13 February, 2009

Protests continue at Auckland furniture shops selling Kwila

Rainforest Action[1]  and the Indonesian Human Rights Committee are maintaining protests outside the stores in Auckland which continue to sell products made from rainforest kwila. There will be a demonstration today at 12 noon outside the premises of Country Rd Décor 553 Mt Eden Rd.

“We have been encouraged to find that shoppers have responded positively to our furniture store pickets and to the information we have been distributing.  Aucklanders care about the rainforest and the future of our planet!” said Maire Leadbeater, IHRC Spokesperson. “Several Kiwi companies including The Warehouse, The BBQ Factory and Harvey Norman have accepted that selling rainforest kwila is unethical and unsustainable and have either stopped stocking it or have begun to phase it out. We hope for a positive response from Country Rd Décor and its supplier, Devon Lifestyle.”

Almost all of the kwila outdoor furniture on sale in Auckland is made from wood sourced from the rainforests of Indonesian-occupied West Papua, where illegal logging is the norm. The New Zealand Government has estimated that 80% of illegally logged wood coming into this country is kwila.   Kwila faces extinction in less than 35 years if logging continues.

“Today marks an international day of action against Climate Change and the loss of tropical rainforests is one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. We also plead with furniture retailers and consumers to consider the human rights abuses that come hand in hand with the operations of the forestry corporations and the Indonesian security forces who are involved at every stage of the timber industry.  The logging of kwila means the loss of livelihood for indigenous people who rely on these ancient forests for food, water and medicine.”

“Country Rd and other shops that continue to sell kwila will continue to be the target of protests by people who want to stop climate change and support the West Papuan people in their struggle for self-determination.”

Our demonstrations include some street theatre featuring and an endangered cassowary.

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