Reports
Underwater
Human Rights Impacts of a China Belt and Road Project in Cambodia
The 137-page report, “Underwater: Human Rights Impacts of a China Belt and Road Project in Cambodia,” documents economic, social, and cultural rights violations resulting from the Lower Sesan 2 dam’s displacement of nearly 5,000 people whose families had lived in the area for generations, as well as impacts on the livelihoods of tens of thousands of others upstream and downstream. Cambodian authorities and company officials improperly consulted with affected communities before the project’s start and largely ignored their concerns. Many were coerced into accepting inadequate compensation for lost property and income, provided with poor housing and services at resettlement sites, and given no training or assistance to secure new livelihoods. Other affected communities upstream and downstream of the dam received no compensation or assistance.
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Aluminum: The Car Industry’s Blind Spot
Why Car Companies Should Address the Human Rights Impact of Aluminum ProductionThe 63-page report, “Aluminum: The Car Industry’s Blind Spot – Why Car Companies Should Address the Human Rights Impact of Aluminum Production,” describes the global supply chains that connect car manufacturers to mines, refineries, and smelters from countries including Guinea, Ghana, Brazil, China, Malaysia, and Austral
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A Dirty Investment
European Development Banks’ Link to Abuses in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Palm Oil IndustryThis report documents that investment banks owned by Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom are failing to protect the rights of people working and living on three plantations they finance. Human Rights Watch found that Feronia and its subsidiary in Congo, Plantations et Huileries du Congo, S.A.
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“We Have to Be Worried”
The Impact of Lead Contamination on Children’s Rights in Kabwe, ZambiaThis report examines the effects of lead contamination in Kabwe, a provincial capital, on children’s rights to health, a healthy environment, education, and play.
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The Coal Mine Next Door
How the US Government’s Deregulation of Mountaintop Removal Threatens Public HealthThis report finds that Congress failed to mitigate health risks associated with this form of mining when it voted to roll back a modest regulation to protect streams from mining pollution.
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The Hidden Cost of Jewelry
Human Rights in Supply Chains and the Responsibility of Jewelry CompaniesThis report scrutinizes the sourcing of gold and diamonds by 13 major jewelry and watch brands that collectively generate over US$30 billion in annual revenue – about 10 percent of global jewelry sales.
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“We Can’t Refuse to Pick Cotton”
Forced and Child Labor Linked to World Bank Group Investments in UzbekistanThis report details how the Uzbek government forced students, teachers, medical workers, other government employees, private-sector employees, and sometimes children to harvest cotton in 2015 and 2016, as well as to weed the fields and plant cotton in the spring of 2016.
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“Manna From Heaven”?
How Health and Education Pay the Price for Self-Dealing in Equatorial GuineaThis report reveals that the government spent only 2 to 3 percent of its annual budget on health and education in 2008 and 2011, the years for which data is available, while devoting around 80 percent to sometimes questionable large-scale infrastructure projects.
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“The Farmer Becomes the Criminal”
Human Rights and Land Confiscation in Karen StateThis report documents human rights violations by militias, police, and government officials in Karen State for the confiscation of land from ethnic Karen farmers, many of whose families had farmed the land for generations.
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“They Destroyed Everything”
Mining and Human Rights in MalawiThis report examines the impact of extractive industries on communities in some of Malawi’s first mining areas, in Karonga district located on the northwestern shores of Lake Malawi. Malawi’s government has promoted private investment in mining and resource extraction to diversify its economy.
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“What … if Something Went Wrong?”
Hazardous Child Labor in Small-Scale Gold Mining in the PhilippinesThis 39-page report documents how thousands of Filipino children – some just 9 years old – work in illegal, small-scale gold mines, mostly financed by local businessmen. Children work in unstable 25-meter-deep pits or underwater along the coastal shore or in rivers, and process gold with mercury, a toxic metal.
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Precious Metal, Cheap Labor
Child Labor and Corporate Responsibility in Ghana’s Artisanal Gold MinesThis 82-page report documents the use of child labor in Ghana’s artisanal, or unlicensed, mines, where most mining takes place. It is estimated that thousands of children work in hazardous conditions in violation of Ghanaian and international law.
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"We Suffered When We Came Here"
Rights Violations Linked to Resettlements for Tajikistan's Rogun DamThe 81-page report examines serious shortcomings in the government’s resettlement of 1,500 families since 2009. The Rogun Dam and Hydropower Plant stands to displace over 42,000 people before it is operational. The major problem, people said, was that they were not given enough compensation to replace their homes.
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Whose Development?
Human Rights Abuses in Sierra Leone’s Mining BoomThis 96-page report documents how the government and London-based African Minerals Limited forcibly relocated hundreds of families from verdant slopes to a flat, arid area in Tonkolili District.
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"How Can We Survive Here?"
The Impact of Mining on Human Rights in Karamoja, UgandaThis 140-page report examines the conduct of three companies in different stages of the mining process: East African Mining, Jan Mangal, and DAO Uganda. Human Rights Watch found that companies have explored for minerals and actively mined on lands owned and occupied by Karamoja’s indigenous people.
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Toxic Toil
Child Labor and Mercury Exposure in Tanzania’s Small-Scale Gold MinesThis 96-page report describes how thousands of children work in licensed and unlicensed small-scale gold mines in Tanzania, Africa’s fourth-largest gold producer. They dig and drill in deep, unstable pits, work underground for shifts of up to 24 hours, and transport and crush heavy bags of gold ore.