That’s the question facing voters in Southwest Alaska’s Lake & Peninsula Borough who last week passed a ballot resolution banning all large-scale resource extraction, including mining, “that would destroy or degrade salmon habitat”.

No-one is in doubt that the measure is aimed at one of the world’s most important prospective mines in the vicinity of Alaska’s Bristol Bay. Few people expect the community to triumph over the likes of Anglo American, commercial interests, and some Alaskan native corporations.

However, on November 7, Alaska’s Superior Court will begin proceedings to consider the constitutionality of the Lake & Peninsula Borough ordinance. It promises to be an interesting hearing.

See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/11260.

See also: South Africa mine a poor comparison for Pebble, http://www.adn.com/2011/10/02/2100315/south-africa-mine-a-poor-comparison.html.

But Ms Shabangu has an uphill task: less than 9% of mines actually met this target in 2009. She says: “One problem has been companies that got into the sector with little or no experience, that were not viable or that were seen as fronts for white capital. Mine safety is another major issue…the pursuit of profits [is] behind a mounting death toll in the industry”.

Among the major London-listed companies active in South Africa are Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata.

See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=11131&l=1.

See http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page35?oid=133851&sn=Detail.

See http://www.business-humanrights.org/Links/Repository/1005008.

So declares Esther Moloto who, with fellow villagers, is waging war against the world’s biggest platinum mining company, a subsidiary of London-listed Anglo American.

Her impassioned comment follows shortly after the Bengwenyama-ye-Maswazi community, successfully sued another miner in the country’s platinum belt for encroaching on its territory.

However, according to this article, it’s not just poor black South Africans who are feeling a “squeeze”. The mining industry itself – the platinum sector included – is stagnating. Each year between 2000 and 2008, it actually contracted by 1 percent in dollar terms.

See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=10703.

See http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page35?oid=116372&sn=Detail&pid=92730.

But at the last minute the company forced a postponement and the case will now not be heard until 2 March 2011, allowing Anglo Platinum to continue dumping its waste into the tailings dam on the land that the Sekuruwe community never gave proper consent for them to use.

The Sekuruwe community and other villages around Angloplat’s PPL mine are disappointed and angry at these delay tactics, and say they will not be taking this lying down.
 
According to Jubilee South Africa, the background to the matter is as follows:

Following an unsuccessful application in January 2009, by the community to interdict the Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform (“the Minister”) from leasing a large portion of the farm Blinkwater to Potgietersrust Platinums Limited (PPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Anglo Platinum Ltd, the community filed a review application in the North Gauteng High Court to set aside the lease.  That matter will be heard in early 2011.

Since the grant of the disputed lease, PPL has undertaken the construction of a tailings dam on Blinkwater where it intends to dump hundreds of millions of tons of mine waste over the next 70 years. In about October this year PPL began with the dumping of waste.

Blinkwater is occupied by the members of the Sekuruwe community. Sekuruwe is a village near Mokopane in the Limpopo province. Many community members depend for their subsistence on farming activities on Blinkwater.  The establishment of the tailings dam on Blinkwater will rob the community of more than half of their land including all the arable land on Blinkwater. The land will be permanently sterilized for any purposes. This will cause hardship and hunger and will totally disrupt the community’s traditional way of life. 

The Minister awarded PPL the lease against the wishes of the community and without ever consulting with it. She relied on a “community land rights resolution” taken at a meeting convened by the mine and its proxy, the Sekuruwe section 21 company, where a small and unrepresentative minority ostensible agreed to lease the land to the mine. The proposed lease agreement itself was not made available to the community for consideration.

The lease provides for an annual rental of R194 169,16 per annum was based upon an agricultural valuation and was not the product of an arms length negotiation between the parties.

The establishment of the tailings dam is part of a R4.5 billion expansion project that will produce 450 000 ounces of platinum per annum worth some R5.3 billion. It is the largest open cast platinum mine in the world. The mine will produce some 70 million tons of waste rock and tailings per annum.  The communities upon whose land the mine will occur, have no financial interest in the mine despite the fact that almost 15 000 villagers have been relocated to make way for mining operations and thousands more, including the members of the Sekuruwe community have been displaced from their farm lands. 

Since the lease was granted, PPL has fenced off the land, constructed the larger part of the tailings dam, exhumed community members’ graves, and paid some compensation to some farmers on a take it or leave it basis. The members of the Sekuruwe community have since been denied access to the fenced in land.

The tailings dam which is built in close proximity to the Sekuruwe village has a footprint of approximately 280 ha, a capacity of one million tons of tailings per month, and will amount to a height of 60 meters. By now 1.8 million tons of tailings have been pumped into the dam. 

Community members are concerned about the loss of farming land, potential health hazards associated with the tailings dam and the pollution of ground water resources.

The mine maintains that it has been authorised to construct the dam and to dump mine waste on Blinkwater by virtue of an Amendment to its Environmental Management Plan (“EMP”) which was approved by the Department of Mineral Resources in 2003.

The applicants maintain that the dam and the dumping of tailings on Blinkwater is illegal in that:
· No Environmental Impact Assessment was carried out and no environmental authorisation was granted in terms of the national Environmental management Act (“NEMA”) and
· That Blinkwater does not fall within the area in respect of which PPL has mining rights and as such the Minister of Mineral Resources has no jurisdiction to authorise mining activities that include the construction of tailings dams and the dumping of mine waste upon it.

In the application (case No. 56012/10) the applicants seek an order interdicting the dumping of waste on Blinkwater pending the grant of environmental authorisation ito NEMA alternatively the determination of the application for the review and setting aside of the lease.

The Sekuruwe community and their neighbors have been in the news of late.  In the face of a wide-spread public outrage, Anglo Platinum was compelled to apologize to the community for removing their graves without due regard to traditional custom or procedure and without the permission of the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA). 

The relocations of some 10 000 residents of the neighbouring villages of Ga-Puka and Ga-Sekhaolel was criticized by the South African Human Rights Commission. Subsequent investigations and reports by international NGO, Action Aid, and ERM, the consultants appointed by Anglo Platinum, to review the relocations, confirmed that the relocations were not carried out in conformity with internationally accepted norms and standards.

The unrepresentative section 21 companies established by Anglo Platinum to represent the Sekuruwe and other communities have also come under fire.  The Minister for Mineral Resources pledged that these structures would be replaced.  The legal advisor to these companies, Advocate Seth Nthai SC, has since also been disbarred.

The outcome of the proceedings has significant implications for the Sekuruwe community and the mine. If the application is successful the mine will be obliged to undertake a fresh round of consultation with the Sekuruwe community and other interested parties to address their interests and concerns around the construction of the tailings dam on their land. On its part the PPL mine will be prevented from continuing to dump tailings on the land, which according to the mine will occasion it substantial economic loss.
South African Human Rights Commission, Mining-related observations and recommendations: Anglo Platinum, affected communities and other stakeholders, in and around the PPL Mine, Limpopo, November 2008

Press:
New allegations against tainted advocate surface – The Star, published: 10 February 2010 (http://www.security.co.za/fullStory.asp?NewsId=15174)

Mining giant faces local protest – The Star, published: 27 October 2010
(http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=5703525)

Jubilee South Africa and IANRA South Africa Press Statement, 25 October 2010

Jubilee Mokopane will be marching with the support of IANRA South Africa to the Anglo Platinum PPL mine north west of the town of Mokopane in Limpopo province on Tuesday 26 October 2010 from 11.00 am to 3.00 pm.
The immediate reason for the march is in support of the Sekuruwe community and the court case it is currently pursuing against the mine for the destruction of the community’s land for a tailings dam for the waste from the mine’s operations.

Anglo Platinum fenced off the land the community has always used for ploughing and grazing, instantly preventing the villagers from accessing and using the land and severing their ability to sustain their livelihoods. In the process of destruction, the company has desecrated community graves on the land. It has been forced to apologise and to support the reconstruction of the skeletal remains, but many graves remain unaccounted for with numerous skeletal remains still believed to be on the land being destroyed. The destruction to date has already been extensive and people from the community are reporting that the mine appears to be starting to pour unknown substances onto the land.

The broader reasons for the march include the general destruction of land and the environment and contamination of water affecting numerous villages in the area. According to Phillipos Dolo, Jubilee Mokopane Coordinator, “This is an environmental injustice. We demand that Anglo Platinum stops the degradation and contamination of the environment and water with immediate effect and that it makes reparations for the damage it has caused.”

The march will also make a statement against the lack of progress in the task team established by the Ministry of Mineral Resources after it called for the disestablishment of the much detested Section 21 companies established by Anglo Platinum in communities affected by its operations. Instead of honouring its commitment to the task team, the company is continuing to make deals with the current illegitimate leadership of the Mapela Tribal Authority and the Section 21 companies. It is also continuing to make selective offers of employment to manipulate community leaders while failing to provide any significant jobs for the affected communities.

The march is being supported by the International Alliance on Natural Resources in Africa – South Africa (Ianra South Africa), a network including communities affected by mining as well as NGOs supporting these communities. The network was formally established earlier this year and is organising exchange visits between communities and people affected by mining. Currently, communities affected by Anglo Platinum and other companies engaged in platinum mining in both the Greater Rustenburg area and the eastern limb of the platinum belt in Limpopo are in Mokopane to lend their support to the march.

These include communities in Greater Rustenburg which have faced long-standing damage by Anglo Platinum to their land, environment and livelihoods and are also facing further expansion of mining activities. They are demanding sustainable development, reparations and benefits from the existing mining operations as well as a halt to expansion without consultation.

The community of Magobading in the eastern limb is also present. They have long-standing grievances in relation to their removal from areas in which Anglo Platinum has established mining operations to the rural township of Magobading created for that purpose, with lack of access to land and water and inadequate services and far from any potential places of employment.

George Dor
Jubilee South Africa General Secretary and IANRA SA working committee

For further information, contact:
Phillipos Dolo, Jubilee Mokopane coordinator, 073 789 2489
Joseph Magobe, Rustenburg, IANRA SA working committee, 083 960 5818

Royal Bafokeng is the largest “black empowered” mining company in South Africa – the Royal Bafokeng Nation itself consisting of some 300,000 people.

Recently Impala Platinum (which has a secondary listing of the London Stock Exchange) bid for control of Royal Bafokeng.

Possible “nationalisation” of all south African mines has been at the forefront of  debate in the country during the past weeks –as has continued criticism of Black Economic Empowerment as never having done what it was promised to do, with more and more power and money being scooped up by black entrepreneurs.

CHANENG KGOTLA SUSPENDS MEETING BAFOKENG EXCO

On Friday, 01 October 2010, Chaneng Community Leadership committee were all “dressed up and looking good” when they suddenly changed their mind and suspended meeting Bafokeng executives due to reasons not disclosed to Chaneng ViBe.

Chaneng Executive Kgotla was to meet all key Royal Bafokeng Nation Executives for the 1st time in 2 years in its history. This meeting was to come after Chaneng Community Lekgotla, youth committee and Styldrift Project task team had hosted directors from Minister Shabangu and Minister Sonjica’s departments last week Wednesday to resolve a platinum mining-operation quarrel caused by ‘a deliberate and sustained disregard to the community concerns’.

The Chaneng community has for a period more than 2yrs relentlessly persisted in resisting an intruding Styldrift Project, despite delaying tactics by mine management. Until the take-over by Royal Bafokeng Platinum in January 2010, BRPM project has reached its lowest community confidence especially from Chaneng.

On 11 February 2010 the youth of Chaneng and nearby communities (Robega, Rasimone & Mafenya) held a demonstration which submitted a memorandum addressed to the Styldrift Project Manager, Mr. Glenn Harris, demanding an immediate “closure of the Styldrift Project within 24hours”. The demand was never hounoured and received the same ‘deaf ear attitude’ as all other preceding community requests and concerns.

A member of the community leadership highlighted that; “this (mining) issue is even causing a quarrel amongst us (community)”.

According to one member of the community’s Styldrift Project task team, it is not only a community splitting-up which is a recent threat; “we are driven by the mine management like a merry-go-round, and i don’t want to be in a merry-go-round. Our concerns are genuine and ought to have been considered prior to the project’s roll out, so whom did they consult? ”he asked.

A document titled Styldrift Project Community Consultation Report highlights the merry-go-round-story better.
“Time delaying tactics and intentional creation of conflict between the villages around the mines, has been the only response received, coupled with continued bug passing between the project team and the Royal Bafokeng Nation leadership which in turn has declined to meet or engage the Chaneng community kgotla/khuduthamaga(executive committee) despite numerous written correspondence.

“The community is thus left with no other option but to employ more aggressive strategies to enforce compliance”, the report concluded.

The ministerial intervention comes after a community complaint was laid in September, with the Department of Mineral Resources and the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs.

Residents of the Chaneng community stand firm in their resolve to involve a third party for purposes of mediation in this matter. This was reflected in a reply letter written to the new Senior Project Manager, Mr. Tom Sertic, who attempted to reopen discussions and in his words “build a good relationship since he is new”.

In the morning of the 22 September, Chaneng community members were picketing in and around Phokeng village as well as at the currently developed Styldrif Project mine.

This action is reported to “make sure that the mining and Bafokeng administration officials, are equally concerned as we(the Community), are concerned about this unlawful operation in our grazing and residing land”.

“It is clear that the project will harm the environment, deteriorate the quality of life, bring us more poverty and illness without any consideration or humane attempt to empower or benefit the community” added  a community member of Chaneng.

History bears testimony to the ruthless exploitation of communities by mining companies, the Chaneng community is but one of the many helpless black communities whose hope for justice and restoration of dignity lies on the ability of government to adequately and swiftly rise to their protection.

It has been reported to Chaneng ViBe that a community meeting will be held at 4pm this Tuesday, 05 October 2010 at Chaneng Primary School to bring a “new world order”.

**END**

Author: Joseph Magobe
Contacts: joseph@workmail.co.za/
083 960 5818

In 2008, Jubilee Sekiming engaged in sustained protest action and succeeded in driving the unwanted Lonmin prospecting rigs off their land. Later that year, when Anglo Platinum began paying Section 21 companies in villages across the area to paper over the cracks in houses due to its blasting activities, the Sekiming activitists again stood up for their rights.

It was through actions like these that the Minister of Mineral Resources was finally forced to announce her intention to disband the Section 21 companies. Yet, these companies still appear to be benefitting from Anglo Platinum favours today.

The question is: How can Anglo Platinum form structures in communities in order to SOW DIVISION. How can it BULLDOZE GRAVES in Sekuruwe, DUMP DIRT ON WOMEN PROTECTING THEIR LAND, allow women, children, and men to be beaten and arrested for protecting their land across the platinum belt, and ARREST 80 year old traditional leaders and the 11 year old child of an activist? HOW IS THAT ACCEPTABLE in the new democracy? BUT WHEN Sekiming community members protect their land, and drive off the drilling machines from Lonmin to which they never consented, then stand firm in the face of Anglo Platinum buying off the people in the Section 21, 46 community members are targeted and arrested for several charges, and 16 are convicted of public violence?

CLEARLY ANGLO PLATINUM BENEFITTED FROM APARTHEID and BENEFITS EVEN MORE NOW!

Jubilee Mokopane and community members from around the Mapela and Mokopane areas will be in the Mahwelereng Magistrate’s Court on 1 September 2010 to protest this repression perpetrated by Anglo Platinum and the Police. Despite reports from Action Aid, the SA Human Rights Commission, Benchmarks Foundation, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing in the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and even the Limpopo Premier’s Office exposing Anglo Platinum’s wrongdoing, the communities continue to face repression with no hope in sight from the government they elected and who is supposed to protect them.
 
For more information, please contact: Phillipos Dolo, (Jubilee Mokopane Coordinator) at 073 789 2489, Mr. Sekgala (Jubilee Sekiming) 071 245 4788, or George Dor (Jubilee South Africa General Secretary) at 011 648 7000 or 076 460 9620, george@mail.ngo.za.

Has Anglo American, the transnational miner, run short of ideas over its continuing remodeling, a process that has been underway for more than a decade? Its latest move may be a sideways one, in the appointment of Anglo American CEO Cynthia Carroll as chairman of 80% subsidiary Anglo Platinum, and the promotion to deputy chairman of Anglo Platinum one Valli Moosa, a somewhat controversial South African politician.

See http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page67?oid=107532&sn=Detail&pid=92730.

Anglo Platinum employee accused of disrupting community meeting

The Bench Marks Foundation has expressed its concern suggesting that an employee of Anglo Platinum was instrumental in preventing a meeting of the relocated Magobading community from taking place last weekend.

The community meeting was to have happened on Saturday 22 May, in order to implement an agreement that Anglo Platinum entered into with the relocated Magobading community on the 18th February 2010.  However, the meeting was prevented from happening by a group of angry young people from surrounding villages. It is alleged that the young people were organised by an employee of Anglo Platinum, Mr Trinity Mthiyana.

Bench Marks Foundation Executive Director, John Capel, says: “During the course of the past two months, Anglo Platinum has signed an historic agreement in France emanating from the meeting of the 18th February, committing itself to talking to the community and meeting its demands. We are very concerned at reports of intimidation of the community, some of whom were threatened with injury and even death. This kind of intimidation undermines the legitimate work of the community. We therefore call on Anglo Platinum to make every effort to ensure that none of its employees are involved in any way in such disruptive and intimidatory behaviour.”

The Foundation notes that Magobading is a relocated community, and that Anglo Platinum has promised to compensate it in various ways.  This includes promises to renovate halls and homes of community members.

The community has also called for an independent fund to be set up to provide resources to capacitate the community in various ways, including job creation.

Capel added that the Foundation will be talking to its national and international allies to assess the way forward. A meeting with COSATU, SACC the NGO Coalition of Limpopo will be held soon to mobilize support for the community. In addition, a complaint has been opened up with the South African Police Forces in Limpopo against those responsible for the threats against the community.

However, he added that many in the community are worried about a backlash against them and are living in fear of their lives. There are also allegations that a hit list has been drawn up by community leaders preferred by Anglo Platinum.

“The SA Human Rights Commission has already ruled against the way Anglo Platinum engages with communities, but Anglo Platinum insists on a policy of ‘divide-and-rule’ that further exacerbates tensions that can lead to people being killed,” Capel warned.

For more information, contact John Capel
+27 (0)11 832 1743
+27 (0)82 874 2650

Outside the AGM, War on Want staged a protest – see report and photo at http://www.waronwant.org/news/events/previous-events/16883-war-on-war-protests-against-anglo-shame. For the information handed to shareholders as they entered the meeting, see the end of this report.

Report on the Anglo American AGM, 22 April 2010

Introduction

This was the first AGM chaired by Sir John Parker, who became Chairman of the company in September 2009.

The presentations given by Sir John Parker and Chief Executive Officer Cynthia Carroll are reproduced in full at http://www.angloamerican.co.uk/aa/media/releases/2010pr/agm2010/agm2010.pdf.

Below are some extracts from their speeches, with comments.

Sir John Parker was obviously worried about the impact of protests against the company’s joint venture with Northern Dynasty around Bristol Bay, Alaska, from Indigenous communities and commercial and sport fishing organisations. A critical article had appeared in British newspaper The Observer the previous Sunday (See http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/apr/18/anglo-american-alaska-salmon-protest) and a large advertisement criticising the project in the Financial Times the morning of the AGM. (However, a delegation from Alaska had been unable to travel to London because of the eruption of the volcano in Iceland which had led to flight cancellations, and in fact only one Indigenous representative from Alaska, already in Europe before the eruption, had been able to come to the AGM.) Sir John Parker finished his opening remarks with the following comment.

“Finally, to any visitors from Alaska… … Your concerns involve a very early-stage project in which Anglo American has an interest. I’m sure there will be questions that you will wish to pose, but I would like to say now that, although I have not yet had the chance personally to visit the project, I do understand the concerns and interests that the Pebble project arouses and appreciate the different points of view presented. We have made it clear that the project will work on the basis of world class scientific and engineering skills and that we will use inclusive and innovative stakeholder engagement. Our bottom line remains that, if the project cannot be designed in a way that provides the proper protections for Alaska’s fisheries and wildlife, or to the livelihoods of Alaskan communities, then it shouldn’t be built. It is on that basis that we will continue to evaluate the project in full compliance with the prescribed regulatory processes in Alaska and the United States.”

[NB Rio Tinto is a minority shareholder in Northern Dynasty Minerals.]

Cynthia Carroll boasted of success in cost-cutting, including cutting the company’s total work-force by 23,400, which will not be good news to those workers or their families.

She also said: “The strategic review also identified businesses no longer core to our future: we will divest our zinc assets, Scaw Metals, and phosphates and niobium businesses, together with Tarmac. …The target we set was $2 billion of savings by 2011. We are on track for that, and have in fact restated our target upwards. We will now deliver that $2 billion just from our core portfolio – so it doesn’t take into account any contribution from businesses to be divested. In 2009, we generated more than $1.6 billion of savings, ahead of expectations.”

But she also spoke of new investment: “We’ve provided strong support to the re-capitalisation of both Anglo Platinum and De Beers in recent months. … We will invest $4.2 billion in new projects this year, out of a total planned capital expenditure for 2010 of $6.0 billion. To mention just two of these: the Barro Alto project in Brazil will produce around 40,000 tonnes per year of nickel, starting in the first quarter of 2011. It’s on budget, and it’s on schedule. Life of mine production costs will be around $3.70 / lb, and that compares to today’s nickel price of close to $12 / lb. In Chile, the Los Bronces copper expansion project is also on track and on budget and will start production in the fourth quarter of 2011. It will produce 370,000 tonnes per year of copper at the outset, and the cost per pound will be 80 cents over the life of mine – compared to a current copper price of over $3.50 / lb.”

On worker safety, she said: “In 2009 we achieved a 55% reduction in fatalities compared to the start of 2007. And we reduced our lost time injury frequency rate by 52% over the same period. In the first quarter of 2010, fatalities were 67% lower than the same period last year. We shall work to reduce accidents still further and we are relentless in striving to achieve our goal of zero harm. This is a priority in Anglo American. …

She stated that the company is “committed to environmental stewardship and minimising the environmental impact of our operations. Our sustainable development agenda progressed on several fronts during the year. One of the key elements of our strategy is the management of water: we have to find ways of using water more effectively in the communities and catchment areas where we operate. Effective water management systems are now in place across all of our operations. … Last March, we launched the Anglo Environment Way (AEW). It sets out a consistent approach to responsible environmental management, supporting our vision for minimising harm to the environment by designing and operating all of our operations in an environmentally responsible manner.”

Finally, on worker health, she said: “As for health, we’ve been dedicated to the issue of fighting HIV and AIDS since the 1990s – over 80% of permanent workers in South Africa now regularly test for HIV each year – and in 2008 we extended our policy commitment to include the dependants of our employees.”

Commitment to the health of workers and their families is to be expected as a minimum rather than applauded as a particular gesture of good will on the part of the company. But the commitment does not appear to extend to the health of former workers who have developed silicosis or tuberculosis as a result of their work and as a result are no longer working for the company. This issue arose in the first of the questions on the annual report.

Silicosis and tuberculosis among former gold miners in South Africa

The first question was from former gold miner Alpheos Blom, from South Africa. Speaking through his interpreter, he presented the following statement.

“My name is Alpheos Blom. I arrived in London at 5am this morning. This is the first time I have been out of South Africa. It was my first trip on a plane. I am 48 years old. I am a former gold miner. I worked at Anglo’s President Steyn mine in the Free State for 17 years from 1984 to 2001. I worked as a loader and a loco driver. I loaded freshly blasted rocks onto a machine and drive them through the mines. I have a very serious form of silicosis called Massive Fibrosis. I also contracted TB because of this. I developed this disease because of breathing too much dust from the mine.

“Silicosis is an incurable lung disease. I feel breathless all the time, I get tired easily and am in pain.

“The gold mining industry knew that thousands of gold miners were contracting silicosis each year. They knew that there was too much dust. Myself and the other miners I worked with were never given masks despite asking. Instead we would make our own by stealing bandages, these obviously did not work. We should have been able to wash our overalls every night and use showers in order to reduce the amount of dust we inhaled. But although white miners were given access to onsite showers and change rooms black miners were not provided with either of these things.

“As a result of my bad health I am unable to work and yet I have received no help from Anglo American South Africa, a company you own and for which I worked for 17 years. I am one of thousands of former miners in the same situation. Black miners were exposed to much higher levels of dust and therefore have a much higher risk of contracting silicosis. It is estimated that 25% of black miners from President Steyn mine contracted silicosis; this percentage applies to black miners in other gold mines. The industry employed half a million South African miners. This might give you some idea of the scope of this disaster.

“Miners who have silicosis also have a much higher risk of contracting TB because their lungs are damaged. Many miners have returned to their homes in places such as Eastern Cape and Lesotho where there are no clinics to diagnose and treat silicosis. They become very sick and many have died. Communities in these areas have been devastated. The industry knew about this for decades but simply washed its hands of ex-miners.

“I am part of a group of former miners who are suing Anglo American South Africa for failing to advise its gold mines on how to protect miners against excessive dust exposure. If our claim is successful it could lead to thousands more people coming forward. This case could help my quality of life however I worry that I may die before it is over. I would like to see a compensation scheme put into place now for silicosis victims, I would also like to see your company put into place a system for monitoring silicosis and TB and treating it promptly. Will you help us?”

Sir John Parker thanked Alpheos’ interpreter, mistaking her for his wife and referring to her as “Mrs Blom”. He said that the company is very sympathetic to the plight of the former miners but that as there is a case against Anglo American South Africa the proper place for comment is in the court in South Africa. He said that Anglo American is working with unions, government and industry to find practical solutions to the problems former miners in rural areas find in accessing medical care.

Sir John Parker did not comment on why it was that so many decades have passed since the mining industry has been fully aware of these problems, without effectively addressing them, or why it is that a company able to pay its executives and managers so generously is unable to compensate the miners whose work has created its enormous wealth and whose health has been wrecked in the process.

Anglo American has lost its way

A Mr Franklin, who said that he had been a shareholder for 44 years, said that the company had lost its way, unable to pay a dividend to shareholders while other big mining companies had been able to do so. It had slipped from number two on the list of world mining companies to number four.

Anglo American’s withdrawal from the Philippines

Andy Whitmore, of LMN member group PIPLinks, congratulated the company on quitting the Kalayaan project in the Philippines, partly as a result of community resistance. But he said that the company still appeared to be proceeding with the Connor Apoyo Project, despite community opposition. Two Philippine representatives had attended the 2007 AGM to voice this opposition. The company had agreed to an open meeting with the community but nothing had happened since.

Sir John Parker said that criticism had indeed been voiced in previous AGMs, that the company was currently not involved in any exploration activity in the Philippines and that it was in the process of exiting all its projects there. He asked Hugh Elliott, International Government Relations Manager, to confirm this, and Hugh Elliott confirmed that the company was in the process of exiting all its projects there.

Free Prior Informed Consent of Indigenous Peoples

Andy Whitmore asked a further question about Indigenous rights. He welcomed the fact that company policy recognises the special status of Indigenous Peoples but pointed out that the bottom line established by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC). He offered to arrange a meeting between the company and representatives of Indigenous Peoples to discuss making FPIC operational. Sir John Parker thanked him for the “civil request” and invited him to speak to Hugh Elliott about it.

“The unacceptable face of capitalism”

A shareholder said that Anglo American represented the “unacceptable face of capitalism” because its CEO had received a significant bonus while shareholders had received no dividend. He noted that page 85 of the company’s annual report stated that Cynthia Carroll’s bonus had increased to £372,000 and her total compensation package had increased to £1.6 million. She was also able to keep her earnings as a non-executive director of BP. This, he said, was different from Legal and General [which in August 2009 was the second biggest investor in Anglo American], which had cut but not abolished its dividend, and where no executive had received a bonus in the past year. Sir John Parker defended Anglo American’s levels of executive pay as being necessary to retain the services of effective people. He said it was important to “reward executives on a proper basis”. The company was committed to restoring the dividend as soon as possible. The company had not asked shareholders for more money, as other companies had done, and which had enabled them to hand part of it back as a dividend.

Communities and workers around the world affected by Anglo American’s operations might perhaps take the view that if Anglo American is “the unacceptable face of capitalism” it may primarily be for reasons other than the current lack of a dividend for shareholders, or even the level of executive pay and bonuses.

Share buybacks

A representative of the UK Shareholders’ Association said that share buybacks had been illegal until 1987, with good reason. He criticised the company’s continuing willingness to use them. He also attacked the company’s expenditure on electronic voting devices at its AGMs while it served only water and fruit juice to shareholders after the meetings. It is interesting that, while shareholders had made no response to Alpheos Blom’s harrowing account of suffering as a worker, there was applause at the suggestion that shareholders should receive better drinks after company AGMs. Sir John Parker defended the use of electronic voting devices as an aid to transparency.

Metallurgical coal in Australia

Another shareholder asked if the company would buy the McArthur Coal Mine in Australia. Sir John Parker said at present it would not. He said that metallurgical coal is core to the company’s activities and that it would develop a number of other coal projects in Australia.

De Beers

The same shareholder asked whether De Beers would be made a non-core part of Anglo American’s operations. Sir John Parker replied that it would not.

Merger with Xstrata

The same shareholder referred to Xstrata’s proposed merger with Anglo American. Sir John Parker said that the board was very wary of big mergers, which were as likely to destroy value as to create it.

Commodity prices

Another shareholder suggested that volatile commodity prices were unhelpful. Sir John Parker agreed. Cynthia Carroll said commodity prices were being largely driven by Chinese demand, and gave a long talk noting that the company was very optimistic about prices in the short and mid-term.

Pebble Project, Alaska

Verner Wilson III, from Bristol Bay, Alaska, said that Bristol Bay is the world’s largest remaining wild salmon fishery. He thanked Cynthia Carroll for coming to visit Alaska. He said that Anglo American is partnering in the proposed Pebble Project in the headwaters of salmon streams feeding the bay. The fishery is worth about $400 million and there is tourism as well. Verner Wilson said that his people depend on the fishery for income, food and the maintenance of a tradition dating back seven thousand years. He said that his people have concerns about the project. Pebble has already violated water permits during exploration. It is a very risky project. The fact that the company has violated permits during the exploration phase means that people cannot trust the company’s assurances about the future. Verner said that his people would fight to protect this resource. The UK is the largest importer of canned wild salmon from Bristol Bay. Cynthia Carroll had made a promise last year that if local people did not want the project, the company would not go ahead with it. 80% of people in the area are opposed to the project and 100,000 Americans have signed a petition against it. The fight against it will be national. Verner urged Anglo American to divest from the project.

Sir John Parker said that he was sorry that rest of the Alaska delegation was unable to join Verner in London. He said that the Pebble project is a 50/50 partnership with Northern Dynasty Minerals. The partnership was formed in 2007 and is based in Anchorage, Alaska. The deposit is primarily copper, but other minerals are present. There is no operating mine. The project is at pre-permitting stage. It is not expected to apply for operating permits for some time. It is not located in a protected area (although, he said, from the statements of the project’s opponents one could be forgiven for believing that it was). It lies on state land designated by democratic processes for mineral exploration and development. Alaska has designated land for mining and there have been two referenda about it. There are 174 million acres of protected area in Alaska. Bristol Bay covers 40,000 square miles, and the Pebble project would cover one twentieth of one per cent of this. But it does, he said, lie on land on which there is no current industrial activity. The Chief Executive of the Pebble partnership understands the significance of water and salmon. So over the past six years Anglo American and Northern Dynasty have invested $130 million in environmental and social studies, building up the largest database of facts on any project in Alaska’s history. The permitting process will take three years and during this time local people will be able to check the facts and make their objections known, should they have any. It is not just a decision for Anglo American but also for the Alaskan authorities. The permitting process involves eleven different federal and state bodies. There is a huge process before a decision cane be made to mine or not to mine. People need to decide on facts, he said, not on rhetoric or misinformation. The Chief Executive John Shively is committed to working with local people, and not all local people are opposed to the project. Alaska has a huge and proud mining record. There are already three major mining operations in the state, and they have never had a major environmental incident. Anglo American is looking at the leaching risks of every tailings dam it owns across the world, and it has an excellent record. He said that both he and Cynthia Carroll intend to visit Alaska.

(See also the report in the Independent at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/anglo-american-confronted-by-alaskan-protest-1950489.html.)

Corporate governance

One shareholder questioned the independence of two “independent” directors, who had been on the board for fully nine years each, the maximum permitted by the combined code of corporate governance. Sir John Parker pointed out that they were both retiring at this AGM. The shareholder said that the combined code said that where there were departures from recommended practice, they should be explained in writing to the shareholders. Although this matter had been explained at AGMs, there was no explanation in the annual report. Sir John Parker agreed that this was the case.

Expenditure on the Pebble Project

Another shareholder questioned why, if there was not a strong chance of the Pebble Project going ahead, $130 million had been spent on preliminary studies and asked the value of the deposit. Sir John Parker assured him that the company believed that the value of the deposit justified the expenditure and noted that it was not unusual to spend significant sums in advance when several billions may be invested in a project. This was simply part of doing business.

The Cerrejon Coal Mine in Colombia

Richard Solly, from LMN member group Colombia Solidarity Campaign, said that he was concerned that Cerrejon Coal, in which Anglo American has a one-third share along with BHP Billiton and Xstrata, had developed a kind of institutional ‘rigor mortis’ with regard to community relocations. An Independent Panel of Inquiry into Cerrejon Coal’s operations had made a number of recommendations, accepted by the company, about the treatment of communities required to move as the mine expands. Company officials continually assured critics of the company’s good intentions, but community members continued to complain that the company was not negotiating with them in good faith. Planned meetings would be cancelled at short notice; some community members would be informed, others not, causing anger and divisions within the communities. Timetables for relocation would be published on the company’s website without consultation with the communities. There was disagreement about the quantity of land and the design of houses in the relocated settlements. Cerrejon Coal was not even fulfilling the basic requirements of the World Bank’s Operational Guidelines on Involuntary Relocation, which established that where small farming communities were relocated they should be provided with agricultural land of equal or greater value from that which they were being required to leave. What would Anglo American do to ensure that Cerrejon Coal lived up to its responsibilities to the communities facing relocation?

Sir John Parker noted that Richard had rightly referred to a third party investigation, which was commissioned partly because of the complaints that Richard had brought to the AGM. The third party panel had not found any evidence of direct abuses, but had made a number of recommendations to Anglo American as one-third shareholders in the project. The company had taken on board these points and would actively pursue the issues as it wanted to move forward on this as quickly as it can. As to more specific points he then linked up over the telephone with the operational manager responsible, speaking from the United States. The connection was a poor one, but as far as could be heard, he noted that the company shared the frustration at the slow pace of relocations. However, they were working as fast as they could while striving to maintain community relations. They had bolstered management to speed things up and to get it right on community relations. The obligations are being met in the main, and issues are either under discussion or in progress. Anglo American is committed to the process and working on relocations.

Richard responded that people were losing their livelihoods while these delays continued, including as a result of the recent impoundment and death of cattle within the mine lease area. Sir John Parker expressed concern about this matter.

Anglo Platinum in South Africa

Nick Hildyard of LMN member group The Cornerhouse said that it was right to stress the importance of good community relationships in developing growth, citing the Annual Report. He said that his question concerned Anglo Platinum in South Africa and that he understood that nine people in the community of Sekuruwe were in the process of suing Anglo Platinum, among others, challenging the alleged consent that was supposedly granted by the community for a lease agreement between Anglo Platinum and the Minister of Land & Rural Development for the Blinkwater Farm. This land was used for ploughing fields, grazing and burial sites for the Sekuruwe community and others. This is apparently the same land where graves were removed and reburied without proper consent. He said that he had been told that the South African Heritage Resources Agency is currently investigating the way graves were removed and the lack of remains in some of the new graves. Nick asked how the company, collectively, had allowed this conflict to spiral out of control in this way. How much confidence could people have that the company would get it right at Pebble Bay, as executives were claiming that they would? Rather than addressing the issues in this case, Anglo Platinum is suing the lawyer, Richard Spoor, who is representing communities in an attempt to get redress. This lawsuit, for defamation, is rooted in the company disputing some of the facts that Richard Spoor relies on. Will the company rely on lawsuits to attack those in Alaska with whom it disagrees on facts? Is it in the company’s best interests to have a three week, high profile lawsuit in South Africa in which the facts are disputed? Has the company heard of the McDonald’s libel lawsuit against campaigners in London?

At one stage, Sir John Parker invited Nick Hildyard to make his point more quickly, but Nick declined, saying that he preferred to go at his own pace.

Sir John Parker said that he would not comment on the defamation case. He said that if the company believes that someone has “engaged in defamatory behaviour” it is the company’s duty to tackle it. He said that resettlement is difficult and that the company is committed to correcting any mistakes it has made. He said that the vast majority of people whom Anglo Platinum needs to relocate have moved to new villages. Only 64 families out of over 900 have refused to move. The company is working with the South African authorities to achieve a satisfactory outcome.

Mary-Jane Morifi, responsible for Anglo Platinum’s community relations in South Africa, commented via a telephone link on the legal case brought by the Sekuruwe community. She spoke extremely rapidly, making accurate note-taking impossible. Anglo American has discontinued the practice of making transcripts of its AGMs available on its website, possibly because of the volume of criticism that it has attracted during those meetings. Readers are sadly thus deprived of the possibility of reading Anglo Platinum’s defence of its relocation programme and its response to the legal case brought by members of the Sekuruwe community. It is interesting to note that although Sir John Parker was unwilling to comment on two of the three legal cases on which he was directly asked to comment, the Anglo Platinum spokesperson was happy to comment at some length on the third such case.

Shareholders entering the meeting were handed the following information by activists from London Mining Network.

Anglo American plc

Responsibility
Reputation
Returns….

Reality

Anglo American’s wholly owned subsidiary Anglo American South Africa Ltd is being sued in South Africa by former gold miners suffering from silicosis, on the grounds that the company negligently advised its gold mines with respect to protection of miners against excessive dust exposure.

Silicosis is lung disease caused by dust. South African miners were exposed to high dust without respirators. Black miners were exposed to higher dust levels than white miners. Between 250,000 and  500,000 miners were employed in South African gold mines during the 20th century. During apartheid mines relied on “migrant labour” from South Africa (e.g. Eastern Cape and Free State), Lesotho and neighbouring states e.g. Botswana and Malawi. The test case claimants are from the Free State, Eastern Cape & Lesotho.

A 2008 study focused specifically on former miners from Lesotho who had worked at the President Steyn mine found a rate of silicosis of 24 percent. The rate of TB was also very high. This was consistent with previous studies on black gold miners, which found rates of around 25 percent. Experts estimate that tens of thousands of miners contracted silicosis in South African gold mines. Miners with silicosis also have a much increased risk of contracting TB for the rest of their lives. This additional risk has been recognised for decades. Silicosis can take from 10-30 years to develop after exposure. A large proportion of miners only develop silicosis and TB after they have left the mines and returned to their communities. Because of rudimentary or non-existent medical services in rural areas, ex-miners frequently contract silicosis and TB which is undiagnosed and untreated, resulting in serious lung damage and death in numerous cases. Ex-miners in Eastern Cape and Lesotho, for instance, have been decimated by dust-related lung disease from gold mining.

The industry has been well aware of this for many years but washes its hand of ex-miners, and makes no medical or financial provision for them. Anglo American was the largest gold mining group. Anglo American PLC was formed in 1999, whereupon it acquired the Anglo gold mining business formerly headed by Anglo American South Africa Ltd. The claim alleges that Anglo American South Africa Ltd negligently failed to advise the mines properly to take measures to protect miners against excessive dust exposure.

The primary object of the test cases is to establish the legal principles on which miners should be compensated for silicosis and silico-tuberculosis. A further objective is that the industry should establish a medical monitoring scheme to ensure that ex-miners are diagnosed and treated for TB speedily and effectively. This could be achieved by injection of resources into the existing state system.

If Anglo American plc is committed to corporate social responsibility, it should (a) establish a compensation scheme for silicosis victims; (b)co-operate in alleviating further suffering by ensuring that ex-miners are monitored for silicosis and TB and treated promptly.

Elsewhere in South Africa….

·    Anglo American is benefitting from ’sweetheart’ deals with power generator Eskom which threaten to cause hardship for low-income citizens. (1)
·    Despite the company’s efforts to reduce worker deaths, especially at its South African deep mines, it still has a high rate of work related fatalities. (2)
·    Communities in Limpopo are in conflict with Anglo American over its subsidiary Anglo Platinum’s programme of removal of villages for mine expansion. Conflicts include complaints over loss of agricultural livelihood through inadequate access to good quality farmland without creation of sufficient mining jobs to compensate, and allegations of desecration of ancestral graves. Lawyer Richard Spoor, who has represented some of the communities involved, is being sued for defamation by Anglo Platinum. (3)

Elsewhere in the world …

·    Anglo American has a 50% stake in the Pebble Mine copper gold and molybdenum project in Alaska, which is opposed by a coalition of Native communities and commercial and sports fishing organisations. (4)
·    Anglo American’s De Beers subsidiary has been criticised for the level of influence it has over government and economy in Botswana, its environmental record and its attitude to Indigenous Bushmen communities. (5)
·    Since 2000, Anglo American has been involved in the massive opencast Cerrejon coal mine in northern Colombia. Since early 2002, Anglo American has been a one-third owner of the mine (along with London-listed BHP Billiton and Xstrata). The mine has a history of forced relocation of communities. The current owners have pledged to address this legacy and improve the handling of involuntary relocations. But an agreement made in December 2008 with residents of one destroyed village, Tabaco, remains stalled, and negotiations with other communities facing relocation drag on while communities suffer loss of livelihood and complain of health problems caused by coal dust. Community leaders allege that the company is not even fulfilling the basic guidelines laid down by the World Bank and that its critics have received death threats from persons unknown. Workers at the mine complain that the Cerrejon Coal company avoids paying adequate social security contributions to compensate for the dangerous nature of their work and that subcontracted workers are denied basic union rights. (6)

For further information, contact:

London Mining Network: http://londonminingnetwork.org, LMN@gn.apc.org, 07929 023214

War on Want: http://www.waronwant.org, mailroom@waronwant.org, 020 7549 0555

Notes

(1) See http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/04/black-and-white-unite-against-dirty-south-african-coal/.
(2) See http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/01/miners%E2%80%99-efforts-fail-to-cut-death-toll/
(3) See http://londonminingnetwork.org/tag/anglo-platinum/
(4) See http://ourbristolbay.com/index.html
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/02/pebble-project-among-most-important-north-american-mining-opportunities/
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2009/10/major-us-conservation-group-joins-alaska-anti-mine-campaign/
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2009/10/class-ring-makers-join-boycott-against-pebble-mine/
(5) See http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/02/benchmarks-report-on-de-beers/.
(6) See
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/01/union-contract-workers-continue-fight-for-work-rights-at-cerrejon-in-colombia/
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2009/10/community-representatives-in-london-to-challenge-world%E2%80%99s-biggest-mining-multinational/ (notes involvement of BHP Billiton, owner of another one-third of Cerrejon Coal, but applies equally to Anglo American)
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2009/07/colombia-attack-on-labour-rights-by-contracting-agency-for-el-cerrejon-mine/
http://londonminingnetwork.org/2009/01/colombia-seven-year-long-peoples-struggle-achieves-a-victory/

Smoke, mirrors and reality among major diversified miners
http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page67?oid=99488&sn=Detail&pid=92730

Just how strong are the world’s biggest miners?
http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page67?oid=99341&sn=Detail&pid=92730

See http://londonminingnetwork.org/2010/02/anglo-platinum-hands-off-richard-spoor/.

Jubilee Mokopane, Limpopo
South Africa
Press Statement
18 February 2010

LIMPOPO COMMUNITIES DEMONSTRATE AGAINST MINING WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT!

Note: All of the below activities in Limpopo are underway while Richard Spoor is tied up in court thanks to a defamation case against him filed by Anglo Platinum (a target of some of the actions listed below) and African Rainbow Minerals.

The community of Sekiming, supported by Jubilee Mokopane will be resorting to rolling mass action to stop Anglo Platinum and the Department of Basic Education from relocating the Seritarita High School to another village. The school is currently situated at Sekiming village which is considered to be most central and accessible by children and learners from all the neighbouring villages.

The school is close by and learners can walk to school so their parents do not have to incur costs for transportation. The community has been under siege by mining from Anglo Platinum as well as Lonmin (formerly London-Rhodesia Mining Company). In 2009, Sekiming successfully chased Lonmin’s prospecting rigs from their community.

If the school is relocated that would mean children would have to walk long distances and others may have to hire transportation – they do not have money for this. Transport is lacking in the area and their parents do not have extra money to cater for this extra cost.

On Monday 15 February, in the village of Sekiming, the community and Jubilee Mokopane were demonstrating, demanding that the councillor, Mr. Abram Kgaphola, stop the school from relocating. With this demonstration of not more than fifteen people the community highlighted their dissatisfaction with this plan to relocate the school. But they also agreed to embark on a number of peaceful pickets to plead with their councillor to intervene. He ignored the picket and did not meet the community.

On the 16 February 2010 another group of 15 community members from Matlou, Lelaka, Chokwe, Seema and Mashahleng staged a demonstration against the company Venmag. The workers were informed in advance of the demonstration and did report to work at all. Mr Lelaka, one of the community members, stated that if this kind of exploration is not stopped it would translate into further land loss by his community and more land dispossessions.

As if it is not enough to forcefully move and resettle the Ga Pila community from their ancestral land to a township called Sterkwater, the new Ga-Pila Township may face yet another removal of their community from the Sterkwater Farm. A notice has been placed that there will be prospecting for Lithium Ore by the state-owned mining company, Africa Exploration Mining and Finances.

Another demonstration took place at the Mapela Tribal Authority with several people from different communities on the 16th of February. These community members are protesting there because of the role of Kgoshigadi Langa in supporting Anglo Platinum’s operations while at the same time the community reports she has not properly engaged them.

The residents of these communities and Jubilee Mokopane say they that they are sick and tired of these big machines that are coming onto their land to do business without even asking for permission from the community. They said that they would continue to refuse to allow any machines on their land.

For more information, please contact Malesela Sekgala (Sekiming) 071 245 4788, Frans Pila (Sterkwater/Jubilee Mokopane)  071 344 3443 and Phillipos Dolo (Jubilee Mokopane) 073 789 2489.