Those businesses that operate or have parts of their value chain in countries
where governments fail to fulfill their own duties to protect human rights have
to make additional efforts to respect human rights in light of the risky
environment they operate in. Businesses should also have the right policies and
processes in place in order to try and prevent these negative impacts of their
business activities and to respond appropriately and timeously should they
occur.
6.3.5. Murowa Diamond mine is a corporate that is impacting on the environmental
rights of residents of Mazvihwa community .The UNGPs on Business and
Human Rights are therefore useful as a reference point in this case. All the
residents of Mazvihwa whose rights are being violated due to mining activities
have a right of access to remedy. The UNGP’s on Business and Human Rights
stipulate that when a corporate violates human rights, the victims have a right
to effective remedy. This right and many other ancillary rights such as
environmental rights and right to health are inalienable so neither the State nor
corporates can take them away. Furthermore, these rights are set out in more
detail in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights .
6.3.6. The UNGP’s on Businesses and Human Rights make it clear that all companies
everywhere have a responsibility to respect human rights, which entails
avoiding having negative impacts on human rights and to address such impacts
where they do occur. In this case, Murowa has a responsibility to mitigate the
impacts of blasting and excessive dust emissions which negatively affect the
health and wellbeing of the complainants. More so, as a way of ensuring
effective remedy, the mine has a responsibility of rehabilitating the damaged
houses or consider relocating the victims to safe locations.
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
6.3.5 Article 12 paragraph 1 provides that State parties to the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights should recognise the right of everyone
on the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.
6.3.6 Article 12 paragraph 2 (b) provides that the steps to be taken by the State
Parties to the present Covenant to achieve the full realisation of these rights
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