Defending the Forests: The Strugle of the Campesino Environmentalists of Guerrero

Defender los Bosques

Overview

Villagers in the state of Guerrero, Mexico, are working together to stop deforestation in their mountains, which has intensified since 1950. The state's response has been repression, military actions, and further deforestation. After the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, the multinational Boise Cascade Corporation logged thousands of kilometers of rainforest. This is the story of the Organization of Rural Environmentalists (OCE), founded in 1998, and its success in slowing deforestation. The documentary also exposes the Mexican government's campaign to destroy OCE, including arrests and torture of villagers by the military. OCE's founders were sentenced to 7 and 10 years in prison based on false charges.