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DR Congo employees for Feronia made impotent by pesticides - HRW
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25 November 2019
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Workers exposed to pesticides at a UK-funded company in the Democratic of Congo have suffered ending up being impotent, a rights group has said.
Feronia, which controls DR Congo's palm-oil sector, had failed to give workers sufficient protective devices, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.
The UK federal government's advancement bank, CDC, owns 38% of Feronia in DR Congo.
It said Feronia had actually invested heavily in protective equipment and all workers were needed to use it.
Feronia, a Canadian-based company, stated it was committed to operating to global standards.
The company added that it had actually invested $360,000 (₤ 280,000) on personal protective equipment in the last 3 years, which workers had been trained to use, and it had implemented a policy needing the equipment to be used in the workplace.
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Feronia and its regional 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 advancement banks of Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.
"These banks can play a crucial function promoting advancement, but they are undermining their objective by failing to guarantee the business they finance respects the rights of its workers and communities on the plantations," HRW researcher Luciana Téllez-Chávez stated.
What is HRW's proof?
In a report entitled A Toxic Mix of Abuses on Congo's Oil Palm Plantations, external, HRW stated it had talked to more than 40 employees and two-thirds of them "informed us that they had ended up being impotent since they started the task".
Impotence - together with shortness of breath, headaches, and weight-loss that the workers grumbled about - were health issue "consistent with exposure to pesticides in basic, as described in clinical literature", HRW said.
"Many [also] struggled with skin irritation, itchiness, blisters, eye problems, or blurred vision - all signs that follow what clinical texts and the items' labels refer to as health consequences of direct exposure to these pesticides," the rights group included.
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Ms Téllez-Chávez stated workers who had actually been interviewed had permeable cotton overalls - not the waterproof overalls.
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"If pesticides inadvertently spilled, the toxic liquid would likely touch their skin," she added.
What else does HRW say?
At the Yaligimba plantation, the business disposed the waste from its palm oil mill beside workers' homes.
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The effluents formed a "foul-smelling stream", and eventually streamed into a natural pond where females and children shower and wash cooking utensils.
"Residents of a village of a number of hundred people downstream informed us the river was their only source of drinking water," Ms Téllez-Chávez stated.
If uncontrolled and untreated, effluent-dumping might ultimately likewise trigger fish to suffocate and pass away, or cause big growths of algae that might adversely impact the health of individuals who came into contact with contaminated water or taken in tainted fish, HRW added.
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The rights group also accused Feronia of paying "extreme hardship" salaries, stating females were the lowest-paid, with some earning just $7.30 a month event fruit.
HRW stated the advancement banks need to make sure the businesses they purchase pay living earnings to their employees.
What is the UK development bank's action?
In a declaration, CDC stated: "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.
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"A treatment plant for POME represents a multimillion dollar financial investment - cash that the company has chosen instead to invest in real estate, clean water arrangement, health care and educational facilities for workers, their households and other members of the regional communities.
"It is the aim of the company to develop treatment plants for POME, but is unfortunately not in a monetary position to do so currently as it continues to make heavy losses.
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"In addition, the business has actually refurbished or dug 72 brand-new boreholes for the provision of tidy water in the last 6 years."
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What does Feronia say?
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The company stated working conditions had actually improved substantially since the participation of the European banks in 2013.
Employees were now paid substantially more than the base pay for agriculture in DR Congo and the typical employee earned $3.30 each day - higher than what a local instructor would earn, it said.
It also confirmed that it had actually invested substantially in access to safe drinking water.
"Feronia runs on a social mandate with regional communities. Without their assistance we would not be able to function. We identify that there is still an excellent deal to be done and are dedicated to running to worldwide standards. We will continue to work tirelessly to attain these objectives," the business included a declaration.
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DR Congo Workers for Feronia made Impotent By Pesticides - HRW
edisonfong2630 edited this page 2025-01-18 10:02:32 +08:00