Landowner concerns with their treatment when the mine was previously operated led to civil unrest and closure of the mine. Adams said she doesnt agree with that reasoning, which she said has become something of a mantra for the company since its divestment in 2016. Unit 3: Transition and Change - Bougainville Case Study 1 Additional Support Material Bougainville - Background Notes From 1987 to December 1997 Bougainville Copper The Bougainville Copper Agreement of 1974 was signed with some resentment on the part of the Bougainvillean landowners. The Bougainville Copper Project. I have found no evidence to suggest BCL were forced by the PNG government to make this contribution. Engitech is a values-driven technology agency dedicated. Construction required filling the swamp 14:40. Missionaries hold mass 7:17. The Sherratt Family, UK. As one woman from Dapera told me in 2015: I have travelled all over Bougainville, and I can say that they [in Dapera] are the poorest of the poor. Contributions to the National Government in the form of taxes, duties and dividends were approximately 17 per cent of internally generated Papua New Guinean Government revenue during that time. When Mobile Squad units and Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF) soldiers arrived on Bougainville during December 1988 and early 1989, BCL gave the security forces access to company assets. Environment Minister Sussan Ley faces a critical test: will she let a mine destroy koala breeding grounds? In the 17 years prior to 1989, the mine produced concentrate containing three million tonnes of copper, 306 tonnes of gold and 784 tonnes of silver. "The most-beneficial change has been the focus of Panguna landowners and other Bougainvilleans on the re-development agenda, and the initiatives they have taken to contribute to momentum. [7], A referendum on Bougainville's independence must be held no later than June 2020 under the Bougainville Peace Agreement. Clouds in the mountains 6:45. Bougainville landowner groups were called to vote on allowing BCL to renew their mining licence and potentially reopen the Panguna mine, but lacked support. Photo: The Panguna mine was abandoned in 1989 after an armed uprising known as the Bougainville Crisis. The Panguna mine was operated by BCL, majority owned by Rio Tinto, for 17 years from 1972 until 1989, when operations were suspended due to an uprising against the mine and subsequent civil war. 6 inches of rain per hour. Also today, the . Streamline your workflow with our best-in-class digital asset management system. Indeed, Panguna along with the socially and environmentally disastrous Ok Tedi mine in the western highlands of PNG are widely credited with forcing the industry to reassess its social license to operate. These interviews were triangulated through extensive documentary research, using internal BCL records including meeting minutes and company memorandums (these documents became available following two court cases involving BCL and its parent company). Consistent with business development activities, representatives from Fortescue have visited Bougainville Island to learn about the region and potential opportunities., Businessman Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest during a state dinner in Washington in September.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen. For example, the company's charitable arm - the Bougainville Copper Foundation (BCF) - had surveyed homes lost to village burnings, which were conducted en masse by the Mobile Squads and the PNGDF during 1989. They, and others, sent the complaint to the Australian OECD National Contact Point after lodging it with Melbournes Human Rights Law Centre. Many believed that partner would be Caballus. Communities around Rio Tinto's (ASX, LON: RIO) shuttered copper mine in Bougainville face a serious threat of flooding due to. BCL meeting minutes evidence the fact that during 1989 the company's Managing Director provided strategic input to PNGDF commanders and government officials on security force offensive operations. A recent example is when, after Rio Tinto divested from Bougainville Copper in 2016, former Bougainville President John Momis said Rio must take full responsibility for an environmental clean-up. For example, BCL was informed by the Minister of State that the security forces were planning to use "brutal firepower" to resolve the situation on Bougainville. on the Internet. A map overlays the scene at the mine 27:04. Momis initially supported a moratorium on mining at Panguna to avoid reigniting old conflicts between landowner groups. Bougainville Copper's bloody "hidden past" exposed Published by MAC on 2012-05-01 Source: ACT NOW!, Papua New Guinea Mine Watch . Another significant shareholder, Graeme Kirke, is the founder of Kirke Securities where Mr Forrest previously worked. President Momis asserted that progressing with BCL could "cause a total explosion of the situation again". In recent months, the mudslinging by supporters of both groups has died down. web pages Francis Ona and other landowners on the island of Bougainville were concerned about the environmental impact of the Panguna cooper mine operated by Bougainville Copper Ltd. since 1969, including possible environmental damage to the Jaba River from the copper mine. Capture a web page as it appears now for use as a trusted citation in the future. On November 23, Bougainvilleans will go to the polls and are expected to vote overwhelmingly for independence from Papua New Guinea. Tap into Getty Images' global scale, data-driven insights, and network of more than 340,000 creators to create content exclusively for your brand. Sir Rabbie Namaliu was the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea during 1988-1992. Melbourne Australia 10:06. Be the first one to, THE BOUGAINVILLE COPPER PROJECT 1970s PANGUNA NEW GUINEA COPPER MINE PROMO FILM 69684, 69684-the-bougainville-copper-project-vwr, Advanced embedding details, examples, and help, Terms of Service (last updated 12/31/2014). But in the wake of that expected vote, there is a real risk of new disputes between landowner groups as miners, many with links to Australia, could reignite the crisis that engulfed the island 30 years ago. In fact Mr Lasslett's critique of the company's complicity in human rights abuses, during the first 15 months of the bloody conflict, is quite measured. Since the end of mining activities 30 years ago, tailings have continued to move down the rivers and the waterways have never been treated for suspected chemical contamination. Kalias share price is just one-tenth of a cent. No environmental impact study was carried out. This story was produced with the assistance of the inaugural Walkley/Sean Dorney grant for Pacific Journalism. Explosives are set under rocks 9:45. However, he added that mining would be part of Bougainvilles future. She added the companys representatives wouldnt have to visit the mine site to find ways to improve access to water and health care and to orchestrate an assessment so that communities understand the risks they face and how to deal with them. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Indigenous music, Radio Bougainville. Evidence from Thirteen Cases Author(s): Michael L. Ross Source: International Organization, The moratorium is a dramatic turnaround in policy from the Autonomous Bougainville Government, which determined landowners felt BCL didn't deserve a social licence to run the mine. Heavy trucks sit rusting on the edges of Panguna copper mine, closed in 1989 as a result of sabotage.Credit:Friedrich Stark / Alamy Stock Photo. Matthew G. Allen has received funding from an Australian Research Council fellowship DE140101206. Over 10 years we help companies reach their financial and branding goals. BCL operated the copper, gold and silver mine at the Panguna mine on Bougainville Island in PNG from 1971 to 1989. Lets examine what led to the ongoing crisis. My specific claims relate to a small window in the company's life, 1988-1990, where decisions were taken that implicated BCL in the hostilities, and the human rights abuses they generated. The mine was vitally important to the economy of Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea Mine Watch. The case ultimately foundered on jurisdictional grounds. 2. These communities used the rivers for drinking water and the adjacent lands for subsistence food gardening. Even the subsistence farming on which many local communities rely has been hampered by the tainted water flowing from the mine. [10], In February 2018, BCL begun legal proceedings against the Autonomous Bougainville Government following the cancellation of the exploration license. The company is blamed by many locals for contamination attributed to the mine. Luke Fletcher, a long-time Bougainville watcher and executive director of think tank Jubilee Australia warns of the resources curse that has plagued PNG. Control room and men monitor the equipment 26:35. Caballus Mining was set up only in August 2018. Website http://www.bcl.com.pg/ Industries Mining Company size 11-50 employees Headquarters Port Moresby,. Autonomous Bougainville Government president John Momis. "Due to the loss recorded and the need to preserve cash for future development the company will not pay a dividend. McGlinn was last week travelling in Europe. "The company has sufficient funds to cover its recurrent expenditure under the current plan and is debt free.". We urgently need Rio Tinto to come back and deal with these problems so our communities can find healing.. I also interviewed senior state officials in Papua New Guinea, including the former Prime Minister Sir Rabbie Namaliu (1988-1992), and senior military officers involved in the operations on Bougainville. He took part in the Seven Years' War in North America and the American Revolutionary War against Britain. Access the best of Getty Images with our simple subscription plan. The Mobile Squads were responsible for numerous atrocities on Bougainville during 1989-1990. That move left Bougainville Copper as little more than a shell company, Adams said, without the resources to mount such a formidable cleanup effort. In 1643, the inhabitants of Takuu and Nissan atolls had the first recorded contact with Europeans from an expedition led by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman. On 15th May 1989 production was brought to a halt by militant activity and the mine has remained closed since. See: U.S. Court is prepared to hear Bougainville genocide case against Rio Tinto, The greatest threat to Bougainville Copper's future is it's hidden past. Adams team cataloged the fouled water supplies that force communities to depend on drinking water piped from long distances upslope. Had he, Mr Sturm would have discovered that my findings are based upon interviews with General Managers and three Managing Directors who steered BCL during the 1987-1991 period. Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. An advocacy group says as international mining companies eye starting operations in the autonomous Papua New Guinea region of Bougainville, Canberra must take action. Vacuum filters remove the water from the copper slurry in the containers and dried for shipping 5:03. Because of this, no dividends will be paid, chairman Peter Taylor announced at BCL's 45th annual general meeting in Port Moresby. The Duke of Edinburgh visits in 1971 22:25. Johnstons biggest claims to fame at home are a controversy over his lavish spending on entertainment as minister and comments that South Australians couldnt build a canoe, much less a submarine. The mine produced copper concentrate that also contained significant quantities of gold and silver. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. It is one of the largest known copper reserves in PNG and in the world having estimated reserves of 1,000 Mt of ore grading 0.34% Cu and containing perhaps as much as 12 Moz of gold. Women in a market at Bougainville earlier this year. Of course, I can only hint here at the evidence collected over several years of doctoral research. More than 30 years later, The situation is worsening, as waste continues to seep into the regions rivers, said Keren Adams, legal director at the nonprofit Human Rights Law Centre in Australia. Due to a planned power outage on Friday, 1/14, between 8am-1pm PST, some services may be impacted. The production had a value of 5.2 billion Kina (K) which represented approximately 44 per cent of Papua New Guineas exports over that period. Landowners are guaranteed rights under the 2015 Mining Act, but in an urgent bid in January 2019 to raise funds for the referendum, the government proposed to abolish those rights, at the same time allocating near monopoly rights to Caballus's Bougainville Advance Mining. The colonial-era approach to mining when Panguna was developed in the 1960s stands in stark contrast to the corporate social responsibility paradigm supposedly governing the global mining industry today. U.S. Court is prepared to hear Bougainville genocide case against Rio Tinto. Though in light of the above, I would suggest - to borrow the words of Mr Sturm - it was in fact those scholars and journalists that rejected the allegations made against BCL by landowners and activists who might be accused of being "naive", after all accessible documentary evidence on BCL's involvement has been available since 1990 (following a Supreme Court of Victoria court case involving BCL and their insurers - BCL records are also stored in an archive at the University of Melbourne and may be viewed upon request). Bougainville displays great cultural diversity in a relatively small region. PNG marks 40 years of independence, still feeling the effects of Australian colonialism. Papua New Guinea (PNG) has a dual economy: a formal economy built around extractive industries (mining, petroleum, logging, commercial fishing) and cash crop production (palm oil, coffee . Grow your brand authentically by sharing brand content with the internets creators. 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