DR Congo Workers for Feronia made Impotent By Pesticides – HRW

DR Congo employees for Feronia made impotent by pesticides – HRW

25 November 2019

Workers exposed to pesticides at a in the Democratic Republic of Congo have complained of becoming impotent, a rights group has said.

Feronia, which controls DR Congo’s palm-oil sector, had failed to offer employees sufficient protective devices, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.

The UK government’s development bank, CDC, owns 38% of Feronia in DR Congo.

It stated Feronia had invested heavily in protective devices and all workers were required to wear it.

Feronia, a Canadian-based firm, stated it was dedicated to running to worldwide standards.

The firm added that it had spent $360,000 (₤ 280,000) on personal protective equipment in the last three years, which employees had actually been trained to utilize, and it had actually carried out a policy requiring the devices to be worn in the work environment.

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Feronia and its local subsidiary, Plantations et Huileries du Congo (PHC), employ countless employees at palm oil plantations in DR Congo.

PHC has actually received countless dollars from the development banks of Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.

“These banks can play a crucial role promoting advancement, but they are undermining their mission by failing to make sure the business they finance respects the rights of its employees and communities on the plantations,” HRW researcher Luciana Téllez-Chávez stated.

What is HRW’s evidence?

In a report entitled A Poisonous Mix of Abuses on Congo’s Oil Palm Plantations, external, HRW stated it had talked to more than 40 workers and two-thirds of them “informed us that they had ended up being impotent considering that they started the job”.

Impotence – together with shortness of breath, headaches, and weight-loss that the workers complained about – were illness “constant with exposure to pesticides in general, as explained in scientific literature”, HRW said.

“Many [likewise] experienced skin inflammation, itching, blisters, eye issues, or blurred vision – all signs that follow what scientific texts and the products’ labels explain as health consequences of exposure to these pesticides,” the rights group added.

Ms Téllez-Chávez stated workers who had actually been spoken with had permeable cotton overalls – not the water resistant overalls.

“If pesticides accidentally spilled, the harmful liquid would likely touch their skin,” she added.

What else does HRW state?

At the Yaligimba plantation, the company discarded the waste from its palm oil mill next to workers’ homes.

The effluents formed a “foul-smelling stream”, and eventually flowed into a natural pond where females and children bathe and wash cooking utensils.

“Residents of a village of several hundred individuals downstream told us the river was their only source of drinking water,” Ms Téllez-Chávez stated.

If uncontrolled and unattended, effluent-dumping might ultimately also cause fish to suffocate and pass away, or cause large growths of algae that might adversely impact the health of people who came into contact with polluted water or consumed tainted fish, HRW added.

The rights group likewise accused Feronia of paying “extreme poverty” salaries, saying females were the lowest-paid, with some earning as little as $7.30 a month gathering fruit.

HRW stated the development banks need to ensure business they invest in pay living wages to their employees.

What is the UK development bank’s action?

In a statement, CDC stated: “Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) is an organic mix of natural waste oils and fats and has been released into rivers because the plantation came into remaining in 1911 and does not threaten human health.

“A treatment plant for POME represents a multimillion dollar investment – money that the business has selected instead to invest in real estate, tidy water arrangement, healthcare and academic centers for staff members, their households and other members of the local neighborhoods.

“It is the goal of the company to develop treatment plants for POME, however is unfortunately not in a financial position to do so presently as it continues to make heavy losses.

“In addition, the business has actually reconditioned or dug 72 new boreholes for the arrangement of tidy water in the last 6 years.”

What does Feronia say?

The company said working conditions had enhanced significantly because the participation of the European banks in 2013.

Employees were now paid considerably more than the base pay for agriculture in DR Congo and the average employee made $3.30 per day – higher than what a local teacher would earn, it said.

It likewise validated that it had actually invested considerably in access to safe drinking water.

“Feronia operates on a social mandate with local neighborhoods. Without their assistance we would not be able to function. We identify that there is still a lot to be done and are committed to running to international standards. We will continue to work relentlessly to achieve these goals,” the business added in a declaration.

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