The village of Kararata lies in the grasslands along the coast of Oro Province, Papua New Guinea. The land, like all but three percent of Papua New Guinea, is communally owned, a value enshrined in the constitution.
In 2001, the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), which was bought by Cargill in 2006, approached Kararata villagers about creating a “mini-estate,” a joint venture in which a community commits its land to producing palm oil for 20 to 30 years. In exchange, Cargill promised to provide a local elementary school, a health clinic, a well for clean water, and 50-50 profit sharing. The harvested palm oil would be purchased by CDC (later Cargill), and the company would provide the community with paid labor and transport in addition to loans for supplies.
The community used to produce cassava, plantains and coconuts, and the nearby river provided fish and water for daily needs. Now, community members work as laborers, earning $5.40 per day. Often unable to meet their daily quotas, men bring their wives to work as laborers. The women mainly spray pesticides and collect loose fruit off the ground – dangerous and backbreaking work. Cargill does not provide safety gloves or masks, and the women come home covered in poisons, which they pass on to their families in the meals they cook. The school was never built, forcing children to continue their 10-kilometer walk to the nearest school. In the beginning of 2007, a boy was killed when he was hit by a palm oil truck. Cargill also reneged on its promise to provide clean water, leaving the community to drink and bathe in river water, which has now been polluted by the pesticides and fertilizers used on the plantations. Few fish are left and, instead of dividing the profits 50-50 as promised, Cargill has kept 90 percent of the profits.
Frustrated by Cargill’s broken promises, 14 mini-estate owners have united. They refused to harvest palm oil from their mini-estate plantations until the company committed to delivering its promises made seven years before. Cargill quickly sent in security guards who threatened to sue the villagers if they refused to go back to work. The mini-estate owners had no choice but to return to work or face the consequences. They have submitted their complaints in writing to Cargill’s local offices, but the promises made by Cargill remain un-kept. Palm oil continues to threaten the remaining intact forests and the Indigenous and traditional communities of Papua New Guinea.
The forests of Papua New Guinea are the third largest pristine tropical rainforests on Earth.1
