{"id":1041590,"date":"2021-11-21T20:43:43","date_gmt":"2021-11-22T01:43:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1041590"},"modified":"2021-11-21T20:43:53","modified_gmt":"2021-11-22T01:43:53","slug":"biden-administration-quietly-unfreezes-funds-for-groups-tied-to-human-rights-abuses-in-central-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-administration-quietly-unfreezes-funds-for-groups-tied-to-human-rights-abuses-in-central-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden Administration Quietly Unfreezes Funds For Groups Tied To Human Rights Abuses In Central Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbiden-administration-quietly-unfreezes-funds-for-groups-tied-to-human-rights-abuses-in-central-africa%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1041590&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><ul>\n<li><strong>The Biden administration quietly reversed a Trump-era decision halting conservation grants being used to indirectly fund human rights atrocities in Central Africa.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cIt was my conclusion that the federal agencies simply did not have the means and the practical ability to ensure that the money that they gave wouldn\u2019t go to parties who would commit grave and horrific crimes,\u201d Former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt \u2014 who left the department in January after leading it for two years \u2014 told the Daily Caller News Foundation in an interview.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Eco-guards hired by the Wildlife Conservation Society and the World Wildlife Fund, and funded through the Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment, had allegedly committed horrific atrocities including rape, torture and murder stretching back a decade, a March 2019 Buzzfeed News investigation found.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The Biden administration quietly reversed a Trump-era decision halting conservation grants being used to indirectly fund human rights atrocities in Central Africa.<\/p>\n<p>While the administration hasn\u2019t publicly acknowledged the change, Department of Interior officials confirmed it during a private briefing with House Natural Resources Committee minority staff in October, a spokesperson for Ranking Member Bruce Westerman told the Daily Caller News Foundation. Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), a group that relies on U.S. tax dollars to fund international conservation efforts, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/CHRG-117shrg19104915\/html\/CHRG-117shrg19104915.htm#:~:text=previously%20frozen%20fy18%20carpe%20funds\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">noted<\/a> that previously frozen funds had been awarded with \u201csocial safeguards\u201d and implemented on the ground, in a statement to lawmakers earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p>Eco-guards hired by WCS and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and funded through the Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE), had allegedly committed horrific atrocities including rape, torture and murder stretching back a decade, a March 2019 Buzzfeed News <a href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/tomwarren\/wwf-world-wide-fund-nature-parks-torture-death\">investigation<\/a> found. In one alleged incident, guards beat and raped four women, including two who were pregnant, and in another incident, three men were hung by their penises from a tree branch by the guards.<\/p>\n<p>CARPE, the largest environmental program funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usaid.gov\/central-africa-regional\/central-africa-regional-program-for-the-environment\/Programs\">designed<\/a> to help protect the \u201cecological integrity\u201d of the Congo Basin. Using program grants, the groups hired the eco-guards to enforce anti-poaching laws in the Republic of Congo and Cameroon, but the federal government lacked sufficient oversight to ensure the money was being used properly, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/katiejmbaker\/united-states-government-millions-wwf-guards-abuses\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">according<\/a> to Buzzfeed and other <a href=\"https:\/\/info.undp.org\/sites\/registry\/secu\/SECU_Documents\/SECU0009_Draft%20Investigation%20Report_For%20Public%20Comment0ddf041323354a9ca3864d50de9970b7.pdf\">international reports<\/a>. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2020\/09\/29\/donald-trump-administration-world-wildlife-fund-human-rights-republic-congo-cameroon\/\">(RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Trump Administration Halts WWF Grant Funding For Financing Alleged Human Rights Violations)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was my conclusion that the federal agencies simply did not have the means and the practical ability to ensure that the money that they gave wouldn\u2019t go to parties who would commit grave and horrific crimes,\u201d Former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt \u2014 who left the department in January after leading it for two years \u2014 told the DCNF in an interview.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd as a result of that, I was not comfortable with this approach,\u201d he continued. \u201cApparently, the Biden administration is.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7324093\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"34\">\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7324093\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt speaks on July 8, 2019 at the White House. (Nicholas Kamm\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Following the Buzzfeed reports, Bernhardt <a href=\"https:\/\/republicans-naturalresources.house.gov\/uploadedfiles\/09-17-2019_doi_bishop_wwf.pdf\">ordered<\/a> $12.3 million in CARPE program funds to be frozen in September 2019 and initiated an internal investigation into how wildlife grants were awarded to groups operating in Central Africa. One year later, the Interior Department (DOI) <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2020\/09\/29\/donald-trump-administration-world-wildlife-fund-human-rights-republic-congo-cameroon\/\">doubled down<\/a> on its decision to halt funds, saying no further CARPE funding would be awarded to wildlife organizations until proper controls were put in place, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/477487815\/DOI-Letter-Grants-Funding-Conservation-Groups?secret_password=zLeD2yPeoJsEs41isAvN\">according<\/a> to an internal agency memo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe American people don\u2019t want to see that their tax dollars have been awarded out to organizations that have in any way been a part of such atrocities,\u201d former Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor, the author of the memo, told the DCNF at the time.<\/p>\n<p>The House Natural Resources Committee also <a href=\"https:\/\/republicans-naturalresources.house.gov\/uploadedfiles\/2019-07-23_rg__bishop_to_doi_briefing_follow_up_doc_request.pdf\">began<\/a> a bipartisan probe into the alleged atrocities after the reports surfaced. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/10\/08\/joe-biden-deb-haaland-massive-expansion-utah-monuments\/\">(RELATED: \u2018Devastating\u2019: Biden Ignores Lawmakers\u2019 Pleas, Orders Massive Expansion Of Utah Monuments)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>\u2018Deadly consequences\u2019<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>However, it remains unclear what, if any, social safeguards have been put in place by the Biden administration to ensure taxpayer funds are used appropriately moving forward. The federal agencies and the conservation groups involved have largely been tight-lipped.<\/p>\n<p>The Biden administration declined to comment. WWF and WCS didn\u2019t respond to multiple requests for comment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFortunately, the Trump Administration froze this funding last year. Unfortunately, as has been normal under the Biden Administration, it is now unclear whether this funding has resumed and what safeguards are in place to prevent its abuse,\u201d Republican Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert, the vice ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee, told the DCNF. \u201cThis is unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe American people deserve to know where their hard-earned money is being spent, and bureaucratic silence and mismanagement mean our tax dollars may go to unauthorized purposes \u2013 with deadly consequences,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n<p>Gohmert and other committee Republicans penned <a href=\"https:\/\/republicans-naturalresources.house.gov\/uploadedfiles\/2019-06-06_grijalva_and_bishop_briefing_request_to_doi_on_human_rights_violations.pdf\">multiple<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/republicans-naturalresources.house.gov\/newsroom\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=409216\">letters<\/a> to Bernhardt in 2019, urging him to take action to ensure taxpayer money didn\u2019t support any human rights abuses abroad.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7324094\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"35\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7324094\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-7324094\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-scaled-1.jpg\" alt=\"Rangers from Kahuzi-Biega National Park in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo walk through the forest sheltering the critically endangered gorillas on Sept. 30, 2019. (Alexis Huguet\/AFP via Getty Images)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-scaled-1.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-180x120.jpg 180w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-620x413.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GettyImages-1175160700-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7324094\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rangers from Kahuzi-Biega National Park in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo walk through the forest sheltering the critically endangered gorillas on Sept. 30, 2019. (Alexis Huguet\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>In October, the Natural Resources Committee held a hearing as part of their investigation into human rights abuses committed by CARPE grant recipients, specifically focusing on WWF. Oregon Rep. Cliff Bentz, the top Republican on the Water, Oceans and Wildlife Subcommittee, and the panel\u2019s chairman California Rep. Jared Huffman, arranged for the hearing to take place.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome of the grant funding was paused in 2019 until such reforms were made,\u201d Bentz <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/reezIOe8CbY?t=1074\">said<\/a> during the hearing. \u201cThis administration has released this funding and we are awaiting documentation from the Interior Department to see what, if any, transparency and accountability measures have been put into place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMr. Chairman, I hope you\u2019ll join us in making sure we receive those documents in a timely manner,\u201d he added. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/11\/17\/navajo-nation-joe-biden-deb-haaland-oil-gas-leases-new-mexico\/\">(RELATED: Navajo Nation Slams Biden Oil Drilling Ban, Says White House Violated \u2018Tribal Sovereignty\u2019)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Westerman, the Republican ranking member of the full committee, <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/reezIOe8CbY?t=1459\">said<\/a> \u201ccurrent accountability measures are not sufficient to ensure grantees don\u2019t inadvertently support human rights abuses in the name of species conservation.\u201d Natural Resources Chair Ra\u00fal Grijalva said legislation addressing the issue would include firm restrictions on funding.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCongress needs to get the executive branch, I think, to somewhat get its act together in terms of overseeing these kinds of grants,\u201d John Knox, the former United Nations special rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment, <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/reezIOe8CbY?t=4494\">told<\/a> lawmakers during the hearing.<\/p>\n<p><strong>WATCH:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Protecting Human Rights in International Conservation\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/reezIOe8CbY?start=3073&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<p>Knox, a member of an independent panel that investigated WWF, <a href=\"https:\/\/naturalresources.house.gov\/imo\/media\/doc\/Knox%20Testimony%20-%20WOW%20Ov%20Hrg%2010.26.21.pdf#page=20\">remarked<\/a> that while the group has established new safeguards, the new policies \u201cdo not adequately respond to the Panel\u2019s findings and recommendations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn fact, in important respects, they weaken WWF\u2019s existing commitments,\u201d he continued. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2019\/03\/04\/world-wildlife-fund-abuse-buzzfeed\/\">(RELATED: World Wildlife Fund\u2019s Security Forces Commit Rampant Abuse Against African Villagers)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Still, both WWF and WCS asked Congress to increase CARPE funding in their statements to lawmakers referenced earlier. The WWF <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/CHRG-117shrg19104915\/html\/CHRG-117shrg19104915.htm#:~:text=%2450%20million%20be%20directed%20to%20support%20the%20central%20africa%20regional%20program%20for%20the%20environment%20(carpe)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">asked<\/a> for $50 million in CARPE grants for fiscal year 2022, a $7 million increase.<\/p>\n<p>Both groups, meanwhile, have cheered the Biden administration, applauding it for its work reversing policies enacted under former President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>The WCS <a href=\"https:\/\/newsroom.wcs.org\/News-Releases\/articleType\/ArticleView\/articleId\/15729\/WCS-Statement-Upon-the-Inauguration-of-US-President-Joseph-R-Biden-Jr-and-US-Vice-President-Kamala-Harris.aspx\">called upon<\/a> the administration to \u201creengage in advancing environmental and conservation solutions\u201d around the world immediately after President Joe Biden was inaugurated in January. The WWF said the administration was working to \u201cmend our broken relationship with nature\u201d in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.worldwildlife.org\/press-releases\/wwf-statement-on-president-biden-s-address-and-first-100-days\">statement<\/a> following Biden\u2019s first 100 days in office.<\/p>\n<p>Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact <a href=\"mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Biden administration quietly reversed a Trump-era decision halting conservation grants being used to indirectly fund human rights atrocities in Central Africa. \u201cIt was my conclusion that the federal agencies &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":181,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1041590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1041590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/181"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1041590"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1041590\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1041590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1041590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1041590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}