"Norwegian bank withdraws investment in company for violating Indigenous rights in Brazil", 09 September 2024

...[T]he Bank of Norway published a note on its website informing of the withdrawal of six companies from the Norwegian Government's Global Pension Fund (GPFG) due to human rights violations. Among them is the Spanish company Prosegur, a subsidiary in Brazil that provides services to the oil and fat producer Agropalma in Pará. According to the notice, Prosegur is practicing "serious and systematic human rights violations."    

The decision is based on a recommendation published in April 2024 by the Ethics Council of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund...

"Between 2021 and 2023, while on guard duty at Agropalma, security guards from SegurPro [responsible for Prosegur's security sector] prevented Indigenous peoples from visiting their ancient graves, fishing in the Acará River, and traveling to the town they depend on to buy supplies and seek medical attention," the recommendation states.   

The recommendation is based on news reports, information from Prosegur's website, public documents from the Pará Public Prosecutor's Office (MPPA, in Portuguese), and a public civil action ruling. The document also uses information from the NGO Global Witness, which published the report The Shadow of Oil Palm in 2022, which shows the rights violations against Indigenous peoples and traditional communities because of the expansion of oil palm plantations in Brazil. "In the quilombola communities of Vila Gonçalves and Balsa, 206 families feel strangled by the oil palm plantations around them," the report says...

Brasil de Fato tried to contact Prosegur but did not hear back from them by the time this article was written. If the company responds, this article will be updated...