The winner of the Human Rights Award 2026-2027 é WALHI Kepulauan Bangka Belitung, an organization of young activists from Indonesia working for the protection of ecosystems and local communities threatened by extractivism.
WALHI operates in Bangka Belitung Islands Province within a political economic context largely dominated by an extractive model based on tin mining, which prioritizes industrial interests over environmental sustainability and social justice. Bangka Belitung is one of the world’s most significant tin-producing regions. The islands account for approximately 23.5% of global tin production, supplying raw material for the electronics industry worldwide, from smartphones to laptops.
Decades of open-pit mining have led to widespread deforestation, biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and decreased soil fertility. Between 2014 and 2020 alone, the islands lost 460 000 hectares of forest. By 2021 over 12 600 mining pits covered around 15 000 hectares across the province. The soil left behind is largely infertile and unusable.
Now that inland reserves are mostly exhausted, mining is moving offshore, extending the damage to coastal and marine ecosystems as well. WALHI Babel has recorded that around 240 467 hectares of mangroves have been damaged, leaving only 33 224 hectares in good condition with direct consequences for water quality and fisheries as mangroves act as natural filters for coastal waters.
Socio-economically, the extractive model has created deep vulnerabilities: unequal distribution of economic benefits, limited community participation in decision-making, and the erosion of traditional livelihoods.
Now that the land is barren and the sea is polluted, the traditional livelihoods of local communities, such as farming and fishing, are no longer viable. Fishermen describe a steady decline in their catches over recent decades. Many families have been left with no real alternative. Local environmental knowledge and traditional land management practices are being marginalised in favour of industrial interests, leaving communities without the tools to defend their own territories.
In the meanwhile, weak governance has fuelled illegal mining and social conflicts. Around 50 000 artisanal miners work illegally, without permits or safety equipment, and their tin gets mixed with legally produced tin during smelting, making it almost impossible to trace. Between 2021 and 2024, WALHI Babel recorded 38 workers killed and 22 injured in mining accidents, while 23 people drowned in abandoned pits left unfilled.
In this context, there is a pressing need to shift toward a restorative economic approach that emphasizes ecosystem recovery, sustainable livelihoods, and equitable distribution. Therefore, WALHI Babel plays a role in advancing policy advocacy that integrates environmental justice, restorative economic transformation, and the strengthening of local cultural values as the foundation for sustainable and equitable development.