DR Congo workers for Feronia made impotent by pesticides - HRW
25 November 2019
Workers exposed to pesticides at a UK-funded company in the Democratic Republic of Congo have suffered ending up being impotent, a rights group has stated.
Feronia, which dominates DR Congo's palm-oil sector, had actually failed to give workers sufficient protective devices, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.
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The UK government's development bank, CDC, owns 38% of Feronia in DR Congo.
It stated Feronia had actually invested heavily in protective equipment and all employees were needed to wear it.
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Feronia, a Canadian-based company, stated it was devoted to operating to international requirements.
The company added that it had actually spent $360,000 (₤ 280,000) on personal protective equipment in the last 3 years, which workers had actually been trained to use, and it had carried out a policy requiring the devices to be worn in the workplace.
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Feronia and its subsidiary, Plantations et Huileries du Congo (PHC), utilize countless employees at palm oil plantations in DR Congo.
PHC has received millions of dollars from the advancement banks of Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.
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"These banks can play a crucial role promoting advancement, but they are undermining their mission by failing to make sure the business they finance appreciates the rights of its workers and communities on the plantations," HRW researcher Luciana Téllez-Chávez stated.
What is HRW's evidence?
In a report entitled A Toxic Mix of Abuses on Congo's Oil Palm Plantations, external, HRW said it had actually spoken with more than 40 employees and two-thirds of them "informed us that they had become impotent given that they began the task".
Impotence - together with shortness of breath, headaches, and weight-loss that the workers complained about - were illness "constant with direct exposure to pesticides in basic, as explained in clinical literature", HRW stated.
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"Many [likewise] experienced skin inflammation, irritation, blisters, eye problems, or blurred vision - all symptoms that are constant with what clinical texts and the products' labels explain as health repercussions of exposure to these pesticides," the rights group included.
Ms Téllez-Chávez stated employees who had been spoken with had permeable cotton overalls - not the water resistant overalls.
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"If pesticides unintentionally spilled, the toxic liquid would likely touch their skin," she added.
What else does HRW state?
At the Yaligimba plantation, the company disposed the waste from its palm oil mill beside workers' homes.
The effluents formed a "foul-smelling stream", and eventually streamed into a natural pond where ladies and kids bathe and clean cooking utensils.
"Residents of a village of several hundred people downstream informed us the river was their only source of drinking water," Ms Téllez-Chávez said.
If unchecked and unattended, effluent-dumping could ultimately also cause fish to suffocate and die, or cause large developments of algae that could negatively affect the health of individuals who entered into contact with contaminated water or taken in tainted fish, HRW added.
The rights group also implicated Feronia of paying "severe hardship" earnings, saying women were the lowest-paid, with some earning just $7.30 a month event fruit.
HRW said the development banks ought to guarantee the organizations they purchase pay living incomes to their employees.
What is the UK advancement bank's reaction?
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In a statement, CDC said: "Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) is an organic mix of natural waste oils and fats and has been released into rivers given that the plantation entered into remaining in 1911 and does not threaten human health.
"A treatment plant for POME represents a multimillion dollar financial investment - money that the business has actually chosen rather to invest on housing, clean water provision, healthcare and academic facilities for employees, their families and other members of the regional communities.
"It is the goal of the company to develop treatment plants for POME, however is regrettably not in a financial position to do so presently as it continues to make heavy losses.
"In addition, the company has actually refurbished or dug 72 new boreholes for the arrangement of clean water in the last six years."
What does Feronia state?
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The company stated working conditions had improved substantially since the participation of the European banks in 2013.
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Employees were now paid considerably more than the minimum wage for agriculture in DR Congo and the typical worker earned $3.30 each day - higher than what a local teacher would earn, it stated.
It also verified that it had invested substantially in access to safe drinking water.
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"Feronia runs on a social required with local communities. Without their support we would not be able to function. We recognise that there is still a terrific deal to be done and are committed to operating to worldwide requirements. We will continue to work tirelessly to achieve these goals," the business included a statement.
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DR Congo Workers for Feronia made Impotent By Pesticides - HRW
anne13u3862067 edited this page 2025-01-19 02:07:34 +08:00