Category: Banks & Land Grabs
Australia’s Big 4 Banks are backing agricultural and timber companies accused of land grabbing in developing countries. These companies are forcing local people from their homes and farms without proper consent or compensation.
![Bertha stands by a vigil for her mother. Photo: Friends of the Earth Europe 2 Bertha outside Brussels protest 1 Friends of the Earth](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/2-Bertha-outside-Brussels-protest-1_Friends-of-the-Earth.jpg)
“My mother taught us not to run when you are scared”
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Berta Cáceres was brutally murdered on 2 March 2016. Why and by whom? Two months after her death there have been arrests, but investigations need to continue. The answers are clear however, to her daughter Bertha and the members of Berta’s organisation. Read more »
![Kampong Speu, Cambodia: Part-financed by the ANZ bank, Phnom Penh Sugar built a sugar mill on, and sourced from, disputed land. Photo: Thomas Cristofoletti/Ruom/OxfamAUS Banks and land grabs Thomas](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Banks-and-land-grabs_Thomas-Cristofoletti_Ruom_OxfamAUS_1170x500.jpg)
How exposed is your bank?
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The big four banks could be endangering human rights and our environment. While we outline some positive first steps by some of the banks, none have yet adopted a zero tolerance for land grabs approach. Read more »
![The settlement known as Jatayvary of Kaiowa indigenous people, inside their demarcated land near Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. The land is occupied by a sugar-cane farm that supplies Bunge, which is supported by Australia's Commonwealth Bank. Photo: Eduardo Martino/OxfamAUS Banks and Land Ledgers not goof](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Banks-and-Land_Ledgers-not-goof.jpg)
The ledger’s not good: the hidden costs behind our banks’ unreal profits
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The big four banks’ ledger is not good. Last year, ANZ, CBA, NAB and Westpac announced the unreal combined profit of $30.8 billion. But this unreal profit came at a very real cost. Read more »
![Photo: Nicolas Axelrod/Ruom Banks must take a zero tolerance approach to land grabs](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Campaigns_No-excuse-report_1170x500.jpg)
Big banks beware: there are now no excuses
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Oxfam’s new report describes how Australia’s big four banks can construct an approach with zero tolerance for land grabs. Read more »
![Goreti Kirua from Papua New Guinea’s East Sepik region (pictured) holding payment papers she received from a logging company. “Foreigners forced us to sign consent forms; then they destroyed our forest,” says Goreti. Photo: Vlad Sokhin/OxfamAUS Goreti Kirua from Papua New Guinea’s East Sepik region (pictured) holding payment papers she received from a logging company. “Foreigners forced us to sign consent forms; then they destroyed our forest,” says Goreti. Photo: Vlad Sokhin/OxfamAUS](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Land-grabs-PNG_Vlad-Sokhin_648x431.jpg)
Our banks need to listen and act!
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Land grabs are not only plunging affected communities into poverty; it’s also bad for business. Shona Hawkes, Sustainable Food Advocacy Coordinator, is in Chiang Mai. Shona is joining hundreds of people from across Asia at the Land Deals Politics Initiative (LDPI) conference to better understand how, and why, land grabbing is happening — and more importantly, what can be done to stop it. Read more »
![The Guarani-Kaiowa people are still fighting for their land in Brazil. Photo: Eduardo Martino/OxfamAus The Guarani-Kaiowa people are still fighting for their land in Brazil. Photo: Eduardo Martino/OxfamAus](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Banksandlandblog_Eduardo-Martino-OxfamAUS_648x431.jpg)
Banking on shaky ground: one year on
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Communities unfairly forced off their land are plunged into poverty. They often face the threat of violence for speaking out as well as food shortages, inadequate housing and poor health. In the year that’s passed since the release of our land grabs report, Australian customers and investors have shown they care deeply that their bank respects land rights. Read more »
![Photo: Dennis Kuhlmann/OxfamAus](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Him-Iy-68-Koh-Village-2-web.jpg)
What has ANZ done (and not done) on land grabs?
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People often tell us that the bank response to their email about land grabs is confusing and full of jargon. Lately we’ve had a lot of questions about ANZ. Below is a recap of what ANZ has done, and not done, since Oxfam launched its Banking on Shaky Ground report in April. Read more »
![Photo: Eduardo Martino/OxfamAUS](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/76965scr-Eduardo-MartinoOxfamAUS.jpg)
Seen 60 Minutes? Now put pressure on CBA and ANZ to adopt zero tolerance to land grabs
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Together, we’ve been campaigning for six months to have Australia’s Big 4 Banks change their policies to land grabs. In the past two weeks both NAB and Westpac have taken steps to reduce their risk of backing companies involved in land grabs. Now, the pressure is on the Commonwealth Bank of Australia and the ANZ Bank. Read more »
![Photo: Vlad Sohkin/OxfamAUS Photo: Vlad Sohkin/OxfamAUS](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/LandGrabs_NAB_VladSohkin_648x431.jpg)
Two of the big four banks take action to respect land rights
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Westpac and National Australia Bank (NAB) have become the first of the big four banks to release a policy on land grabs — a significant step forward to stop unfair land deals that leave people around the world homeless and hungry. Read more »
![Photo: Vlad Sohkin/OxfamAUS Photo: Vlad Sohkin/OxfamAUS](https://oxfamautest.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/LandGrabs_NAB_VladSohkin_648x431.jpg)
Hundreds of hours spent researching finance links
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Over the course of a year, Oxfam has spent hundreds of hours researching and documenting links between Australia’s big banks and multinational agriculture and timber businesses that are land grabbing in some of the world’s poorest communities. Since our report was issued both the NAB and Westpac have developed policies to better respond to the issue of land grabs. Read more »