Global Witness reported on Wednesday that a Chinese timber firm managed to ship millions of dollars’ worth of illicit timber from the Democratic Republic of Congo to China last year, despite China’s commitment to combat global deforestation.
With the aid of satellite imagery, the NGO revealed that Congo King Baisheng Forestry Development, a Chinese-owned company, persisted in unlawfully harvesting rare hardwood trees within the rainforest, even after the country’s environment ministry had suspended its logging concessions in April 2022.
According to a report released on Wednesday, the company shipped over $5 million worth of unlawful timber from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to China between June and December 2022.
The timber was transported to its parent company, the Chinese conglomerate Wan Peng International, through the Zhangjiagang port, situated near Shanghai.
Global Witness, an organization dedicated to combating abuses of power in the interest of environmental protection and human rights, monitored shipping activities from the DRC to China, cross-referencing this data with China Customs records.
The international organization emphasized in its report the governance challenges confronting the logging sector in the DRC, which encompass issues such as corruption, illicit logging, and conflicts with forest communities.
During a recent inspection by a commission of DRC ministers, it was discovered that fewer than 25% of the 52 logging concessions were operating in compliance with legal standards.
The report highlighted that the Congo Basin is home to the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest, following the Amazon, and plays a crucial role in regulating the Earth’s climate.
Charlie Hammans, Forests Investigator at Global Witness, said: “As one of biggest consumers of timber globally, China can be a key part of the solution to global deforestation, and the Chinese authorities must crack down on companies exploiting the DRC’s precious forests for profit.”
The NGO observed that while Beijing has pledged to enforce its laws in combatting worldwide illegal deforestation, the report reveals that, in practice, China still does not effectively prohibit the import of illegal timber.
“This inhibits its ability to enforce and realise its international commitments.”
Global Witness reported that they did not receive any response from Wan Peng International or the DRC government when they reached out for comments.
The report was published on the eve of the “Three Basins Summit” held in Brazzaville, the capital of neighboring Congo. This summit encompasses discussions related to the Amazon, Congo, and Borneo-Mekong regions in Southeast Asia from October 26-28, with the aim of safeguarding and revitalizing the world’s vital ecological ecosystems.
