The presentation on YouTube is designed to provide a background to the forthcoming Frontline Congo season. It gives information on the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for those not familiar with the facts and figures. Susan Schulman has generously provided the imagery.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnW3ZnU3mSo
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Artisanal Miners, Likasi - Washington Post Video Clip
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2008/04/23/VI2008042303044.html
Scenes from the brutal conditions of an artisinal mining camp outside of Likasi, Congo. A man in sunglasses known as the negotiante, who swindles the diggers out of money for their ore and is "snake-hearted," according to them, shows his day's stash.
Across Congo, Freelance Miners Dig In Against Modern Industry
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/23/AR2008042303509.html
Washington Post Stephanie McCrummen
An estimated 2 million people across Congo are part of a brutal business known as artisanal mining, which accounts for as much as 90 percent of the country's mineral exports. It is a scrappy, outside-the-law means of making a living. The haphazard tunneling undermines the stability of the earth above, which often collapses. Every week, about 10 miners die in accidents, provincial officials said. and one increasingly at odds with the modern mining industry that the Congolese government is trying to build as the backbone of a formal economy. But artisanal mining is a fairly recent phenomenon in Congo, where miners for decades were a privileged minority in an impoverished country, enjoying something resembling a middle-class life.
The diggers usually work in groups of three, heaving out bags of ore. A three-man team can produce perhaps two 220-pound sacks of copper ore a day, a bounty quickly consumed by a slew of dubious taxes, fees and prices. After those costs, each miner ends the day with about $4, perhaps a fifth of the value of one 220-pound sack. The going rate for a decent loaf of bread is $1.50. The diggers are not the only ones suffering in such transactions. Congo is also losing out on taxes and jobs as the less-valuable raw ore is hauled out of the country before being processed into a final product worth four times as much. Yet because the artisanal system is so economically entrenched and accepted -- a billboard in the provincial capital shows a digger chatting on a cellphone -- people here say it will be difficult to uproot.
Scenes from the brutal conditions of an artisinal mining camp outside of Likasi, Congo. A man in sunglasses known as the negotiante, who swindles the diggers out of money for their ore and is "snake-hearted," according to them, shows his day's stash.
Across Congo, Freelance Miners Dig In Against Modern Industry
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/23/AR2008042303509.html
Washington Post Stephanie McCrummen
An estimated 2 million people across Congo are part of a brutal business known as artisanal mining, which accounts for as much as 90 percent of the country's mineral exports. It is a scrappy, outside-the-law means of making a living. The haphazard tunneling undermines the stability of the earth above, which often collapses. Every week, about 10 miners die in accidents, provincial officials said. and one increasingly at odds with the modern mining industry that the Congolese government is trying to build as the backbone of a formal economy. But artisanal mining is a fairly recent phenomenon in Congo, where miners for decades were a privileged minority in an impoverished country, enjoying something resembling a middle-class life.
The diggers usually work in groups of three, heaving out bags of ore. A three-man team can produce perhaps two 220-pound sacks of copper ore a day, a bounty quickly consumed by a slew of dubious taxes, fees and prices. After those costs, each miner ends the day with about $4, perhaps a fifth of the value of one 220-pound sack. The going rate for a decent loaf of bread is $1.50. The diggers are not the only ones suffering in such transactions. Congo is also losing out on taxes and jobs as the less-valuable raw ore is hauled out of the country before being processed into a final product worth four times as much. Yet because the artisanal system is so economically entrenched and accepted -- a billboard in the provincial capital shows a digger chatting on a cellphone -- people here say it will be difficult to uproot.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
RAID participating in Congo Season 6-16th May, London
The Frontline Club in London launches the Congo Season with a series of
discussions, screenings and photojournalism events starting from
6th-16th of May entitled ʻDemystifying the Congoʼ.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has witnessed one of the worldʼs worst
ongoing humanitarian crises, where as many as 5.4 million people may have died
since 1998.
The Frontline Club is organizing a series of expert panels, photojournalism
presentations and selected documentaries with speakers drawn from within
Congo, the journalistic world, the NGO community and academia. The series will
examine possible solutions for DRC, will look at the issues of conflict, gender
based violence, resources and the role of the international community.
Tue 6th May, 7.30pm - Discussion: Demystifying the Congo
Moderated by Michela Wrong – columnist and author
Marcus Bleasdale - photojournalist.
Dino Mahatani – Former Reuters correspondent, previously based in DRC, and
former west and central Africa correspondent for the Financial Times.
Jason Stearns – former senior analyst for the international crisis group for
Central Africa and author of a forthcoming book on the Congo.
Mulegwa Zihindula – spokesman for Kabila during 2002-2004. Now based in
London.
Wed 7th May, 7.30pm - Photojournalism presentation:
One Hundred Years of Darkness, by Marcus Bleasdale
Marcus Bleasdale has now spent eight years covering the brutal conflict within
the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the work was published in
his book One Hundred Years of Darkness. His work focusing on the people in
Eastern Congoʼs mining towns, where militia groups and government forces
battle on a daily basis for control of the mineral-rich areas where they can exploit
gold, coltan, cassiterite and diamonds.
Sun 11th May, 4.30pm - Screening: The Greatest Silence – Rape in
the Congo
Followed by Q&A with Sarah Hughes (UK Director of IRC) and others tbc
2
In the DRC there are tens of thousands of women who have been systematically
kidnapped, raped, mutilated and tortured by soldiers from both foreign militias
and the Congolese army. The world knows nothing of these women. Their stories
have never been told. They suffer and die in silence. In The Greatest Silence:
Rape in the Congo these brave women finally speak.
Mon 12th May, 7.30pm – Double Bill Screening: The UN in Congo
Followed by Q&A with James Brabazon and Aidan Hartley
(Unreported World) and James Oliver and Raphael Rowe
(Panorama)
The UN's Dirty War (Unreported World)
Unreported World travels to the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo, and
uncovers evidence that UN troops are supporting Congolese government forces
even as they carry out indiscriminate attacks, sometimes against civilian targets.
Mission Impossible (BBC Panorama)
The UN polices conflicts around the world. But is it up to policing itself?
Documents leaked to a joint Panorama/BBC World Service investigation reveal
why the UN's department tasked with rooting out corruption has been called a
"combat zone" and found not fit for purpose.
Thu 15th May, 7.30pm – Discussion: Lifting the Curse
Are Congoʼs natural resources to be found at the root of the nations problems or
do they offer a key to its future development?
What role have resources played in the conflict? What role have international
corporations played? Have the NGOʼs got it right - are the numbing statistics
accurate? Where have the vast mineral profits gone?
Will the countryʼs huge deposits of precious minerals be used to rebuild the
countryʼs infrastructure or will it be business as usual?
Moderated by Richard Dowden director of the Royal African Society.
Muzong Kodi - is a research fellow at the Royal Institute for International Affairs.
Tricia Feeney - is the Executive Director for Rights & Accountability in
Development (RAID)
Aloys Tegera - is the director of the Pole Institute in Goma
Caty Clement - Sits on the UN panel of experts on resources for Congo
All Frontline Events are followed by a Q&A with the audience and are filmed and
broadcast on www.frontlineclub.com.
For more information or interview arrangements with any of the speakers please
call 0207 479 8943.
discussions, screenings and photojournalism events starting from
6th-16th of May entitled ʻDemystifying the Congoʼ.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has witnessed one of the worldʼs worst
ongoing humanitarian crises, where as many as 5.4 million people may have died
since 1998.
The Frontline Club is organizing a series of expert panels, photojournalism
presentations and selected documentaries with speakers drawn from within
Congo, the journalistic world, the NGO community and academia. The series will
examine possible solutions for DRC, will look at the issues of conflict, gender
based violence, resources and the role of the international community.
Tue 6th May, 7.30pm - Discussion: Demystifying the Congo
Moderated by Michela Wrong – columnist and author
Marcus Bleasdale - photojournalist.
Dino Mahatani – Former Reuters correspondent, previously based in DRC, and
former west and central Africa correspondent for the Financial Times.
Jason Stearns – former senior analyst for the international crisis group for
Central Africa and author of a forthcoming book on the Congo.
Mulegwa Zihindula – spokesman for Kabila during 2002-2004. Now based in
London.
Wed 7th May, 7.30pm - Photojournalism presentation:
One Hundred Years of Darkness, by Marcus Bleasdale
Marcus Bleasdale has now spent eight years covering the brutal conflict within
the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the work was published in
his book One Hundred Years of Darkness. His work focusing on the people in
Eastern Congoʼs mining towns, where militia groups and government forces
battle on a daily basis for control of the mineral-rich areas where they can exploit
gold, coltan, cassiterite and diamonds.
Sun 11th May, 4.30pm - Screening: The Greatest Silence – Rape in
the Congo
Followed by Q&A with Sarah Hughes (UK Director of IRC) and others tbc
2
In the DRC there are tens of thousands of women who have been systematically
kidnapped, raped, mutilated and tortured by soldiers from both foreign militias
and the Congolese army. The world knows nothing of these women. Their stories
have never been told. They suffer and die in silence. In The Greatest Silence:
Rape in the Congo these brave women finally speak.
Mon 12th May, 7.30pm – Double Bill Screening: The UN in Congo
Followed by Q&A with James Brabazon and Aidan Hartley
(Unreported World) and James Oliver and Raphael Rowe
(Panorama)
The UN's Dirty War (Unreported World)
Unreported World travels to the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo, and
uncovers evidence that UN troops are supporting Congolese government forces
even as they carry out indiscriminate attacks, sometimes against civilian targets.
Mission Impossible (BBC Panorama)
The UN polices conflicts around the world. But is it up to policing itself?
Documents leaked to a joint Panorama/BBC World Service investigation reveal
why the UN's department tasked with rooting out corruption has been called a
"combat zone" and found not fit for purpose.
Thu 15th May, 7.30pm – Discussion: Lifting the Curse
Are Congoʼs natural resources to be found at the root of the nations problems or
do they offer a key to its future development?
What role have resources played in the conflict? What role have international
corporations played? Have the NGOʼs got it right - are the numbing statistics
accurate? Where have the vast mineral profits gone?
Will the countryʼs huge deposits of precious minerals be used to rebuild the
countryʼs infrastructure or will it be business as usual?
Moderated by Richard Dowden director of the Royal African Society.
Muzong Kodi - is a research fellow at the Royal Institute for International Affairs.
Tricia Feeney - is the Executive Director for Rights & Accountability in
Development (RAID)
Aloys Tegera - is the director of the Pole Institute in Goma
Caty Clement - Sits on the UN panel of experts on resources for Congo
All Frontline Events are followed by a Q&A with the audience and are filmed and
broadcast on www.frontlineclub.com.
For more information or interview arrangements with any of the speakers please
call 0207 479 8943.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Lord Mance will be a speaker at the RAID Event, Friday 18th April
RAID is delighted to announce that Lord Mance has kindly agreed to participate in the debate on 'Business and Human Rights: Profits before People?' at the RAID Event tomorrow, Friday 18th April 2008 at the Human Rights Action Centre.
Jonathan Hugh Mance, Lord Mance, is a Law Lord.
He was called to the Bar at Middle Temple in 1965, became a QC in 1982,
a Recorder in 1990, a Judge of the Queen's Bench Division of the High
Court (authorised to sit in the Commercial Court) in 1993 and a Lord
Justice of Appeal in 1999. In 2005 he was appointed a Lord of Appeal in
Ordinary.
He has served as Chairman of various Banking Appeals Tribunals
(1992-93), Chairman of the Consultative Council of European Judges
(2000-3) and President of the British Insurance Law Association
(2000-02). He sits on the House of Lords Select Committee on the
European Union, and chairs its sub-committee E (Law and Institutions).
In 2006 he chaired a working party of the All Party Parliamentary Group
on the Great Lakes Region composed of representatives of NGOs and
Industry which considered the UK's implementation of the OECD process
for handling specific complaints about alleged breaches of the OECD
Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, and he gave a paper on
Contemporary Issues in International Trade Law at the Commonwealth Law
Conference in Nairobi in 2007.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Human rights defenders prevented from meeting victims of Kilwa massacre
Action Contre l’Impunité pour les Droits Humains (ACIDH)
Association africaine de défense des droits de l’homme (ASADHO)
Global Witness
Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID)
For Immediate Release
3 April 2008
Human rights defenders prevented from meeting victims of Kilwa massacre
Katanga governor stops activists from flying to Kilwa
ACIDH, ASADHO, Global Witness and RAID today condemned blatant tactics by government authorities in
In the latest series of obstructions in the search for justice for the victims of the 2004 Kilwa massacre, the Governor of Katanga province, Moïse Katumbi, and the provincial Minister of Interior, Dikanga Kazadi, prohibited a group of Congolese human rights defenders from flying to Kilwa on 1 April 2008.
The Kilwa massacre – which claimed at least 73 civilian lives – was carried out in October 2004 by soldiers of the 62nd Brigade of the Congolese Armed Forces with logistical support from the Australian/Canadian mining company, Anvil Mining. Anvil Mining has stated that its support was requisitioned and that it had no choice in the matter.
The team planning to visit Kilwa included human rights activists Georges Kapiamba, Jonas Mulamba, Serge Lukunga and Prince Kumwamba, and Paulin Ulimwengu, a spokesperson for the victims of the 2004 Kilwa massacre. They were intending to visit victims of the Kilwa massacre on behalf of Australian lawyers Slater & Gordon, who are investigating possible compensation claims in the Australian courts against Perth-based Anvil Mining for 61 of the victims.
The activists were taken by surprise when, just before their leased plane was due to take off, staff from the control tower at Lubumbashi airport informed them that they had received instructions from the intelligence services (Agence Nationale de Renseignements – ANR) that their flight to Kilwa, Dikulushi and Pweto had not received official clearance. According to airport officials, the Minister of Interior of Katanga province had issued an order requiring the group to obtain prior authorization from the Ministry before they could land in Kilwa. Yet the airline had already made two flights that day to Kilwa without being asked for prior authorization.
On 2 April 2008, the activists were informed by the head of the Lubumbashi office of MONUC (the UN peacekeeping mission) that the Governor of Katanga had refused them permission to travel to Kilwa because of alleged insecurity in the area.
Later the same day, the activists were told that the Governor had met a representative of the airline, as well as the head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and told them that they should not transport the human rights team to Kilwa.
One of the activists also received a telephone call from a local administrative authority in Kilwa asking him if the team had already arrived in Kilwa and informing him that if they did not have “official documents”, there was no point in them going there.
“It is clear that all the authorities have been warned about our mission and instructed to prevent us from doing our work at all cost”, said human rights lawyer, Georges Kapiamba. “The government is in effect denying the Kilwa victims their right to receive assistance to obtain justice for the damages they suffered.”
The authorities’ attempts to prevent the activists from travelling to Kilwa is part of a well-documented pattern of obstructions and pressures by the Congolese authorities in the Kilwa case.
The latest events demonstrate an intensification of efforts by the authorities to stifle the truth; it is also the first time in this case that they have deployed such tactics to restrict the movements of human rights activists. “This reflects how desperate the authorities are to prevent the truth about the Kilwa incident from coming out. It sets a worrying precedent for independent human rights work in Congo”, said Prince Kumwamba, Executive Director of ACIDH.
ACIDH, ASADHO, Global Witness and RAID are calling on the Congolese authorities - at provincial and national level - to put an immediate end to the harassment and obstruction of human rights workers seeking to obtain justice for the victims of the grave human rights violations committed in Kilwa.
For further information, please contact:
Georges Kapiamba : +243 814043641, +243 998411070
Prince Kumwamba N’sapu (ACIDH) : +243 995252965, +243 997025331
Patricia Feeney (RAID) + 44 7796 178 447
Carina Tertsakian (Global Witness) +44 207 561 6372
Notes for Editors
In June 2007 the military court of Katanga acquitted nine Congolese soldiers and three expatriate employees of Anvil Mining for war crimes and complicity in war crimes committed in Kilwa. The charges included summary executions, torture, illegal detention and looting. The proceedings were widely condemned for extensive flaws and irregularities, including political interference and intimidation of witnesses. Louise Arbour, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, criticised the conduct of the trial and the inappropriate use of a military court to try civilians.
She expressed concern over the court’s conclusions that the Kilwa events were the accidental results of fighting, despite significant contrary evidence and eye witness testimony. The military court of appeal then also succumbed to political pressure and denied the victims their right to a fair appeal hearing.
ACIDH, ASADHO, Global Witness and RAID have called on the governments of South Africa and Canada to pursue investigations and possible prosecutions against their nationals named in the Congolese trial. They also believe that the Australian Federal Police should pursue its own investigation into the role of Anvil Mining and its staff in the events of October 2004. As signatories to the Rome Statute, the governments of Australia, Canada and South Africa have confirmed their commitment to prosecuting nationals who commit or are complicit in international crimes committed in foreign jurisdictions.
In February 2008, Slater & Gordon filed a preliminary application to the Western Australian Supreme Court on behalf of the victims seeking disclosure of documents. The purpose of this application is to determine the precise circumstances under which Anvil Mining provided logistical assistance to the military in Kilwa. Anvil Mining is resisting this application.
For further information, please see the report “Kilwa Trial: a Denial of Justice” (July 2007), published by ACIDH, ASADHO/Katanga, Global Witness and RAID, and press release “Military court of appeal succumbs to political interference in Kilwa trial” (December 2007), published by Global Witness and RAID, both available at www.globalwitness.org
Further documentation on the Kilwa events is also available at http://www.raid-uk.org/docs/Kilwa
Kilwa Massacre: Human Rights Acrtivists Threatened
‘
PUBLIC AI Index: AFR 62/002/2008
04 April 2008
UA 89/08 Death threats/ Fear for safety
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC Georges Kapiamba (m), lawyer and human rights defender
OF CONGO (DRC) Prince Kumwamba (m), human rights defender
Other human rights defenders from the organizations Association Africaine de Défense des Droits de l’Homme - Katanga (ASADHO/Katanga) and Action Contre l’Impunité pour les Droits Humains (ACIDH)
Human rights defenders Georges Kapiamba and Prince Kumwamba have received several threats, including death threats, related to their human rights work since the evening of 3 April. Amnesty International believes that their lives, and the lives of other human rights defenders working in the same organizations, may be in danger.
The threats to Georges Kapiamba, a lawyer who works with the organization Association Africaine de Défense des Droits de l’Homme – Katanga (ASADHO/Katanga), African Association for the Defence of Human Rights, and Prince Kumwamba, Executive Director of the organization Action Contre l’Impunité pour les Droits Humains (ACIDH), Action Against Impunity for Human Rights, both based in Lubumbashi, the capital of Katanga province, have been made anonymously by telephone. Amnesty International believes that senior political figures in Katanga province may be behind the calls. During one of the telephone threats, the caller warned Georges Kapiamba, “Since you don’t want to stay quiet about the Kilwa affair and since you continue to provoke the government, we are going to destroy you so that you will no longer be able to do any harm. We’ll get you by all means possible”. (« Comme tu ne veux pas te taire sur le dossier Kilwa et que tu continues à déranger le gouvernement, tu vas être détruit afin de te mettre hors d’état de nuire. Nous allons t’atteindre par tous les moyens. ») Prince Kumwamba has also received phone calls warning him to halt his activities in relation to the same affair.
The threats appear to relate to a planned visit by Georges Kapiamba, Prince Kumwamba and other activists to the town of Kilwa in Katanga province, the scene of a massacre by government troops in October 2004. The team intended to interview a number of those injured in the massacre, and families of the victims. The visit was on behalf of an Australian legal firm pursuing possible compensation claims in the Australian courts against an Australian/Canadian mining company, Anvil Mining.
As the team prepared to fly from Lubumbashi to Kilwa, they were informed by air traffic control that permission for the flight had been denied by the ANR (Agence Nationale de Renseignements) intelligence agency and the Minister of Interior of Katanga province. The team were later informed that the Governor of Katanga had also refused them permission to travel to Kilwa.
ASADHO Katanga and ACIDH, together with two international NGOs, Global Witness and Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID), issued a joint press release on 3 April protesting against this official obstruction to the activists’ legitimate professional and human rights work. Subsequently Georges Kapiamba was interviewed by international media organizations about the incident.
These latest threats are part of a pattern of intimidation and harassment of human rights workers in relation to their work on the Kilwa massacre, although the death threat against Georges Kapiamba appears to be the most serious to date.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
At least 73 civilians, including many women and children, were killed unlawfully in and around Kilwa in October 2004 by soldiers of the 62nd Brigade of the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC), Congolese Armed Forces. Other victims were arbitrarily arrested and subjected to torture and ill-treatment. Anvil Mining, which operates a copper and silver mine near Kilwa, provided transportation in the form of company planes and road vehicles for the army operation. Anvil Mining maintains that its equipment was requisitioned “under the force of law” by the security forces and denies any direct involvement in the killings. In June 2007, a military court in Lubumbashi acquitted 12 defendants, including military officers and three expatriate employees of Anvil Mining, of charges of war crimes and complicity in war crimes in connection with the massacre. Four of the defendants, all soldiers, were convicted of unrelated crimes. There was apparent high-level political interference in the trial, as well as intimidation of witnesses. The acquittals were widely condemned as a setback in the struggle against impunity in the DRC. An appeal against the court’s judgement was denied in December 2007.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in French, English or your own language:
- calling on the authorities to ensure that George Kapiamba, Prince Kumwamba and other ASADHO/Katanga and ACIDH activists are protected against further threats and possible attack;
- calling for a prompt, impartial and independent investigation into the threats received by Georges Kapiamba and Prince Kumwamba, and to bring to justice those responsible;
- calling on the authorities to put an immediate end to the harassment of lawyers and human rights activists seeking to obtain justice for the victims of the Kilwa massacre, and to ensure that Congolese human rights defenders are able to pursue their legitimate professional activities free from fear of intimidation and other human rights violations.
APPEALS TO:
Head of State
Son Excellence Joseph KABILA
Président de la République, Cabinet du Président de la République
Palais de la Nation, Kinshasa/Gombe, République Démocratique du Congo
E-mail: cabinet_president@yahoo.fr
Salutation: Dear President Kabila/Son Excellence Monsieur le Président
Minister of Interior
Denis Kalume Numbi
Ministre de l’Intérieur, Décentralisation et Sécurité
Ministère de l’Intérieur, Décentralisation et Sécurité
44 Avenue de Lemera, BP 7949, Kinshasa‑Gombe, République Démocratique du Congo
Salutation : Dear Minister/ Monsieur le Ministre
Justice and Human Rights
Mr Mutombo Bakafwa Nsenda
Ministre de la Justice et Droits Humains
Ministère de la Justice
228 Avenue de Lemera, BP 3137, Kinshasa-Gombe, République Démocratique du Congo
Email: min_droitshumains@yahoo.fr
Salutation: Dear Minister/Monsieur le Ministre
Governor of Katanga Province
Gouverneur Moïse Katumbi Chapwe
Gouvernorat, Province du Katanga, Lubumbashi, République Démocratique du Congo
Salutation: Dear Governor/Monsieur le Gouverneur
COPIES TO: diplomatic representatives of the DRC accredited to your country.
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 16 May 2008.
RAID Event - Biographies of Chair and Panellists
BIOGRAPHIES
CHAIR
Mark Lawson is a journalist, broadcaster and author. He is a Guardian columnist and feature writer and theatre critic for The Tablet. He is the main presenter of Front Row, BBC Radio 4's nightly arts programme, and his interview series Mark Lawson Talks To ... runs on BBC4. From 1994-1995, he presented BBC2's weekly arts discussion show under the titles Late Review, Review and Newsnight Review. He has twice been voted TV critic of the Year and has won numerous awards for arts journalism. His novels include Bloody Margaret: Three Political Fantasies (Picador, 1991), Going Out Live (Picador, 2001) and Enough Is Enough (Picador, 2005).
PANELLISTS
Jeremy Carver is a Board member/Trustee of Transparency International (UK). He is also a Consultant and Head of International Law at Clifford Chance LLP in
PATRICIA FEENEY
Patricia Feeney is the Executive Director of Rights & Accountability in Development (RAID). Previously, she worked for Amnesty International and Oxfam. She has been a consultant for UNESCO, UNDP and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. She is a research affiliate of the
RICHARD HERMER
Richard Hermer practices in the fields of domestic and international human rights law. For the past four years he has been identified as a ‘Star of the Bar’ and is recognized as a leading human rights lawyer. Over the past few years Richard has advised a variety of individuals and international human rights groups on the legal ramifications of the ‘War on Terror’, including legal claims arising out of detention at Guantanamo Bay. His recent international cases include a claim by Colombian peasant farmers against BP for environmental damage and a group action against oil traders for wide-spread pollution in the
JOAN SMITH
Joan Smith is a columnist, novelist and critic. She is the author of Moralities, the highly praised Misogynies and five detective novels, two of which have been filmed by the BBC. She has written columns for The Independent on Sunday and The Guardian and her reviews appear in the Financial Times, The Sunday Times and The Independent. She is one of the presenters on What the Papers Say and a regular contributor to BBC radio. She is a human rights activist and was the chair of the Writers in Prison committee in the English section of International PEN.
RAID Event Central London, Friday 18 April 6:30pm
‘Profits before People’:
Human rights and the Scramble for Minerals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo – the ethical, legal and political challenges
Friday 18 April 2008, 6.30-9:30 pm
At the Human Rights Action Centre, 17- 25 New Inn Yard, London EC2A 3EA
v An evening of film, debate and music in support of RAID’s work
v Promises to be an exciting, thought-provoking and enjoyable event which will explore the role of multinational companies in the exploitation of Africa’s natural resources and its legal, political and ethical consequences
v Screening of a 30-minute, award-winning Australian documentary ‘The Kilwa Incident’ about the role of big business in a massacre in the Congo
v Mark Lawson (BBC presenter and Guardian columnist) will chair a debate with panellists: Joan Smith (writer and Independent columnist), Richard Hermer (a leading human rights lawyer),Jeremy Carver(Clifford Chance and Transparency International), and Patricia Feeney (Executive Director of RAID)
v Live music by ‘Uusikuu’: an up-and-coming Finnish Tango band, with a growing fan-base throughout Europe.
RAID is an Oxford-based not-for-profit organisation that works to promote human rights and responsible corporate behaviour, particularly in Africa. For more information visit RAID’s website: www.raid-uk.org.
Tickets £20 available at: www.wegottickets.com/event/28017 or on the door.
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