Paul McAuley, a British missionary who has worked tirelessly on behalf of Amazonian communities facing invasive oil and gas development, has been accused of ‘inciting unrest’ by the Peruvian government – an offense that has threatened expulsion from his home of more than 20 years.
“Education is often accused of inciting people to understand their rights,” remarked McAuley, founder of the Loreto Environmental Network (RAL). In a region where oil exploration and drilling have devastated local communities – poisoning their water sources, pushing them off their lands and providing little in compensation – such education is paramount to justice.
“What we do at the Loreto Environmental Network is awareness-raising so that biodiversity is treated legally and responsibly. To some people that seems to be a threat, or contrary to public order. Our work is to educate people.”
In 2007, Global Greengrants Fund supported RAL with a $5,000 grant to continue his education campaigns among youth in Amazonian tribes. Today, on behalf of those communities, we support Paul McAuley’s right to stay in Peru and freely maintain his noble work. Amnesty International has released a statement directly calling on the Peruvian government to revoke its decision.
Although a local Peruvian judge suspended the expulsion order yesterday, it’s questionable whether such a ruling will stand up to federal jurisdiction. Indeed, we hope it will.
Learn more about a recent oil spill in the Peruvian Amazon that has left the Marañón River with oil and grease levels thousands of times greater than the maximum allowed for human consumption, affecting more than 4,000 local residents.