Anand Mangnale: "The energy we consume has a price that other people pay"

PalmaThe University of the Balearic Islands projected this Thursday the documentary Global Grab: Mozambique's Coal and Jindal's extractive curse, an investigation into the social and environmental impacts of coal extraction in Mozambique by the Indian group Jindal. The screening is part of the Scholars at Risk program and was attended by the journalist and director of the film, Anand Mangnale, persecuted by the Indian government and hosted for the past year by the UIB.

After the screening, a colloquium was held, moderated by Geography Professor Ivan Murray, a specialist in territorial impacts and tourism, who delved into the global consequences of extractive models and the connections with the energy consumption of Western countries. For his part, Pau de Vílchez, Professor of International Law at the UIB and organizer of the event, explained that the initiative is also born as a way to end Mangnale's stay in Mallorca and to "make his figure and his work known". The Indian journalist is finishing his stay in Mallorca at the end of May after having been protected by the Balearic university in response to the political persecution he suffers in his country.

Mangnale has been investigating large Indian corporations and their links to political power for years. Before delving into investigative journalism, he had participated in campaigns for human rights, social justice, and support for peasant, worker, and minority movements in India. This trajectory, he assures, had already made him an inconvenient figure for the Indian government, but the situation worsened when he began to publish investigations into the Adani Group, the largest and most politically connected conglomerate in the country. "I had always been a target, but the intensity increased when I started investigating Adani," he recounts. As he explains, the proximity between the business group and the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has been evident since Modi came to power in 2014, flying in on a private jet belonging to the company.

Political persecution forced him to leave India. “It is very difficult, because my whole life was there: family, friends, and the sense of familiarity,” he explains. Nevertheless, he assures that the support received in Mallorca has allowed him to stabilize and continue working. “The UIB has been an extraordinary place to continue doing critical research,” he states. Mangnale particularly highlights the institutional support received from the outset and the role of the Scholars at Risk program, which he considers essential for protecting persecuted researchers and journalists worldwide.

The documentary he presented in Palma focuses on the extractive activity of the Jindal group in Mozambique and the social and environmental consequences of coal mines in the Tete district. According to the journalist, the investigation began when he decided to continue analyzing the activity of Indian corporations outside their country. “Indian companies have a terrible record of corruption, land grabbing, and environmental destruction,” he asserts. Through contacts from his activism phase, he came into contact with the Mozambican organization Justice Ambiental and the media outlet Africa Uncensored, with whom he was able to document the multinational's practices on the ground.

Mangnale describes Mozambique as a clear example of what he calls 'economic colonialism' or 'neocolonialism'. According to his denunciation, former colonies such as India, China, or Brazil have today adopted the same extractive mechanisms that Western powers previously practiced. “Resources are extracted to feed distant economies while the territories of origin remain mired in poverty,” he points out. The documentary shows how Jindal's coal mine has caused dispossession of land, pollution of rivers, and conflicts with local communities, while the wealth generated has not translated into improvements for the local population.

For the journalist, this situation is a combination of corporate interests and institutional apathy. “We are talking about multimillion-dollar companies that could operate with more respect for people and the environment, but they simply impose their interests because they know they can get away with it,” he laments. During the filming, he assures that the risk was constant and that the caution with which local organizations worked evidenced the company's power in the region.

For his part, the professor of International Law at the UIB and member of the event's organization, Pau de Vílchez, considers that these cases also highlight the current limitations of international law in protecting affected communities, although he argues that there are significant advances. In this regard, he recalls the proposal to incorporate ecocide as one of the major international crimes. “It would imply that natural or legal persons responsible for extensive and serious environmental damage could be prosecuted criminally”, he explains. Although it is an initiative that has been promoted for decades, he assures that “it is gaining more and more strength” and that some states have already begun to incorporate these types of crimes into their legislation.

De Vílchez also claims legal advances unthinkable just 25 years ago, such as the recognition of legal personality for the Mar Menor, which allows judicial action in defense of the ecosystem. “We cannot renounce any of the available tools because they will have increasing social and legal relevance”, he states.

The screening also served to reflect on European energy dependence and the global consequences of fossil fuel consumption. Murray and Mangnale agreed in pointing out that territories like the Balearic Islands have sustained this model for decades thanks to the import of coal and resources from the global south. The Indian journalist argues that the debate on fossil fuels often focuses solely on pollution and climate change, while the human cost of extraction remains invisible. “The energy we consume has a price that is paid by other people, almost always people who already live in precarious situations”, he warns.

In this regard, De Vílchez argues that the energy transition cannot be limited to merely replacing fossil fuels with renewables, but must be accompanied by a reduction in consumption. “We must move towards energy sobriety that allows us to cover essential needs and stop consuming what we do not need”, he concludes.

Mangnale also calls for a more critical look at global supply chains and the role of large corporations. "A large part of economic systems are designed around profit, and a large part of that profit comes from exploitation," he states. For this reason, he considers it essential for citizens to ask questions about the origin of the resources they consume and the conditions under which they are extracted.

The Indian communicator finishes his stay at the university this month, after being hosted within the framework of the Scholars at Risk project, to consolidate university hosting initiatives and humanitarian corridors with other academic institutions, with the aim of protecting researchers, journalists, and activists persecuted in their countries.