Read the first progress update published by the NCP 21 July 2021: English
Read the second progress update published by the NCP 15 December 2021: English
Read the third progress update published by the NCP 29 March 2023: English
Read the updated initial assessment published by the NCP 15 September 2023: English
On 28 September 2020, Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC), an NGO, submitted a specific instance to the Australian NCP on behalf of affected individuals alleging that Rio Tinto, an Anglo-Australian mining company, had not observed the General Policies (Chapter II), Human Rights (Chapter IV) and Environment (Chapter VI) provisions of the OECD Guidelines. The submitter claimed that Rio Tinto is responsible for ongoing environmental and human rights violations arising from the operations of its former Panguna mine on Bougainville.
In their submission, HRLC requested that Rio Tinto:
- Engage with mine-affected communities to resolve urgent problems and undertake formal reconciliation as per Bougainvillean custom
- Fund an independent environment and human rights impact assessment of the mine site in close collaboration with the mine-affected communities
- Contribute to a substantial independently-managed fund to address harms caused by the mine and assist long-term rehabilitation efforts in accordance with the assessment
On 2 November 2020, the AusNCP Independent Examiner accepted the case and offered good offices. Both parties accepted the offer of good offices. The AusNCP published its initial assessment in March 2023, updating the list of landowners in the submission.
The AusNCP has published progress updates on the case in July and December 2021. In both instances, the AusNCP welcomed progress made by the parties, noting the establishment of a committee to oversee the Panguna mine impact assessment work, which met for the first time in November 2021.
The AusNCP published a third progress update on 29 March 2023, noting continued progress and constructive engagement by the Parties, including progress on Phase One of the independent Legacy Impact Assessment and the oversight role of the multi-stakeholder Mine Legacy Impact Assessment Oversight Committee.
The AusNCP will continue offering its good offices as the impact assessment continues.