At least 43 dead in Congo mine of Glencore subsidiary
This image of a mine in the DRC was not taken at the KCC mine
Keystone
At least 43 people were killed on Thursday in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) when two galleries collapsed in a mine run by the Kamoto Copper Company (KCC), a subsidiary of Swiss-based commodity trader and miner Glencore.
This content was published on
1 minute
Keystone-SDA/ts
The figure of 43 victims was given on Friday by the governor of the province of Lualaba. Sources at the Red Cross and civil society talked about 60-80 deaths.
Glencore had said in a statementExternal link on Thursday that 19 people had died “with possible further unconfirmed fatalities”.
“The illegal artisanal miners were working two galleries in benches overlooking the extraction area. Two of these galleries caved in. These incidents were not linked to KCC operations or activities. KCC is currently engaged in assisting search and rescue operations with the local authorities,” Glencore said.
“KCC urges all illegal miners to cease from putting their lives at risk by trespassing on a major industrial site. KCC is doing what it can to inform the communities of the dangers associated with illegal trespassing on major industrial concessions.”
In the statement, Glencore said KCC had observed a growing presence of illegal artisanal miners throughout its industrial mining concessions in the Kolwezi area.
“This has led to daily intrusions onto its concession by on average 2,000 illegal artisanal miners per day. This has presented a significant risk to its employees, operating equipment and the illegal artisanal miners themselves.”
More
More
Glencore accused of environmental pollution in DRC
This content was published on
Two Swiss NGOs have accused Swiss-based Glencore of continuing to pollute the air and soil in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Boats sail to Solothurn to celebrate 700 years of Le Landeron
This content was published on
The challenge of crossing Lake Biel from Le Landeron to Solothurn without a motor was taken up by 16 amateur crews on Saturday. The competition is part of Le Landeron's 700th anniversary celebrations.
Swiss cantonal ministers keep low profile on social media
This content was published on
A small base of followers and neutral posts: these are the conclusions that emerge from a study published by UNIL researchers into the use of social networks by councillors of state.
Swiss rents forecast to rise up to 5% annually, housing chief warns
This content was published on
Rents on the Swiss market are set to rise by between 3% and 5% a year over the next few years, warned Martin Tschirren, Director of the Federal Housing Office (FHO), on Sunday. "Demand for housing remains higher than supply".
This content was published on
The Council of the Swiss Abroad, meeting today in Bern, passed a resolution in favour of the new Electronic Identity Act (Id-e), which will be put to the vote on 28 September.
One person consumes 4.8 megawatt hours of electricity
This content was published on
On average, the Swiss consume 4.8 megawatt hours of electricity per year. According to Velobiz.de, this is roughly equivalent to the amount generated by all 176 cyclists in the Tour de France during the entire race.
Outgoing ICRC chief in Ukraine defends neutrality amid war
This content was published on
Swiss national Jürg Eglin, outgoing head of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Ukraine, reflects on his tenure.
Green party leader criticises government’s neo-liberal policy
This content was published on
The Green Party delegates' meeting opened on Saturday morning in Vicques (JU) with a speech by party president Lisa Mazzone. Mazzone took particular aim at the Federal Council's policy towards the United States.
Working on Sundays is detrimental to well-being, says Swiss study
This content was published on
A study by the University of Bern shows that working on Sundays is detrimental to well-being and particularly affects women.
Safra Sarasin private bank and former asset manager sentenced
This content was published on
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has fined private bank J. Safra Sarasin CHF3.5 million for aggravated money laundering. A former bank employee received a six-month suspended prison sentence.
JPMorgan to pay CHF270 million to settle 1MDB claims
This content was published on
JPMorgan Chase has agreed to pay CHF270 million to the Malaysian government to settle all issues related to its role in the 1MDB financial scandal.
This content was published on
Swiss commodity giant Glencore is often under fire for its human rights record. Glencore’s sustainability chief explains its due diligence approach.
Swiss minister criticised for copper mine comments
This content was published on
Swiss Foreign Affairs Minister Ignazio Cassis is coming under renewed pressure over his visit to a Glencore-run copper mine in Zambia.
This content was published on
The impending retirement of Glencore’s copper kingpin Telis Mistakidis marks the start of a generational shift at the powerful commodity trader.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.