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

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DR Congo workers for Feronia made impotent by pesticides - HRW

25 November 2019
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Workers exposed to pesticides at a UK-funded firm in the Democratic Republic of Congo have experienced becoming impotent, a rights group has actually stated.
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Feronia, which controls DR Congo's palm-oil sector, had actually failed to offer workers sufficient protective devices, Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated.
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The UK government's advancement bank, CDC, owns 38% of Feronia in DR Congo.

It stated Feronia had invested greatly in protective devices and all employees were needed to wear it.

Feronia, a Canadian-based firm, said it was devoted to operating to worldwide standards.

The company included that it had invested $360,000 (₤ 280,000) on individual protective equipment in the last 3 years, which employees had been trained to utilize, and it had carried out a policy needing the equipment to be worn 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 actually gotten millions of dollars from the advancement banks of Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.
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"These banks can play a crucial role promoting advancement, but they are sabotaging their mission by stopping working to make sure the business they finance respects the rights of its employees and communities on the plantations," HRW researcher Luciana Téllez-Chávez stated.
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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 talked to more than 40 workers and two-thirds of them "told us that they had become impotent given that they started the job".

Impotence - together with shortness of breath, headaches, and weight-loss that the employees complained about - were health problems "constant with exposure to pesticides in general, as explained in clinical literature", HRW stated.

"Many [likewise] suffered from skin irritation, itchiness, blisters, eye issues, or blurred vision - all signs that follow what scientific texts and the items' labels refer to as health consequences of direct exposure to these pesticides," the rights group added.

Ms Téllez-Chávez stated employees who had been interviewed had permeable cotton overalls - not the water resistant overalls.

"If pesticides accidentally spilled, the poisonous liquid would likely touch their skin," she added.

What else does HRW say?

At the Yaligimba plantation, the company disposed the waste from its palm oil mill beside employees' homes.

The effluents formed a "foul-smelling stream", and eventually flowed into a natural pond where ladies and children bathe and clean cooking utensils.

"Residents of a town of a number of hundred individuals downstream told us the river was their only source of drinking water," Ms Téllez-Chávez said.

If unattended and unattended, effluent-dumping could eventually likewise trigger fish to suffocate and die, or cause large developments of algae that could adversely impact the health of individuals who entered into contact with contaminated water or consumed tainted fish, HRW added.

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

HRW said the development banks need to guarantee the services they buy pay living wages to their employees.

What is the UK development bank's response?
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In a declaration, CDC said: "Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) is an organic mix of natural waste oils and fats and has actually been released into rivers because the plantation entered into being in 1911 and does not threaten human health.

"A treatment plant for POME represents a multimillion dollar investment - cash that the company has actually chosen instead to invest in housing, tidy water arrangement, health care and facilities for workers, their households and other members of the regional neighborhoods.
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"It is the aim of the company to develop treatment plants for POME, but is unfortunately not in a financial 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 new boreholes for the provision of tidy water in the last 6 years."

What does Feronia say?

The business stated working conditions had improved substantially since the participation of the European banks in 2013.

Employees were now paid considerably more than the minimum wage for agriculture in DR Congo and the average worker earned $3.30 per day - higher than what a regional instructor would earn, it said.

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

"Feronia operates on a social mandate with local neighborhoods. Without their assistance we would not be able to operate. We identify that there is still a good deal to be done and are committed to running to international requirements. We will continue to work tirelessly to attain these goals," the business included a statement.

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