Non-governmental and investor organizations in the United Kingdom, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Canada are calling on the Canadian Government to fully investigate allegations concerning Anvil Mining's involvement in the actions of the Congolese Armed Forces in putting down a small-scale rebellion in the remote Congolese town of Kilwa.

UK-bases Rights & Accountability in Development (RAID), the Congolese human rights organisations Action contre l'impunité pour les droits humains (ACIDH) and Association africaine de défense des droits de l'homme section du Katanga (ASADHO Katanga) are calling for the investigation.

The action is being supported in Canada by Regroupement pour la responsabilité sociale des enterprises (RRSE), a shareholder action network in Quebec, and NGOs Entraide Missionnaire, MiningWatch Canada and Africafiles, the groups said in a release June 16.

In October 2004, according to eyewitness accounts gathered by human rights lawyers, the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) suppressed a small scale uprising in the remote fishing town of Kilwa. Congolese soldiers arrived to recapture the town, and between 70 and 100 unarmed civilians were killed, including many women and children. The soldiers are said to have been on an indiscriminate rampage carrying out arbitrary arrests and summary killings of suspected rebels and their supporters and subjecting those in detention to torture and beatings.

Anvil Mining company operates the Dikulushi Mine near Kilwa. In May, lawyers acting on RAID's behalf interviewed survivors who said that Anvil had provided ground transportation to assist in the military assault on the town and vehicles that were used to transport people who had been detained and to help remove corpses after the operation.

In a release June 21, Anvil CEO Bill Turner said the Congolese government commandeered Anvil vehicles, divers and aircraft. “Anvil had absolutely no choice but to provide the transport required by the Democratic Republic of Congo Military and had no reason to suspect that this would involve anything other than the lawful enforcement of the laws of the DRC,” said the Anvil release.

 However, the organizations calling for the investigation believe that companies that operate in conflict zones have a responsibility to ensure that their operations or those that they support do not result directly or indirectly in human rights violations.

In view of this, surely there are sufficient grounds to question and investigate the role played by Anvil in the Kilwa massacre. Pointing to the failure of governments to investigate the UN's allegations of corporate misconduct in their operations in the DRC during the resource-fuelled war, the concerned organizations said that decisive action had to be taken now to curb any possible actions or neglects by companies that could contribute to the Congo sliding back into war.

Anvil Mining Limited is an Australian company with Canadian roots. It was incorporated in the Northwest Territories in 2004 and is listed on the Toronto and Australian Stock Exchanges. First Quantum Minerals, a Canadian company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, was, at the time of the event, the largest shareholder in Anvil Mining.

The Canadian organizations supporting the call for an investigation request that:

o    The Canadian government undertake a thorough investigation of the allegations in the report. If the allegations are verified by the investigation, those responsible should be prosecuted through Canadian or international law. The Canadian National Contact Point (NCP) for the OECD Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises, formed by representatives from several federal government departments, should be mandated to conduct the inquiry with the input from NGOs.

o    The Ontario Securities Commission and Toronto Stock Exchange should also inquire into these allegations, which if true, would pose a risk to Canadian investors.

o    Prime Minister Paul Martin should promote at the G8 Summit in July, the recommendation related to peace and security contained in the Report of the Commission for Africa, endorsed by Finance Minister Ralph Goodale, relating to peace and security.

For more information, visit http://www.miningwatch.ca and http://www.anvil.com.au.

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