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March 23 - 31, 2002 Introduction In August 1996,
Tanzanian authorities evicted a community of small-scale miners
from their homes and worksites at the Bulyanhulu gold fields to
allow a Canadian mining company, Sutton Resources, to take over
the site. Since that time, there have been persistent allegations
that as many as 52 people were buried alive when the company filled
in the small-scale mining shafts; and that the evictions were brutal
and swift violating economic and social rights, causing enormous
economic and social hardship. No compensation was paid to the people
- estimated between 30,000 to 400,000 - who were removed from the
area. The mine was acquired by Canadian-owned Barrick Gold Corporation
three years later. Several observers,
including Amnesty International, LEAT (Lawyers Environmental Action
Team) based in Dar es Salaam, and, most recently, Tanzanian Judge
Mark Bomani, have called for an independent inquiry into the events
of August 1996. To date, these calls have been unheeded, and there
has never been a comprehensive, independent investigation of these
allegations. An ad hoc group
of North American and European non-governmental organizations which
had been following the Bulyanhulu story closely decided to send
a small team to Tanzania in March this year. The primary
purpose of this fact-finding mission was to better understand the
events of August 1996, their continuing impact on the affected communities,
and to determine the need for an independent investigation into
these events. To accomplish this task, the team intended (a) to visit the villages around Bulyanhulu; (b) listen to the stories of the affected people and relevant local officials, (c) observe the general living conditions in the area and the working conditions at nearby small-scale mining sites; and (d) interview mine officials and visit mine-sponsored community development projects in the region. Members of
the fact-finding team: The fact-finding mission was assisted by LEAT, and the group was accompanied throughout the visit by lawyers Vincent Shauri and Tundu Lissu. Recommendations: 2. Given the
important role played by a Canadian company and by Canadian government
officials in relation to the Bulyanhulu mine, the team urges the
Canadian government to endorse the call for an independent public
inquiry, and to cooperate fully in enabling such an inquiry to obtain
all relevant facts pertaining to the events at Bulyanhulu in 1996. 3. Care should
be taken to ensure the protection of all potential witnesses. 4. The
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and the Export
Development Corporation (EDC), the public financial institutions
that have guaranteed the current mining operations, should fulfill
their public interest mandate by disclosing any results of their
due diligence investigations that may shed light on veracity of
these allegations. 5. LEAT and
other Tanzanian organizations who are investigating these allegations
should be allowed to continue their efforts without hindrance or
harassment. While not prepared
to make any findings of fact with respect to the allegations, the
members of the mission came to their conclusion as a result of their
own experiences in Tanzania at the hands of the Tanzanian authorities;
and as a result of impressions gained from interviews with a variety
of individuals with differing perspectives on the Bulyanhulu controversy. Although the
mission's plan to interview many miners and other affected persons
in Bulyanhulu area was prohibited by the police from taking place,
15 individuals, most of whom were small-scale pit owners in the
Bulyanhulu area who said they were adversely affected and continue
to be adversely affected by the events of 1996, managed to come
to us to tell us of their experiences. Almost all of these individuals
claimed to be eye witnesses of various relevant events, and some
claimed they lost loved ones in the mine shafts when they were allegedly
bulldozed over by the mining company, assisted by the Tanzanian
authorities. The intensity
and seriousness in the telling of the stories of the alleged evictions,
violence and brutality of the police and mining officials, the level
of detail, as well as the willingness of the Bulyanhulu residents
to take significant risks to their own personal safety to come and
speak with us, impressed the members of the mission, as did the
willingness of apparently 250 others who waited several hours for
us to arrive in Bulyanhulu. The mission
members thought that these factors lent weight to the credibility
of the allegations. The mission's
thinking was also influenced by the conversation three members of
the team had with former Tanzanian Justice and Attorney General,
Mark Bomani, who has been an interested observer of the allegations
and denials over the past six years in the country, and who is also
calling for a full and impartial inquiry into the Bulyanhulu allegations. The mission
also had the opportunity to speak extensively with the LEAT lawyers,
Vincent Shauri and Tundu Lissu about the case and the facts as they
understood them, their experiences during the time they have been
retained on the file, as well as their dealings with the Tanzanian
authorities. The mission was impressed with the skill and knowledge
of the lawyers as well as their dedication and unwavering commitment
to the Bulyanhulu file. It appeared to the members of the mission
that their work was being done under considerable duress and even
threats of harm from the authorities. Mission members
also had the brief opportunity to view the actions of the Mwanza
Regional Police at the guest house in Geita where they were staying,
and to briefly speak to Commander Elia Kihengu from Mwanza when
he came to the guest house to order the mission back to Dar es Salaam.
One of the mission members, Professor Kathleen Mahoney, had the
opportunity to speak with Mr. Rajabu of the Criminal Investigations
Unit in Dar es Salaam. The behaviour of the police during the day
of March 27, 2002 was intimidating to the mission, giving us the
impression that we were under surveillance and could possibly be
apprehended. The mission
members were impressed by the extensive and prominent coverage in
the Dar es Salaam newspapers regarding our visit. We thought it
noteworthy that the government initiated press coverage by calling
at least one press conference to accuse the mission of contravening
Tanzanian law with respect to permits and visas. These assertions
had no factual or legal foundation. The conclusion of the international fact-finding mission, that a full, public, transparent, urgent, impartial inquiry is essential in order to put ongoing tensions and allegations to rest, was arrived at through the combination of all of the above-noted events, conversations, experiences and impressions. Greater details are provided in the body of the report which follows. March 18,
2002 LEAT members
Vincent Shauri and Tundu Lissu met with Senior Superintendent of
Police Lucas Kusima and Assistant Commissioner of Police King'wai
both from the office of the Director of Criminal Investigations
(DCI) in the Police headquarters in Dar es Salaam. SSP Kusima and
ACP King'wai advised LEAT to write an official letter to the DCI
to inform him of the mission's visit as well as to notify regional
and district authorities in Shinyanga and Kahama respectively. This
was done. Rights &
Democracy President Warren Allmand wrote to the Tanzanian High Commission
in Ottawa, Canada, notifying him of the mission's visit. Allmand
described the purpose of the mission's visit as being "to investigate
alleged evictions at Bulyanhulu." March 19,
2002 LEAT wrote to
the DCI concerning the impending visit by the fact-finding mission
and described the mission's purpose as being "to hold meetings
with LEAT as well as visiting Bulyanhulu and other areas of Kahama
District to meet with the communities affected by the forced removals
from the Bulyanhulu mines in August 1996." The letter also
explained that the mission intended to meet with any other person
with any relevant information concerning the facts and circumstances
of the 1996 events in Bulyanhulu, including any police officers
who may have participated in the removal operation, or investigated
the subsequent allegations of the killings of artisanal miners.
It asked the DCI to allow any officers in his department with the
relevant information to appear for interviews with the members of
the mission. This letter was also copied and faxed to the Regional
Commissioner, Shinyanga and the District Commissioner, Kahama. March 23,
2002 Mission members
Steven Herz, Mattias Ylstra and Stephen Kerr arrived in Dar es Salaam.
On Sunday, March 24 they met with LEAT at their office in Dar es
Salaam and they interviewed a journalist who was present one day
after the alleged killings. They also met with local journalists
interested in the mission. On March 25, Kathleen Mahoney and Paula
Butler arrived in Dar es Salaam. March 25,
2002 The DCI wrote
to LEAT in response to the latter's letters of March 19. Responding
to LEAT's request to make his officers available for interviews
with the mission, the DCI stated that "there is no way the
Police Force can participate or in any way assist or be involved
in that mission since so far there is no official communication
that we (the police) have received from the Attorney General (who)
... is the only person to sanction the same." March 26,
2002 The whole team,
accompanied by lawyer Vincent Shauri of LEAT, flew to Mwanza and
then proceeded by road (and ferry) to Geita, a small town one hour's
drive from Bulyanhulu. We arrived at the guest house in Geita at
around 5:30 p.m. and determined that it was too late to proceed
on to Bulyanhulu, even though about 250 people had been gathered
there expecting our arrival earlier in the afternoon. Shortly after
our arrival, a police officer delivered a letter to Lissu from the
Mwanza Regional Police Commander, Elia Kihengu informing us that
he had received instructions from the Director of Criminal Investigations
in Dar es Salaam to (1) deny us access to Bulyanhulu, (2) inform
us that we had not obtained proper authorization to carry out our
work and (3) order us to return immediately to Dar es Salaam to
obtain (or attempt to obtain) proper authorization from the Attorney
General. Later that evening,
we were told that the police had erected an armed roadblock on the
road to Bulyanhulu, and that a large number of police had been deployed
in the villages near the mine. March 27,
2002 We attempted
to resolve the situation by contacting appropriate government officials
by telephone. LEAT's Tundu Lissu contacted the Regional Police Commissioner
in Mwanza and the DCI, both of whom insisted that the mission return
to Dar es Salaam and obtain permission to proceed from the Attorney
General. However, LEAT's Vincent Shauri spoke with the deputy Attorney
General who informed him that he was not aware of any legal authority
granting the AG's office the power to issue the authorization described
by the DCI. We also contacted officials at the Canadian High Commission
and the American Embassy, who confirmed that Tanzania does not ordinarily
impose travel restrictions on foreign visa holders. Lissu contacted
members of the affected communities and invited them to come to
meet with us at Geita. Fifteen people came by minibus, arriving
at the guest house around 1:00 pm. After a half-hour
of introductions and formalities, we divided into two groups and
listened to their testimonies one by one. Most of the conversations
were videotaped or audiotaped. Late in the
afternoon, around 5:30 pm, the local police officer and the Mwanza
regional police officer, accompanied by two other armed officers,
arrived at the guest house. Lissu and Shauri negotiated with them
privately for some 45 minutes. However, since the orders were coming
from the DCI in Dar es Salaam who still refused to reconsider, we
were forced to agree to return promptly to the capital the following
day. After the police
left (at 7:00 pm), we accompanied the delegation from Bulyanhulu
to the roadblock, which was manned by four armed officers. The members
of the community were forced to give their names to the police.
Wary of travelling at night, the group opted to stay in Geita overnight
and return to their homes the following day. We returned
to the guest house and interviewed three members of the group who
had not had an opportunity to tell their stories in the afternoon. March 28,
2002 We left early
from Geita and travelled to Mwanza. There we briefly made contact
with a former Kahama Mining Corporation employee who had videotaped
some of the events at Bulyanhulu in August 1996 when the evictions
and pit-fillings occurred. We then returned by air to Dar es Salaam. The Minister
for Home Affairs, Mohamed Seif Khatib told a news conference that
the mission had been prevented from travelling to Bulyanhulu because
it did not have any permit from the Tanzanian authorities to undertake
an investigation of the Bulyanhulu events and because the members
of the mission misrepresented their activities to the authorities
in their visa applications. March 29,
2002 We met at the
Canadian High Commission at 9:00 a.m. with Jeffrey McLaren, First
Secretary of the Canadian High Commission, and with Jack Twiss Quarles
van Ufford, First Secretary of the Royal Netherlands Embassy. We
were told that the previous day, the Canadian High Commissioner,
the American Ambassador, and the Dutch Ambassador had been called
to separate meetings with the Acting Permanent Secretary of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and were
appraised of the reasons for the actions taken by the Government
of Tanzania regarding our mission. They also offered their observations
regarding the politics of the Bulyanhulu issue, and how it fit into
the broader political climate in Tanzania. Kathleen Mahoney,
Mattias Ylstra and Paula Butler met with Judge Mark Bomani at his
office. Judge Mark Bomani is a widely respected figure in Tanzania
- a former Attorney General and advisor to Nelson Mandela on the
Burundi peace talks. Mr. Bomani expressed his embarrassment at how
we had been treated by the police, reiterated his opinion that there
needed to be an independent inquiry, and talked with us about his
views about the potential composition and scope of such an inquiry. Through Rights
& Democracy, the mission issued a joint statement in Canada
calling for an independent public inquiry into the events at Bulyanhulu
in 1996, and for LEAT to be allowed to continue its work without
harassment. March 30,
2002 The team returned home.
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