dr-congo-workers-for-feronia-made-impotent-by-pesticides---hrw

DR Congo employees for Feronia made impotent by pesticides - HRW
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25 November 2019

Workers exposed to pesticides at a UK-funded company in the Democratic Republic of Congo have experienced becoming impotent, a rights group has stated.

Feronia, which controls DR Congo's palm-oil sector, had stopped working to offer workers adequate protective equipment, Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated.

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

It said Feronia had actually invested greatly in protective equipment and all employees were required to use it.
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Feronia, a firm, said it was dedicated to operating to worldwide standards.
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The firm added that it had spent $360,000 (₤ 280,000) on individual protective devices in the last three years, which employees had actually been trained to use, and it had implemented a policy needing the devices to be used in the work environment.

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Feronia and its regional subsidiary, Plantations et Huileries du Congo (PHC), use countless workers at palm oil plantations in DR Congo.

PHC has received millions of dollars from the advancement banks of Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.

"These banks can play a crucial function promoting development, however they are sabotaging their objective by stopping working to ensure the company they finance respects the rights of its workers and neighborhoods on the plantations," HRW scientist Luciana Téllez-Chávez said.

What is HRW's evidence?

In a report entitled A Harmful Mix of Abuses on Congo's Oil Palm Plantations, external, HRW stated it had interviewed more than 40 employees and two-thirds of them "told us that they had ended up being impotent because they started the job".

Impotence - in addition to shortness of breath, headaches, and weight reduction that the employees grumbled about - were illness "consistent with exposure to pesticides in general, as described in clinical literature", HRW stated.

"Many [likewise] struggled with skin irritation, itchiness, blisters, eye issues, or blurred vision - all signs that follow what clinical texts and the products' labels refer to as health repercussions of direct exposure to these pesticides," the rights group included.
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Ms Téllez-Chávez said employees who had been spoken with had permeable cotton overalls - not the water resistant overalls.

"If pesticides mistakenly spilled, the toxic liquid would likely touch their skin," she added.
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What else does HRW say?
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At the Yaligimba plantation, the company dumped the waste from its palm oil mill next to workers' homes.
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The effluents formed a "foul-smelling stream", and ultimately streamed into a natural pond where women and children shower and clean cooking utensils.

"Residents of a town of numerous hundred people downstream informed us the river was their only source of drinking water," Ms Téllez-Chávez said.

If uncontrolled and untreated, effluent-dumping might eventually likewise trigger fish to suffocate and pass away, or cause big developments of algae that might adversely impact the health of people who came into contact with contaminated water or taken in tainted fish, HRW included.

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

HRW stated the development banks should guarantee business they buy pay living wages to their employees.

What is the UK advancement bank's action?

In a declaration, CDC stated: "Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) is a natural mix of natural waste oils and fats and has actually been released into rivers considering that the plantation entered being in 1911 and does not threaten human health.

"A treatment plant for POME represents a multimillion dollar investment - money that the company has actually selected rather to invest on housing, clean water provision, healthcare and academic centers for workers, their households and other members of the regional communities.

"It is the goal of the company to construct treatment plants for POME, but is sadly not in a financial position to do so currently as it continues to make heavy losses.

"In addition, the business has refurbished or dug 72 new boreholes for the provision of clean water in the last six years."
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What does Feronia state?

The company stated working conditions had enhanced substantially since the involvement 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 per day - greater than what a regional teacher would make, it stated.

It also confirmed that it had actually invested substantially in access to safe drinking water.

"Feronia runs on a social mandate with local communities. Without their assistance we would not have the ability to operate. We acknowledge that there is still a lot to be done and are committed to running to worldwide requirements. We will continue to work tirelessly to attain these goals," the business included a declaration.

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