Calvin Manika
AMID a brewing storm between a Chinese company Beifer Investments and Dinde villagers over a coal mining project, Hwange district is witnessing yet another fresh dispute.
This week, Centre for Natural Resource Governance received information that communities within a 15 kilometres stretch from Cross Dete to Kapami area woke up to find pegs inscribed Malonga Wells/A Mupandawana in their fields. The pegged area covers Ndangababi, Makwandala and Silewu wards.
Mupandawana’s company has been pegging the area without the community’s knowledge and consent. This development comes shortly after the Dinde Community in Hwange, located about 20 kilometers from the Cross Dete, and raised alarm over a coal mining project by Beifer Investments which is also threatening their existence.
It is not clear what Mupandawana intends to mine in Cross Dete but the area is known to have copper, tantalite, lithium and amethyst deposits. In a statement, CNRG said: “The omission of community consultative processes in this development is worrisome. The communities are worried that, should mining operations be allowed to proceed, they will bear the burden of land degradation, air and water pollution, loss of grazing land for their livestock and, in some instances, displacement.”
CNRG appealed to the government to respect land rights of its citizens.
“The people of Cross Dete have Constitutional and customary rights to participate in the decision making on development programmes that affect their community, without fear of retribution,” they posted.
Meanwhile, the visit by the minister of Mines Winston Chitando which was scheduled for last Thursday was reportedly postponed.
