HRW doc. hits Zambia's China-owned copper ops

IRJ – November 3 –A report released Thursday by Human Rights Watch (HRW) depicts the mistreatment of workers at Chinese-owned copper mines in Zambia and calls on new President Michael Sata to stick to his campaign pledges and clean up dubious labour issues for the country’s sector.

The report on Zambia—where the domestic copper industry makes up approximately 70 per cent of the nation’s exports and two thirds of government revenue—is the result of field missions and 170 interviews with 95 individuals working between November 2010 and July this year. Participants reportedly stem from four Chinese owned copper groups; subsidiary companies of the China Non-Ferrous Metals Mining Corporation.

Running to 122 pages, the report titled “ 'You'll Be Fired If You Refuse': Labor Abuses in Zambia's Chinese State-owned Copper Mines” did offer a silver lining to its findings, in stating that “there is no question that since first beginning operations, the Chinese-run companies have improved health and safety conditions as well as union relationships.”

It also states that “the improvements make clear that there is neither an inherent link between Chinese investment and poor labor practices nor a complete inflexibility on their part. Indeed, they appear responsive to pressure from host governments and care greatly about their image.”

The document’s release follows a lunch staged between Sata and Chinese businesspeople over the weekend,  during which he intended to relay his goals for improving the sector, including upping the minimum wage to approximately double current levels, tightening safety standards and addressing other workplace concerns. These pledges are yet to appear in legal proceedings before any parliamentary reviews committee or policymakers.

http://twitter.com/IRJmagazine

Add to: del.icio.us | Digg | NewsVine | Mixx | FaceBook | Twitter