H U M A N R I G H T S “They Destroyed Everything” Mining and Human Rights in Malawi WATCH “They Destroyed Everything” Mining and Human Rights in Malawi Copyright © 2016 Human Rights Watch All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 978-1-6231-34068 Cover design by Rafael Jimenez Human Rights Watch defends the rights of people worldwide. We scrupulously investigate abuses, expose the facts widely, and pressure those with power to respect rights and secure justice. Human Rights Watch is an independent, international organization that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all. Human Rights Watch is an international organization with staff in more than 40 countries, and offices in Amsterdam, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Goma, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Nairobi, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Tunis, Washington DC, and Zurich. For more information, please visit our website: http://www.hrw.org “They Destroyed Everything” Mining and Human Rights in Malawi Map .................................................................................................................................... I Summary ........................................................................................................................... 1 Mining Practice and Promises ...................................................................................................4 Impact on Women .................................................................................................................... 6 Government Role ...................................................................................................................... 7 Government and Company Responses ..................................................................................... 9 The Way Forward .................................................................................................................... 10 Key Recommendations ..................................................................................................... 12 To the Government of Malawi .................................................................................................. 12 To the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining ......................................................... 12 To the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development ..................................................... 13 To the Ministry of Health ......................................................................................................... 13 To the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development ............................................. 13 To the Mzuzu Regional Office of Mines and to the Karonga District Commissioner .................... 13 To Companies Extracting Minerals in Malawi ........................................................................... 14 Methodology .................................................................................................................... 18 I. Background ................................................................................................................... 20 Extractive Industries in Malawi .............................................................................................. 20 Poverty and Impacts of Climate Change .................................................................................. 24 Human Rights Concerns .......................................................................................................... 25 Minimizing Risks and Protecting Rights ................................................................................... 27 II. Gaps and Weaknesses in Malawi’s Legal Framework ..................................................... 30 Discretionary Protection and Monitoring Standards ................................................................. 30 Legal Barriers to Accessing Environmental Health Information ................................................. 33 III. Karonga District: Malawi’s Mining Experiment ............................................................. 35 Before Mining Starts ............................................................................................................... 38 During Mining Operations ....................................................................................................... 50 After Mine Closure ................................................................................................................. 69 IV. Reform Efforts ............................................................................................................. 72 V. Government and Company Response ............................................................................ 76 VI. Regional and International Legal Obligations .............................................................. 78 Right of Access to Information ................................................................................................ 79 Right to Water ........................................................................................................................ 82 Right to Health and Right to a Healthy Environment ................................................................. 83 Right to Food .......................................................................................................................... 85 Right to Housing ..................................................................................................................... 85 Right to Nondiscrimination ..................................................................................................... 87 Corporate Responsibility to Respect Human Rights ................................................................. 87 VII. Recommendations ...................................................................................................... 89 To the Government of Malawi ................................................................................................. 89 To the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining ........................................................ 90 To the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development ..................................................... 91 To the Ministry of Health ........................................................................................................ 92 To the Ministry of Information ................................................................................................ 92 To the Ministry of Agriculture,Irrigation and Water Development ............................................. 92 To the Ministry of Justice ......................................................................................................... 93 To the Ministry of Gender ........................................................................................................ 93 To the Mzuzu Regional Office of Mines and to the Karonga District Commissioner .................... 93 To the Water Department in Karonga ....................................................................................... 93 To the Parliament of Malawi ................................................................................................... 94 To Companies Extracting Minerals in Malawi .......................................................................... 94 To the Governments of Australia, Cyprus, and Other Home Governments of Mining Firms Operating in Malawi ............................................................................................................... 95 To UNESCO ............................................................................................................................. 95 To the Donor Community......................................................................................................... 95 Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ 96 Map I HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | SEPTEMBER 2016 SuMMaRy anD REcoMMEnDaTionS HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | SEPTEMBER ! Whenever they want to do mining again, they should do it far from the people and not the way they did it this time. They should explain to everyone what the advantages and disadvantages are. People need to know what to expect. N"%)(#" E., M,"#+'"(#), M"*$& 8, 2016 Mining machinery left behind at Eland coal mine at Mwabulambo after closure in 2015. Locals said that before the mine was closed, they were not informed about the closure or how the company intended to mitigate risks stemming from the abandoned mining site. 2 “THEY DESTROYED EVERYTHING” Nagomba E., 75, has lived all her life in Mwabulambo, a small rural community in northern Malawi. Like most women in the area, she works as a farmer to support her family—her husband and three grandchildren who survived their own parents—growing rice, maize, and cassava close to her home. In 2008, she was surprised to find strangers driving big trucks and carrying heavy machinery near her crop fields. They were workers of Eland, a coal mining company. While the government had already given the company a license to operate a mine right by her village, Nagomba and her neighbors first heard about the mine when they saw the trucks. When she eventually learned that they were digging coal, she hoped it would bring development to the village and some benefits such as job opportunities and healthcare