More than 200 environmental activists were killed in 2021. –

More than 75% of these murders took place in Latin America. Victims died fighting against resource exploitation.

Activists are trying to protect forests from deforestation and industrial development.
A report by Global Witness, a non-governmental organization, said that at least 200 environmental activists were killed worldwide in 2021.

More than 75 percent of those murders took place in Latin America, and at least 54 were killed in Mexico alone.

Double-digit deaths were recorded in Colombia, Brazil and Nicaragua. Statistics show that the number of deaths has only increased in the last two years.

Global Witness said their figures may be underestimated, noting that most killings go unreported, particularly in poor countries.

The victims were defending their lands and died fighting against resource exploitation. The highest number of casualties was recorded in the mining sector.

Many of these workers and activists were trying to save forests from deforestation and industrial development. In cases where defenders were protecting ecosystems, about 75 percent of attacks occurred in the Amazon region, the report said.

Like the effects of climate change, casualties are unevenly distributed. The Global South was found to be the most affected by the effects of global warming, with all but one of the recorded homicides occurring in countries in the region in 2020.

Businesses that value profits over basic human rights and the environment need to be held accountable, the organization said.

It also called on governments to protect workers and enforce laws requiring consent from indigenous groups.