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Valentine's Day: What You Should Know About Your Jewelry

I love jewelry and marvel at the workmanship of jewelers who turn raw metals and stone into beautiful, symbolic objects. Jewelry is an art -- art that I wear on my body and that tells a story. But this Valentine…
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Precious Metal, Cheap Labor

Summary I go [to the gold processing site] at 6 a.m. and come back at 5 p.m. I have a break at lunchtime. I am very tired from it. Sometimes I buy painkillers to soothe the pain in my back and chest….I sell the gold to a buyer,…
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HRW Submission to the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA)

December 2014

Human Rights Watch welcomes the opportunity to review the draft IRMA Standard for Responsible Mining. Below are recommendations based on research conducted by Human Rights Watch in various countries. Human Rights Watch has carried out extensive research…
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Mercury, Ghana’s Poisonous Problem

When I visited the small-scale — or “galamsey”—gold mines in the Ashanti Region earlier this year, I met  “Kwame,” a quiet but self-assured 12-year-old. He dropped out of primary school about a year ago to help his mother feed his five younger siblings…
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Time to Get Children Out Of the Hazardous Supply Chain

Many multinational companies now ban children from working in their operations, but child labor is still a central issue for them. In the globalized economy, products have long and complex supply chains, often reaching down to a multitude of small, local…
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World Health Assembly: Pledge to Act on Mercury

Ministers Should Endorse, Implement Minamata Convention

(Geneva) – Health ministers should pledge to take comprehensive action to prevent and treat the negative health effects of mercury, a toxic chemical, Human Rights Watch said today. The World Health Assembly is scheduled to discuss a resolution on the new…
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Ghana: Mine Accident Highlights Risk to Children

Enforce Safety Standards, Prevent Child Labor in Artisanal Gold Mining

(Johannesburg) – A recent mining accident that killed 16 people at an unlicensed artisanal gold mine in Ghana underscores the need for tougher measures to end child labor and protect the safety of adult artisanal miners, Human Rights Watch said today.…