Rampant human rights abuses in Zim’s extractives sector

The Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (Zela) is a public interest environmental law group based in Zimbabwe promoting good natural resources governance in Zimbabwe and the southern Africa region.

The organisation has over 20 years of experience promoting good natural resources through policy research, advocacy and monitoring human rights situation in Africa’s extractive sector and has observer status with the commission.

Zimbabwe has been a state party to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter), since ratifying the Treaty in 1986.

Despite being party to the Charter that encourages the promotion and protection of human rights, and entrenching social, economic, and cultural rights in its 2023 constitution, Zimbabweans living in mining communities continue to experience violations of their fundamental rights.

 The world is grappling with climate change, which is driving an influx of investments to secure critical minerals for purposes of enabling the energy transition.

Africa is home to the energy minerals to meet the global commitments to the Paris Agreement.

• Spike in child labour cases riles ZHRC
• City ranks low in child marriages
• Binga pastor, businessman murdered in cold blood
• Villagers walk over 26km to reach local clinic

For instance, Zimbabwe which host the largest lithium reserves in Africa and 6th in the globe, has also witnessed an increase in foreign investments in the lithium sector.

While these investments are fundamental for economic growth, there is growing evidence of violations of human rights associated with extraction of critical minerals including lithium.

Zela has documented human rights violations occurring in Zimbabwe in the context of extraction of energy or critical minerals.

For instance, 40 houses were displaced to pave way for lithium mining by Max Minds Investments in Buhera.

These communities today continue to suffer because of loss of their land, livelihoods and continue to live under degrading conditions.

Furthermore, 33 other families in Insiza are on the verge of being displaced by African Premier Minerals to pave way for lithium mining.

Many other communities have been victims of displacement for purposes of mineral exploitation of critical minerals.

The state has not effectively discharged its obligations under the Charter to ensure protection of citizens in instances of disposition and ensuring adequate compensation as espoused under Article 21 of the Charter.

The situation is worsened by lack of a legal framework that guide dispossession of communities from land and ensuring fair and adequate compensation.

In addition to physical displacement, unfair compensation and loss of livelihoods, mining companies continue to pollute the environment impacting communities’ right to a clean and safe environment guaranteed by Article 24 of the Charter and domesticated by Zimbabwe through Section 73 of the constitution.

Cases in point are; violations perpetrated by Bikita Minerals in which it has polluted Matezva Dam in Gutu.

Communities in areas like Shurugwi, Zvishavane, Mberengwa, Goromonzi and Gwanda are facing similar concerns from lithium mining.

Unfortunately, the state has not ensured protection of vulnerable communities’ rights and hold companies accountable.

This situation is not only prevailing in Zimbabwe, but in other mineral resource rich countries.

According to a 2021 Study by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC) on the impact of foreign investments on human rights, between 2013 and 2020 Africa had the second highest number of allegations of human rights abuses, with 26.7% of the claims recorded against Chinese companies.

 Another recent BHRRC report published in 2023 revealed 102 allegations of human rights and environmental abuses linked to critical mineral projects between 2021 and 2022.2

These human rights allegations of abuse spanned in not only in Zimbabwe, but other African countries including; Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Ghana, Namibia and South Africa.

 In the face of these challenges, mining host communities, and environmental human rights defenders find it difficult to hold corporates accountable.

Zela, therefore, calls upon the Commission to:

• Re-emphasise on the government of Zimbabwe and other mineral rich countries on the need to abide by their human rights obligations in extraction of critical minerals, as enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights,
• Call upon the government of Zimbabwe and other mineral rich countries to report on article 21 and 24 of the African Charter using the guidelines developed by the Commission
• Call upon the government of Zimbabwe and other mineral rich countries to hold companies accountable for violation human rights in the process of exploiting natural resources and ensure that investors exploiting lithium in Zimbabwe respect environmental, social, and cultural rights of Zimbabweans.
• Call upon the government of Zimbabwe to develop an effective legal framework for displacement and compensation to ensure fairness, justice, and protection of human rights of displaced people.
• Lastly, we call on the Commission to prioritise investigating human rights situation of communities hosting lithium resources. - Zela