World's largest forest destroyer takes on environmentalists

Amsterdam/Sydney. 15 September 2004-Greenpeace, one of the world's leading environmental organisations, has received a letter from the lawyers of one of the world's largest and richest retailers in forest destruction, Rimbunan Hijau (RH). The Malaysian multinational logging firm with operations in eight countries has threatened to sue Greenpeace International over a report that highlights the company's destructive record.

"RH is hoping that the threat of litigation will silence its critics. But Greenpeace won't back down, nor will we retract any allegations we have made. We're confident our report will hold up in court." said Jasper Teulings,Greenpeace International's Senior Legal Counsel.

The letter includes a demand to apologise to RH for the publication of the report "The Untouchables - Rimbunan Hijau's World of Forest Crime and Political Patronage". RH have also demanded that Greenpeace withdraw the report from the public domain, and to supply them with a list of the recipients of the report. Greenpeace International has declined to comply with this demand.

In February of this year, Greenpeace published "The Untouchables - Rimbunan Hijau's World of Forest Crime and Political Patronage," a report that highlights the corrupt and destructive activities of the Malaysian firm. RH dominates the logging industry in Papua New Guinea and has interests in Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Malaysia, Vanuatu, Indonesia, New Zealand and Russia, making it one of the world's largest forest destroyers. Many of these operations are characterised by documented illegalities and environmental destruction. It is alleged that RH uses tactics such as political corruption and abuses of indigenous peoples' rights within its operations.

To view the Report: http://www.greenpeace.org/RHreport

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