By Abbas Nazil
Environmental and human rights organizations have called on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to stop the harassment and persecution of environmental defenders who risk their lives to protect the country’s forests and biodiversity.
The DRC, which holds about 60 percent of the Congo Basin rainforest — the world’s second largest after the Amazon — is considered a global biodiversity hotspot.
Despite this, illegal logging continues to devastate vast areas of forest, threatening wildlife and the livelihoods of Indigenous communities.
According to John Hayduska of Rainforest Rescue, activists and community leaders who oppose illegal logging and environmental degradation face growing threats from logging companies, security forces, and state authorities.
He said that in November, a court in Maniema Province sentenced environmental activist Yahya Mirambo Bin Lubangi to six months in prison and imposed a heavy fine.
Lubangi, a member of the local organization SOCEARUCO, had been campaigning against illegal rosewood logging in the region.
Hayduska condemned the government’s failure to uphold its moratorium on new logging concessions, which has been in place since 2002, noting that it has done little to stop illegal timber trade or deforestation.
He warned that the DRC now records one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, fueled by weak governance and corruption.
Josué Aruna, Executive Director of the Congo Basin Conservation Society, called on the government to protect environmental defenders instead of targeting them with threats and arrests.
Rainforest Rescue is leading a petition urging the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and international partners under the Central African Forest Initiative to safeguard activists and recognize them as vital allies in climate and biodiversity protection.
Environmental groups argue that without the protection of these defenders, the DRC risks losing not only its forests but also its global reputation as a key player in addressing the climate crisis.
