of the WAFCON final, Greenpeace Africa extends its heartfelt congratulations to the team for their extraordinary achievement.

May their courage, determination and resilience continue to inspire Cameroon on and off the pitch.

And just as the Lionesses proved that a second chance can change history, Greenpeace Africa calls on the Government of Cameroon to seize this historic opportunity to secure lasting protection for Ebo Forest—for nature, for communities and for generations to come.

**ENDS**

Contact:

Raphael Mavambu, Communication & Storytelling Manager, [email protected], Greenpeace Africa

Source: Greenpeace Statement –

JOHANNESBURG, 14 AUGUST 2026 – South Africa’s Constitutional Court has delivered a decisive victory for Wild Coast communities, ocean justice and environmental rights, by setting aside the exploration right that would have allowed Shell and Impact Africa to search for oil and gas off the Wild Coast, and closing any renewal route.

The precedent-setting judgment, authored by Justice Narandran “Jody” Kollapen and handed down today, sets aside a previous Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruling that had granted energy giants an opportunity to remedy unlawful exploration rights through renewal applications. The court ruled decisively that corporate financial investments cannot override constitutional violations or procedural injustice.

Delivering the majority judgment, Justice Narandran “Jody” Kollapen emphasised that economic development cannot steamroll community rights and cultural heritage:

“The enquiry cannot be reduced to a formal balancing exercise that treats cultural, religious, spiritual and environmental concerns as merely competing interests against economic development…A just and equitable remedy should therefore not allow speculative or corporation-centred economic benefits to outweigh procedural justice where communities’ livelihoods, cultural identity and environmental interests are directly at stake.”

South Africa’s coastline is a hotbed for oil and gas exploration activities that directly impact communities’ environments, livelihoods, heritage, and cultural practices. This judgment sets a critical precedent by establishing that procedural injustice and the failure to consult local communities cannot be cured after the fact, ensuring that human rights, ocean protection, and precautionary environmental law take strict priority over fossil fuel expansion. In reaching its decision, the Court drew on the July 2025 International Court of Justice advisory opinion on states’ climate obligations, underscoring that climate change must be weighed in decisions of this kind.

Civil Society & Community Reactions

Reflecting on the monumental ruling, Eugene Perumal, Governance and Legal Advisor at Greenpeace Africa, stated:

“14 August 2026 will go down as a historic day following this landmark judgment by the Constitutional Court. This ruling vindicates the affected grassroots communities of the Wild Coast, civil society organisations, and our legal representatives who fought tirelessly together.

The apex court firmly rejected Shell’s assertion—supported by the SCA—that the fundamental requirement for meaningful public participation could be applied retrospectively via the backdoor to cure a fatal illegality. While the minority judgment considered the multi-million dollar corporate investment, the majority correctly recognised that legitimising such an illegality would undermine our Constitution. The message from the Constitutional Court today is clear: people and their constitutional rights come before corporate profits.”

Adding to the significance of the ruling for frontline populations, Sherelee Odayar, Oil and Gas Campaigner at Greenpeace Africa, emphasised:

“For too long, frontline communities have been forced to bear the brunt of corporate exploitation without their consent. Today, the Constitutional Court affirmed that public participation is not a box-ticking exercise, but a mandatory protection of community dignity, cultural heritage and coastal livelihoods.”

We, as communities, did not know that we had the power to challenge the government until we met and worked with them. Without their support, the oil and gas would probably have already been drilled in these oceans, because even some of our own leaders—the people we look to in the areas where we live—were turning against us and offering our oceans to companies, saying that the oil and gas should be drilled. But because of the unity between coastal communities and our legal representatives, that did not happen. We say: Amandla! Power to the rights of communities! Amandla!” said Sazise Maxwell Pekayo, Applicant and Kei Mouth fisher

“Today’s judgment in the Constitutional Court is an important and historic victory not only for coastal communities, but for all South Africans who care about the environment, the rule of law, and the future of our children. Beyond the technical legal arguments, this case has always been about whether the interests and profits of multinational corporations override the rights of communities to effectively participate in decisions that will affect their livelihoods, their rights to a healthy environment, and their cultural and spiritual rights. The court affirmed that the right to public participation is not just about following a procedure and ticking boxes, but rather that it is about  placing the dignity of our people at the centre of developmental decisions that will affect them.” said Delme Cupido, Hub Director at Natural Justice.

The case was brought to the Constitutional Court by indigenous coastal communities, small-scale fishers, and environmental advocacy groups including Sustaining the Wild Coast, Natural Justice, Greenpeace Africa, and All Rise Attorneys for Climate and Environmental Justice. The applicants successfully argued that the original exploration right granted to Impact Africa (and later transferred in part to Shell) was unlawful due to a lack of meaningful public consultation and a failure to consider communities’ constitutional rights.

MEDIA ENQUIRIES & INTERVIEW REQUESTS:

Ferdinand Omondi, Communication Lead, Greenpeace Africa, +254 722 505 233, [email protected]

Greenpeace Africa Press desk: [email protected]