The Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) trial against Greenpeace was entirely baseless, conducted in a venue that was openly biased against them. It comes as no surprise that the verdict favored ETP – the trial itself was a weapon of the fossil fuel industry, designed to silence and punish water protectors and environmental justice advocates. This is part of a broader strategy led by the fossil fuel law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, which has a history of violating Indigenous rights, obstructing justice, and fabricating evidence – just as it did in Chevron’s SLAPP suit against the people of Ecuador.
The North Dakota Supreme Court must overturn this blatantly unjust ruling. Regardless of the outcome, the global community must stand with Greenpeace to protect free speech and defend all those who stand in solidarity with Indigenous peoples worldwide.
The 2016 protests against ETP and the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), led by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, ignited a global movement against fossil fuel expansion, in defense of our planet, water, and Indigenous rights. ETP and DAPL not only violated but continue to violate the treaty rights of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. As multiple independent investigations – including those conducted by the United Nations – have documented, Native American water protectors and their allies faced brutal, violent attacks by security forces acting on behalf of ETP and DAPL. This is the true injustice.
Amazon Watch remains unwavering in our commitment to justice, standing with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, water protectors, Indigenous and frontline communities around the world, and Greenpeace.
