Author Archives: non_profit

A New York court today sentenced OZ Africa, a subsidiary of multi-billion-dollar hedge fund Och-Ziff, for corruption linked to mining projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It awarded $135 million in restitution to the former shareholders of Africo Resources Ltd, who lost their investment.

RAID joins 15 international human rights organisations to submit a brief to the United States Supreme Court in support of holding US corporations complicit in serious human rights violations liable in US courts. The case concerns Nestlé USA’s and Cargill’s alleged role in child slavery and forced labour in the Ivory Coast.

Three human rights groups today filed a complaint with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) detailing environmental and human rights harms at Glencore’s Badila oil operations in Chad. Glencore is one of the world’s largest natural resource companies and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. The filing marks the first time that Glencore is facing an OECD complaint in the UK.

RAID’s research is based on over 100 interviews with local residents, members of local civil society, local authorities, medical staff, journalists and former security personnel employed at Williamson Mine. Our research raises serious human rights concerns. We contacted Petra Diamonds on 29 August to share our concerns and asked for responses to a series of questions. We hope to have further meetings with the company and will shortly be publishing a full report detailing our findings.

The initial claim was issued in the British High Court in February 2020 on behalf of seven human rights victims against Barrick Tz Limited, formerly known as Acacia Mining, of which Barrick was the majority shareholder, and its Tanzanian subsidiary.

The London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) should suspend gold refiner MMTC-PAMP for its failure to act over human rights abuses at the North Mara gold mine in Tanzania, UK corporate watchdog RAID said today. MMTC-PAMP, part of the Swiss-based MKS PAMP Group, said in a statement released on 3 July that it would continue to source gold from Barrick’s problematic mine following an “independent assessment” of its supply chain.

The “Congo is Not for Sale” campaign calls on the justice system of the Democratic Republic of Congo to disclose the results of an investigation opened at the end of 2019 into state copper company, Gécamines, and to announce the legal measures it intends to take to prevent a payment from Glencore to Gécamines entering into the pockets of billionaire Dan Gertler, who is subject to sanctions imposed by the United States.

Last week, RAID Director Anneke VanWoudenberg spoke to BBC World Service about working conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic at copper & cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (audio excerpt below). This follows letter of concern to mining companies from rights groups, which you can read in full here and in French here.

(Lubumbashi, June 11, 2020) – Multinational copper and cobalt mining companies in the Democratic Republic of Congo should take immediate steps to protect the rights of thousands of Congolese workers’ during the Covid-19 pandemic, a group of 11 international and Congolese human rights groups said today in a letter to 13 mining companies.