From grbarry@students.wisc.edu Tue Aug  1 10:02:44 2000
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:13:45 -0500
From: Glen R. Barry 
Subject: BIOD: Renewed Drive to Fight Illegal Logging Continues

***********************************************
WORLDWIDE FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS
Renewed Drive to Fight Illegal Logging Continues
***********************************************
Forest Networking a Project of Forests.org, Inc.
     http://forests.org/ -- Forest Conservation Archives
	http://forests.org/web/ -- Discuss Forest Conservation

07/26/00
OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY
In the face of continued pressure from Greenpeace and others, the G8 
announced at the end of their summit that they support sustainable 
forest management and intend to "combat illegal logging and protect 
the eco-system".  Given the lack of action following similar pledges 
in the past, this is unlikely to have an immediate significant impact, 
but at least the issue continues to gain prominence.  Meanwhile, 
Greenpeace brought their hard-hitting campaign to highlight 
consumption of illegally harvested timber to the United States.  A 
Danish ship docked in Savannah, Georgia was boarded in protest of 
illegal harvesting of timber from the Amazon rain forest.  The ship 
carried plywood from a Malaysian trading company that has been found 
in possession of illegal timber.  A recent Greenpeace study uncovered 
hard evidence that many companies who regularly export timber to the 
U.S. and elsewhere are implicated in the illegal timber trade, 
including the Rimbunan Hijau group, one of the world's top rainforest 
destroyers.  

In related news, the damning report about the destruction of tropical 
forests by multinational companies, that was suppressed and then 
recently released in a slightly sanitized form, is now available in 
its original version on the Internet.  The German rainforest group 
Rettet den Regenwald ( regenwald@umwelt.ecolink.org ) has released the 
original which contains names and facts about companies responsible 
for corrupt predatory logging. Please check it out at: 
http://www.umwelt.org/regenwald/JointReport.pdf.  With the recent 
flurry of hard documentation and non-violent direct action, I sense 
momentum building within the rainforest conservation movement, and 
expect that shortly predatory logging of ancient forests will be only 
a shameful memory.
g.b.

*******************************
RELAYED TEXT STARTS HERE:

ITEM #1 
Title:  G8 summit: New drive to fight illegal logging   
Source:  The Guardian, Copyright 2000 
Date:  July 24, 2000   

Leaders of the world's most powerful nations moved yesterday to 
tighten up the $70bn global timber trade in a renewed drive to combat 
illegal logging and protect the eco-system, writes Jonathan Watts.

The G8 endorsed the need for sustainable forest management when they 
pledged in a final communiqu,: 'We will examine how best we can combat 
illegal logging, including export and procurement practices.'

Environmentalists welcomed the fresh impetus for the campaign to 
conserve the world's ancient forests, being depleted at the rate of 
one football pitch every two seconds.

The G8 consume 74% of the world's forestry product exports, but they 
have been criticised for paying too little attention to where their 
timber comes from.

In Brazil, the government says illegal logging operations account for 
80% of the trees chopped down in the Amazon rainforest.

But loose regulations and poor oversight make it almost impossible to 
assess whether a log has been obtained from a sustainable source or 
from ecologically precious forests.

Under a British initiative, the governments of the G8 agreed yesterday 
to set an example by considering ways to ensure that public purchases 
of timber come from approved businesses, such as those certified by 
the Forestry Stewardship Council.

By also promising to look into export practices, the G8 took a step 
further on the logging issue than in previous summits.

However, Canada, the main timber exporter among the group, and Japan, 
the main importer, remain reluctant to establish a new system of 
rules.

Conservationists welcomed the G8 move, but they said the words would 
have to be backed up by actions if they were not to suffer the fate of 
initiatives made at the Birmingham summit two years ago, which have 
made little progress.

'This is a welcome shift of direction,' said Martin Kaizer of 
Greenpeace.

'We are very happy that procurement practices have been mentioned, but 
now we must watch carefully to ensure that this plan is implemented.'

During the summit, four Greenpeace activists were arrested and the 
group's ship - the Rainbow Warrior - was raided by riot police after 
they tried to deliver eight logs to the G8 leaders.


ITEM #2
Title:  Timber protesters arrested                            
Source:  Copyright 2000, United Press International
Date:  July 25, 2000   

Seven Greenpeace activists faced charges today after some of them 
boarded a Danish ship at a private dock in Savannah, Georgia, to 
protest the illegal harvesting of timber in the Amazon rain forest.       
                                                      
The arrests occurred after two women and three men boarded the Danish-
flagged ship CIC Light at the Georgia Steamship dock on Monday to 
prevent importation of timber from South America.

All seven were charged with trespassing, and three of them were 
released on $350 bond. The Immigration and Naturalization Service 
detained four nationals from Germany, Belgium and Britain for possible 
deportation, Greenpeace said.                         
                                                      
Five of the activists tied themselves to the ship with ropes and 
unfurled a banner that read "Stop Illegal Logging." Two of the 
protesters fell into the water when crew members cut their ropes. 
There were no injuries.                                          
                                                      
Chatham County sheriff's officials and the U.S. Coast Guard arrested 
the five who had boarded the ship, a man who had driven the group onto 
Georgia Steamship property and a British man who piloted a safety 
boat.

Greenpeace said the ship had arrived from a Brazilian port and was 
carrying plywood from a Malaysian trading company that has been fined 
by Brazil in the past for possession of illegal timber.

"Every week, criminal timber is being shipped into the U.S. from 
around the world. The U.S. government promised to tackle the illegal 
timber trade and is simply turning a blind eye to this flourishing 
market," Greenpeace activist Scott Paul said.

The ship's commercial agent, Kevin Russom, said the cargo was legal. 
He said wood products headed for the CIC Light have frequently been 
inspected by Brazilian environmental authorities.

"This lumber that's loaded on our ship has gone through two different 
Brazilian organizations. One is their forestry association and the 
other is their customs group. All the documents are checked out before 
the lumber is ready to load," Russom said.

Greenpeace has stepped up its timber protests in connection with the 
recent Group of Eight meeting in Japan, complaining that governments 
have not taken action promised at the 1997 summit of the G-8.


ITEM #3
Title:  CREW REACTS VIOLENTLY TO CRIMINAL TIMBER PROTEST      
  Two activists drop from bow, seven arrested.                      
Source:  Greenpeace PressAlert
Date:  July 24, 2000   

SAVANNAH, GA, July 24, 2000- Seven Greenpeace activists were arrested 
after five members of their group boarded the Danish vessel CIC Light 
to spotlight the shipping of criminal timber from the Amazon 
rainforest.

The ship's crew reacted suddenly and violently upon spotting the 
activists. Two activists were unfurling a large banner which was 
snatched away.  Two other activists' ropes were cut as they attempted 
to climb aboard the ship. The activists plunged from the side into the 
water where they were subsequently rescued by Greenpeace activists in 
an inflatable boat.  Three activists, Veronica Froelich from the U.S., 
Heike Staudigl from Germany, and Paul Goyvaerts from Belgium, remained 
on board.  All three carried smaller banners.

"This reaction is only a symptom of the violence that pervades the 
global illegal timber trade," said Scott Paul, Greenpeace Forest 
Campaigner. "Every week criminal timber is being shipped into the U.S. 
from around the world. The U.S. Government promised to tackle the 
illegal timber trade, and is simply turning a blind eye to this 
flourishing market."

Police officers boarded the ship and arrested the three activists who 
remained onboard the ship.  The two activists who were dropped into 
the water, Christian Jonuschies from Germany and Jim Klein from the 
U.S., eventually boarded the ship and remained roped to the bow until 
they were taken into custody by the U.S. Coast Guard.  The drivers of 
the safety boat and the van, James Mitchell and Dexter Sumner, were 
also arrested.  All were arrested by the Chatham County Sheriff's 
department on a simple misdemeanor trespass charge.

A recent Greenpeace 18-month investigation in remote regions of the 
Amazon uncovered hard evidence that several companies who regularly 
export timber to the U.S. are implicated in the illegal timber trade 
including the Rimbunan Hijau group, one of the world's top rainforest 
destroyers. The Brazilian Government estimates that 80% of all logging 
in the Brazilian Amazon is illegal.

This Greenpeace action is the latest in a series of global protests to 
protect the Earth's last remaining ancient forests. In the past weeks,
Greenpeace activists around the world have exposed criminal timber 
imports into G8 countries.

CONTACT:
Scott Paul, (202) 256-0676 (cell); Carol Gregory, (202) 256-4041 
(cell);
Aaron Bannon (202) 319- 2432; or visit the Greenpeace website,
www.greenpeaceusa.org

###RELAYED TEXT ENDS###  
This document is a PHOTOCOPY for educational, personal and non- 
commercial use only.  Recipients should seek permission from the 
source for reprinting.  All efforts are made to provide accurate, 
timely pieces; though ultimate responsibility for verifying all 
information rests with the reader.  Check out our Gaia's Forest 
Conservation Archives & Portal at URL= http://forests.org/  
Networked by Forests.org, Inc., grbarry@students.wisc.edu