Scant Information and Wheeler-Dealing Undermine Congolese Contract Review

Fatal Transactions is member of the NGO Campaign A Fair Share for Congo! Read here the campaign's latest press release.

On the eve of the start of the promised renegotiation of mining contracts in DR Congo, Congolese and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) today called on the DRC government to shed light on the renegotiations of mining contracts. No clear time-frame or criteria for the negotiations with mining companies have been forthcoming from the Government's side. In particular, the contents and publication of the terms of reference, as promised to private mining companies by the Vice Minister of Mines, remain obscure.

In the Dark
"We're four months into the final phase of the mining review and civil society is being kept in the dark about exactly what's going on", said Jean-Claude Katende, President of the Congolese human rights organisation ASADHO. "The DRC Government has a duty to fully explain to parliament what's happening given the critical importance of the negotiations to the lives and aspirations of the Congolese people."

NGO's urge the DRC government to:

• Explain the status of negotiations and how the public interest concerns are being addressed
• Publish all the renegotiated contracts,
• Confirm which contracts are cancelled following the review process and when and how the cancellation comes into effect,
• Make additional efforts to seek out the views of civil society and those of local populations affected by specific contracts, as part of the renegotiation process, given their insufficient involvement in the review process,
• Facilitate the creation of a separate ad-hoc independent body, made up of suitably- qualified civil society representatives, independent lawyers and others, which would monitor the renegotiation process and submit open views and recommendations to the government.

The NGOs appealed to donor governments and inter-governmental organisations to:

• Urge the DRC government to make public information about the renegotiation process.
• Urge mining companies to clarify the new terms that have been agreed

Download the complete press release:

Signatories:

11.11.11
ACIDH
ASADHO
Broederlijk Delen
Bukavu Sud Kivu La Commission Environnement, Gouvernance des Ressources Naturelles et Droits des Peuples Autochtones/ Bureau de Coordination de la Société Civile du Sud Kivu
CENADEP Antenne du Kivu
CENADEP
CODELT
Fatal Transactions
Global Witness
Héritiers de la Justice
NDS
OCEAN
Réseau CREF
Rights and Accountability in Development
Reseau Ressources Naturelles