The Koidu Kimberlite Project - Is Koidu Holdings Ltd. above the law?

Published by MAC on 2004-02-11

The Koidu Kimberlite Project - Is Koidu Holdings Ltd. above the law?

Press Statement - Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD)

11th February 2004

For quite some time now the civil society coalition working on extractive industry’s transparency, accountability and social responsibility has been raising serious concerns, expressing strong views and making public comments with regards the conduct of the Koidu Kimberlite Project in Kono. Some well-meaning citizens including other civil society groups, journalists, parliamentarians, community people and even the Peace Diamond Alliance have raised similar concerns.

On Tuesday 3rd February, 2004 Peace Diamond Alliance (PDA) convened a meeting of its executive attended by the Deputy Minister of Mines, Deputy Director of Mines, The SDO-Kono, Parliamentarians, chiefs and the personnel of Koidu Holdings Limited (KHL) in order to resolved the issues and concerns so raised. Inspite of the public outcry and effort of PDA, nothing has been done to address the problems. Instead, His Excellency The President went to Kono a few days after the PDA organized meeting praising KHL as “a job well done” and urged the people of Kono to cooperate with Koidu Holdings Limited. This was followed by a television show displaying the more than 10,000 carats of diamonds already gotten by KHL in he midst of cries, pains and sufferings of the local people. Not withstanding this the Campaign for Just Mining and civil society of this country will not be deterred as they have the right to perform their constitutional duties, namely, to “make positive and useful contributions to the advancement, Progress and well-being of the community” section 3(f) 1991 constitution.

In addition to the above, we also find unacceptable the following activities by Koidu holdings Limited:-

• That the Environmental Impact Assessment document was only released in Sierra Leone late January 2004 while as it was sent to the World Bank Group-MIGA in October 2003. Why could not this document have been released here in Sierra Leone at the same time it was released to World Bank? Who is the key stakeholder in this mining project-the World Bank or Sierra Leone?

• That the EIA document has not been made available in Public Places as required by law. As at today February 11, 2004 almost three weeks since it was said to have been released none can be found at places such as the Government Bookshop, the Sierra Leone Library Board, Department of Geology University of Sierra Leone and other government Departments and Ministries. The EIA Document as observed is only confined to the office of KHL’s Consultants i.e. CEMMATS.

• That instead of giving six weeks as required by World Bank Public Disclosure Policy for Corporate entities in order to study the EIA document for public input only three weeks were given (deadline February 2004) even though the documents are still unavailable.

• That the participation of the local inhabitants, about 4,536 (284 households) of whom are directly affected by the activities of the mining, in the preparation of the document was ignored and plans to consult them are nowhere to be heard of.

• That no known plans have been put in place to satisfactorily resettle/relocate the almost 5,000 people directly affected before recommencing the blasting after their first sales.

We therefore urge the government of Sierra Leone, the Koidu Holdings Limited and all those responsible to make sure that the following is put in place.

1. That, the EIA document be made available to the affected communities in Kono and be distributed to all Public Places like Libraries, Bookshops, Colleges, Government Departments and Ministries etc.
2. That, the time allotted for the reading of the document by the people should be extended from three weeks to six weeks for a better understanding of the document and informed input.
3. That the local community people be allowed to organize themselves, set up their own structures and involve them in all phases of he project including planning and implementation as well as monitoring for compliance.
4. That, the blasting be suspended henceforth until satisfactory resettlement/relocation is completed.
5. That, those households should be resettled as efficiently and successfully as possible with minimum disruption to their existing livelihoods, and in a manner that does not lead to impoverishment. And as a result the people should be;
   . Informed about their options and rights pertaining to resettlement.
   . Consulted on, offered choices among, and provided technically and economically
   . possible resettlement alternatives; and
   . Provided prompt and effective compensation at full replacement cost for losses of assets attributed directly to the Project.
6. Public Consultations should be conducted with all stakeholders including the affected communities, government, civil society etc.
   

Sierra Leone stands to lose and Kono will again be further devastated if measures are not taken to properly regulate and hold the Koidu Holdings Limited to respect international standards of corporate social responsibility, accountability and transparent public disclosure policies.

For further information contact: NMJD, 8 King Harman Road, Freetown:

TeL: 229937/223378

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10th February, 2004.

The Minister of Lands, Housing and the Environment,
Youyi Building (3rd Floor),
Freetown
Sierra Leone

Dear Sir,

Re: Koidu Kimberlite Project

The Campaign for Just Mining, a coalition of civil society organizations countrywide, which the Network Movement for Justice and Development (NMJD) is spearheading wishes to express its concerns over the Koidu Kimberlite Project which has started the exploitation of the Koidu Kimberlite pipe in the Kono District since May 2002.

Since the start of operations of the Koidu Holdings Limited last year, there has been a great deal of talking and wrangling between the local inhabitants of Koidu and the Koidu Holdings Limited. This has aroused the attention and interest of not only the directly affected masses, but also civil society and rights-based organisations all over the country, including NGOs as well. It is in this light that the Campaign for Just Mining which since 2000 has been engaged in advocacy work around mining, environmental and human rights issues deems it necessary at this point to raise some pertinent issues relating to the operations of the Koidu Holdings

Limited and the welfare of the people in the operational areas. Amongst them are the following:

• That the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Report and related documents were released very late here in Sierra Leone. It was sent to the World Bank and Group-MIGA in October last year, but only released in Sierra Leone in the last week of January this year. Why could not this document have been released here in Sierra Leone at the same time it was released to the World Bank? Who is a major stakeholder here – World Bank or Sierra Leone? Is this right?

• That the EIA document has not been made available in public places such as the Government Bookshop, the Sierra Leone Library Board, the Department of Geology at Fourah Bay College, line government ministries and departments as well provincial offices where the ordinary man and woman could easily access the report. Contrary to widely publicized venues, the EIA document is only confined to the offices of Koidu Holdings Limited and their consultants i.e. CEMMATS. This is in contravention of the World Bank policy of public disclosure and national legislations.

• That contrary to the provisions of the Environment Protection Act 2000, only three weeks were allotted to the general populace to read, digest and input to the report instead of six weeks as stipulated by law. This, in addition to the non-availability of the report in public places, also places considerable constraints on the people to have their views adequately reflected in the final document; Or was it a well designed ploy to deny them of their rights?

• That the participation of the local inhabitants in the preparation and validation of the document was totally ignored despite the tremendous impact it will have on their lives.

• That the number of people directly affected by the operations of the Koidu Holdings Limited is 4,536 with 284 households, who should be accorded priority access to the EIA in their local language and consultations facilitated to ensure their input and active participation.
  

With regards to the above, the Campaign for Just Mining considers the following recommendations as the way forward.

1. That, the EIA report should be made available to the affected communities in Kono and that the document should also be deposited to all public places like libraries, bookshops, colleges, government departments and ministries, among others for the public to easily access it.
2. That the time allotted for the reading of the document by the general public should be extended from three weeks to six weeks for a better understanding of the issues raised in the report so as to enable people to meaningfully make their own inputs.
3. That Koidu Holdings Limited should ensure meaningful participation of the affected communities in the planning and implementation processes of all projects and programmes that affect the communities through regular consultations and participatory monitoring.
4. That the blasting which has so far caused untold suffering for the affected communities should be suspended henceforth until relocation arrangements for the affected populations are satisfactorily completed.
5. That the affected households should be resettled as efficiently and satisfactorily as possible with minimum disruption to their existing livelihoods, and in a manner that does not lead to impoverishment. In order to achieve the above, the people should be:
   . Informed about their options and rights pertaining to resettlement.
   . Consulted on the overall resettlement package, offered choices and provided technically and economically possible resettlement alternatives; and
   . Provided prompt and adequate compensation/full replacement costs for loss of assets attributed directly to the project.
   
6. That public consultations should be conducted regularly with all stakeholders including the affected communities, government, donor institutions like the World Bank, rights-based organizations and corporate bodies engaged in the extractive industry.
   
7. That consideration for mining licenses be done only after the above issues are properly dealt with.
   

It is the fervent hope of the Campaign for Just Mining that these recommendations will be taken in good faith and implemented immediately. Whilst looking forward to your earliest response to the concerns raised above, we would want to thank you for your understanding and cooperation in previous matters of this nature.

Yours sincerely,

Abu A. Brima

National Coordinator, NMJD.

Copy:

Minister of Mineral Resources
Minister of Trade and Industry
Minister of Labour and Industrial Relations
Minister of Internal Affairs
Minister of Local Government and Rural Development
Attorney-General and Minister of Justice
Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Mineral Resources
Parliamentary Committee on Labour
Director Mines
Director of Geological Survey
Country Director, World Bank
Department for International Development
Peace Diamond Alliance
Council of Chiefs
Senior District Office, Kono District
Chief Police Officer, Koidu
UNAMSIL Human Rights Section
Civil Society Movement – Sierra Leone
Chamber of Commerce
Inter-Religious Council
Geological Department, Fourah Bay College-University of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone Bar Association
Sierra Leone Teachers Union
Sierra Leone Association of Journalists
Inspector of Schools, Kono District
Resident Minister, Eastern Region