Post

The Kinshasa Informer
15 March 2024

Court of Cassation absolves mining companies in Burundi child labor case

KINSHASA - The Court of Cassation has refused to hold two major Congolese mining companies liable for their alleged involvement in the use of child labour in nickel mining operations within Burundi.

In a near-unanimous decision, the court ruled in favor of the National Mining Company (SNM) and the Nzuri-Banga Group (GNB), rejecting an appeal by former child miners and their representatives. The two mining giants were accused of "knowingly benefiting from and aiding and abetting the cruel and brutal use of young children in Burundi to mine nickel" in case documents seen by The Kinshasa Informer. In particular, the companies were accused of attempting to cover up the use of child labor by their Burundian subsidiaries, namely Rainbow Minerals Burundi SM and SNM Energy Metals Burundi (both subsidiaries of SNM) and Burundi Mining LTD (a subsidiary of GNB).

Nickel is expected to be a strategic commodity for many decades to come. Nickel is one of the primary components used in high-output batteries. Demand for the mineral is expected to dramatically increase over the next 30 years, primarily driven by the explosive growth envisioned for electric vehicle batteries and household/commercial energy storage systems. Nickel also has a vast range of uses including key technology-related components and products found in virtually every industry. Nickel is the primary component of stainless steel. It is also a critical component of all laser electrodes.

Burundi has one of the largest nickel reserves in the world. The country's planned Africa Burundi 1 mine contains some of the largest reserves of nickel ever discovered and may be one of the last world-class, low extraction cost open pit nickel mines to be brought online. The mine is located in an area of Burundi that will greatly benefit from the tens of thousands of jobs and vast improvements in infrastructure and living standards it will bring to the local and larger regional economy. However, the lack of reliable access to electricity and the difficulty of transporting minerals out of landlocked Burundi have hampered the growth of the country's mining industry. Approximately 70% of production in the Burundian mining industry is artisanal. The industrialization of Burundi's mining industry is still embryonic and there are no plants to transform minerals into final products.

Given the enormous strategic value of Africa Burundi 1's reserves, there has been considerable interest from the Congolese government and mining companies in structuring several agreements to develop the country's mining industry. This forms part of Kinshasa's overall policy goal of consolidating the DRC's grip on the rapidly expanding global battery industry. The first of these agreements came in 2019 and saw the establishment of Rainbow Minerals Burundi SM, SNM Energy Metals Burundi, and Burundi Mining LTD. These companies were named in the 2023 lawsuit over Burundian child nickel mining deaths. The lawsuit came only a week after Kinshasa and Gitega signed a memorandum of understanding on further mining concessions in Burundi.

Human rights groups have criticized the court's decision to acquit SNM and GNB, claiming that there is "clear evidence" of "grievous human rights abuses" in Burundi's nickel supply chain, including the expansion of nickel and gold mines that have led to forced evictions, calling for more accountability. Many suspect that the court's ruling is the result of political interference. Emmanuel Mangwana, a legal expert working for the Civil Society Forum, says "One of the major weaknesses of the judicial system in the DRC is the erosion of judicial independence. Since the beginning of Kabila's presidency, intrusion by political authorities into judicial affairs has become all too common." Given the importance of Burundi's nickel, some have accused Kinshasa of secretly interfering in the defendants' favor. The Congolese government has yet to respond to these accusations.

Regardless of whether or not there was any interference, the result is the same. François Mwarabu, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said in an email his clients plan to appeal further and could bring their case before the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights. The decision provides "a strong incentive to avoid any transparency, even as SNM and GNB tell the public they have 'zero tolerance' for child labor," he said. "We are far from finished seeking accountability". SNM said in a statement it was committed to upholding the rights of workers throughout its business operations (and those of its subsidiaries) and has never knowingly employed underage labor. GNB and its lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.