Terry Freitas, 24, champion of the U'wa people in Colombia's jungle (in their peaceful struggle against Occidental Oil and Shell's exploitation of their land) was shot dead last week in Colombia by armed supporters of the oil companies.Terry managed to make the plight of the U'wa people known in the last couple of years, helping the U'wa to make Occidental Oil retreat and Shell get out of the project entirely; helping to save the lives of the U'wa, who had threatened to commit tribal suicide if their ancestral lands were despoiled.
A summary of the campaign can be found here. A fuller background on the story can be found here.
R.I.P. Terry; another casualty in the Oil Wars, killed for opposing the oil multinationals.
How many more?
Gideon.
