Top: Joseph Toe, a Bao Chico worker displays his injured fingers to our reporter. The Daylight /Harry Browne
By Emmanuel Sherman
BARNERSVILLE, Montserrado – Joseph Toe 35, was happy when he started work with Bao Chico in Gbarpolu in February.
Toe was assigned to an iron ore plant, with his job to prevent unwanted rocks from entering the machine.
But on May 4, barely three months at the Bao Chico Resources Liberia Limited, Toe sustained injuries to two fingers in an accident. He had been lecturing and gesturing to a friend while eating when his left hand slipped into an air compressor machine. The air compressor, an automatic machine used in welding, cut portions of his thumb and his ring finger.
After the accident, Toe was first taken to John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Monrovia for two days and later to Emirates Hospital in Bopolu.
Emirates recommended in the presence of county authorities that Toe should continue with full treatment at JFK Hospital due to his condition. But the Bao Chico management took him to another clinic instead.
Toe insisted that he should be treated at JFK in line with the recommendation and not at another clinic.
A Bao Chico mine in Gbarpolu County. The DayLight/Derick Snyder
‘They dashed me’
Bao Chico refused on the ground they were paying the money, so they would carry him anywhere they felt.
“I said no. They dashed me and went about their business. They did not know how I was eating,” Toe told The DayLight at his temporary home in Barnesville.
Toe then called the police. The police invited Jack Wang, Bao Chico’s site manager, but he refused. So, the police came to the Chinese clinic arrested, handcuffed, placed him on a motorcycle taxi and took him to the police depot in the ELWA community.
However, the case was withdrawn and settled outside of the police, according to Jusu Sumo, the labor commissioner of Gbarpolu County, who presided over Toe’s case. He was recalled after the case as part of a routine reshuffle.
“There is a need for the company to come and settle me to help my family,” Toe said. “You can look at my fingers, I am traumatized. I am not normal like again like before.”
Toe has received US$3,000 as injury benefit as required under the Decent Work Act, Sumo said, which Toe confirmed.
“As far as we are concerned, the issue with Toe has been settled,” said George Mitchell, a Bao Chico spokesman.
Police officers handcuff Jack Wan and bundle him onto a motorcycle taxi. The DayLight/Harry Browne
This is the third major injury at Bao Chico The DayLight has reported due to the company’s unsafe working environment. Earlier this year, Augustine David, a driver lost his index finger when a steel rod crushed it. Momo Kamara a machine assistant, lost his left, small finger in a machine accident.
There have been other injuries and incidents. Anthony Jackson, a welder, was injured on his left foot because he was not wearing proper footgear. Jedrome Baomah got injured after a hot welding particle passed through the hole of the goggles he was hearing and entered his right eye. Harris Kollie, a driller, sustained injuries on his neck and stomach after being beaten by Mr. Wang.
Perhaps, the most infamous victim is Zoe Freeman, a 50-plus woman who fainted during one of Bao Chico’s explosion exercises.
The DayLight investigation found Bao Chico did not draw up its workplace regulations for approval by the Ministry of Mines and Energy as required by law.
There is no record that Bao Chico reported these injuries to the ministry, another violation of the law. The procedures are intended to secure the safety, health and welfare of employees and other persons at work.
“It is shocking to see a multi-million-dollar company for three years without employing a single safety officer who will teach safety rules to workers, said Sampson Lamah, the spokesperson of the affected communities in Gbarpolu County. Bao Chico only provides a helmet, reflective vest, and light gloves, Lamah said. There are no safety boots or other gear for mineworkers.
Bao Chico, a Chinese-owned steel company, and the Liberian government signed a 25-year agreement to mine iron ore in 2022. The agreement covers 87.4 kilometers, stretching from Bopulu in Gbarpolu to Suehn Mecca in Bomi.
The United States Embassy provided funding for this story. The DayLight maintained editorial independence over the story’s content.
Top: Gbanakao Creek near Bao Chico’s mine. The DayLight/Derick Snyder
By Esau J. Farr
COMPOUND-SU, Gbarpolu County – Bao Chico has polluted water sources in landowning communities, depriving locals of safe drinking water, a DayLight investigation found.
A team of DayLight reporters recently visited the operational areas of the Chinese-owned company and photographed creeks that are no longer safe for drinking.
Two major creeks, Mazine and Gbanakao, have all changed colors with greenish, brownish and blueish looks from remnants from Bao Chico’s mining activities.
“This water, we used to drink it, but we can’t drink it now [because of Bao Chico’s operation],” said Salamah
Dukuly, owner of the Dukuly Village near Compound-Su.
“Because of that, we are forced to carry drinking water from the town to the farm,” said Zoe Freeman, another Compound-Su resident.
DayLight saw a tributary of the Gbanakao Creek backfilled on the right side of a Bao Chico mine to clear it for mining and road pavement to transport ore to a plant. Reporters filmed dying vegetation at one of the polluted creeks nearby.
“When they [used to] get ready, the machine [would] just push [dirt] straight into the creek, thereby polluting the water,” said Sampson Lamah, spokesperson of the affected communities.
Bao Chico promised in a meeting with villagers to construct a handpump in each of the 32 affected communities, according to locals. However, only two hand pumps have been erected of which one is functional, the investigation found.
Bao Chico mining activities have polluted Mazine, one of a few creeks used for drinking in landowning communities affected by the company’s operations. The DayLight/James Giahyue
Edwin Darju, the liaison officer of Bao Chico, admitted to the pollution of the creeks but denied the presence of any chemicals.
“I am not a technical person, but what I do know is there was a physical pollution and not chemical pollution,” Darju said.
That statement runs contrary to the facts because the company uses chemical explosives. Normally, residuals of mine explosions go downstream, polluting and poisoning waterways, experts say.
Bao Chico explosions throw large rocks into communities, according to locals. The DayLight/James Giahyue
Ammonium nitrate, dynamite and emulsion explosives are the commonly used chemicals for blasting by mining companies, all of which have negative effects on soil and the public. They are responsible for the overgrowth of algae, which depletes oxygen in water and harms water species.
Bao Chico signed an agreement with the Liberian government in 2022 to mine iron ore on 87.4 square kilometers in the Suhen Mecca District of Bomi and the Bopolu District.
It began polluting creeks from the beginning of its operations, sparking protests.
Blasting
The noise from the blasting and rock particles it produces also negatively affects the communities.
Zoe Freeman, a resident of Compound-Su, fainted after a mine explosion last year. The DayLight/James Giahyue
Last year, Freeman, the resident from Compound-Su, fainted during a round of explosions. Bao Chico had not informed the community it would conduct blasts that day. Freeman was later taken to the Emirates Hospital in Bopolu, where she was treated and discharged, doctors at the hospital said.
As a result of that incident, the company runs public service announcements on the radio at least two days before an explosion procedure.
“The Monrovia-Bopolu and Bomi-Bopolu roads in the blasting area will be temporarily closed and Bopolu police will maintain order and the closure time will last for 30 minutes,” an excerpt of a January announcement read.
The mine blasting, which takes place between 10 am and 5 pm, stalls the movement of people and farming activities.
But it is the air pollution it produces that affects residents most.
“[People] can get sick here because of the odor from the chemicals used,” said Peter Paye, Town Chief of Compound-Su. Paye listed common cold, headache, diarrhea high blood pressure, and breathing difficulty, a claim DayLight could not independently verify.
The DayLight’s team of reporters also filmed cracked buildings and walls in Compound-Su and Baabu-Ta.
“The mud houses can’t stand the vibration,” said Kai Sirleaf, the Town Chief of Baabu-Ta.
These forms of pollution violate Bao Chico’s mining agreement with the Liberian government. It contains provisions that the company should abide by environmental health and safety guidelines in line with the World Bank’s standards.
An elevated view of Bao Chico’s plant. The DayLight/Derick Snyder
For instance, the World Bank’s standards call for waste dumps to be planned, designed and operated to manage environmental impacts. A recent DayLight investigation found Bao Chico was noncompliant with several levels of workplace safety standards.
Villagers are also concerned about the danger the blasting poses to their safety. Rock particles from the blasting spread across towns and villages causing fear among locals.
“We want to find means to move from here because, each time they want to blast, they will say you’ll move from here and go to the other side,” Salamah Dukuly of Dukuly Village said.
“My life is under threat. We should move from here,” said Dukuly. DayLight was not able to get the relocation plan of the company for locals residing in its concessional area.
Contractors at the company don’t have proper protective gear and there are no established health and safety committees, a violation of the labor and mining laws of Liberia.
The DayLight did not get comments from Bao Chico despite text messages and phone calls to the company’s manager, who was only identified as Mr. Lee.
Lee answered several calls placed to him, speaking English. However, he later pretended not to understand the language when this reporter introduced himself.
A Bao Chico mine. The DayLight/James Giahyue
The United States Embassy in Monrovia provided funding for this story. The DayLight maintained editorial independence over its content.
Top: Bao Chico signed a 25-year mining agreement with the Liberian government in 2022 to mine iron ore in Bomi and Gbarpolu County. The DayLight/Derick Snyder
By Esau J. Farr
COMPOUND-SU JUNCTION, GbarpoluCounty – Last August, Augustine David, a driver of Bao Chico, was ordered to separate culverts for bridge construction in the area without protective gears. A steel rod he was using slipped and crushed the right index finger.
David was taken to the JFK Medical Center in Monrovia that day in August last year. He spent some days at JFK and two months to recover at the Bethesda Medical Center on Somalia Drive outside Monrovia.
“I am traumatized because I was [not] born crippled but I am now crippled,” David said as he held up his palm with the severed finger at Compound-Su Junction.
David is one of several workers at Bao Chico Resources Liberia Limited who have sustained lifetime injuries due to the Chinese firm’s unsafe working environment.
Augustine David, a Bao Chico driver, lost his index finger after a culvert he was ordered to move crushed it. The DayLight/James Harding Giahyue
Owned by Zhan Zhen, a giant steel company in China, Bao Chico Resources Liberia Limited signed a 25-year agreement with Liberia in 2022 to mine iron ore, covering 87.4 square kilometers in Bopolu and Suehn Mecca Districts of Gbarpolu and Bomi Counties, respectively.
Its legislation was marred by controversy and its activities marred by protests ever since. Even the Liberian Senate has expressed concern over heightening insecurity relating to working conditions at the concession.
‘I felt bad’
David received US$500 for the loss of his finger from Bao Chico, 100 times his daily rate, in line with the Decent Work Act.
But Bao Chico has not employed David, flouting a memorandum of understanding (MoU) they signed. The document, seen by The DayLight, requires the company to employ him for five years after his recovery. However, five months after his full recovery, he remains a contractor.
“I have [repeatedly protested] and complained to the Labor Commissioner but all in vain,” David said. “Now, I am deciding to hire a lawyer [to plead my case].”
Momo Kromah also lost the little finger on his left hand in a machine accident at Bao Chico. The DayLight/James Harding Giahyue
Like David, Momo Kromah of Baabu-Ta also got injured in late June last year after a Bao Chico machine cut off his left little finger.
Kromah worked as a machine assistant to a Chinese worker at Bao Chico. He alleges his Chinese workmate, who had earlier made two similar mistakes that week, caused the accident.
But unlike David, Kromah claims he received no injury benefits but, like David, has also not been employed.
“I felt bad at the time. It hurts [for] a family man to be working and get injured on the job,” Kromah said in a January interview. “I want for labor to [plead] for me so that I can go back to the job and be employed, according to my career.”
Jusu Sumo, Gbarpolu’s Labor Commissioner, knows of the injuries at Bao Chico and enforces the payment of workers’ benefits.
“When it comes to Augustine David’s issue, the management of Bao Chico is saying that they have their bosses that need to come so that their official employment letter can be prepared…,” Sumo said.
Sumo refuted Kromah’s allegation that Bao Chico did not pay him his injury benefits. He said the injured man was still a contractor with the company. He, however, attributed problems with workers’ benefits because of Bao Chico’s lack of a human resource officer.
Kromah’s activities appeared to support Sumo’s comments and contradict Kromah’s assertions three months ago. Kromah sat in a pickup truck with Chinese miners headed to a Bao Chico mine near Compound-Su. He evaded several attempts for a second interview.
Anthony Jackson’s injury was not as severe as David’s and Kromah’s but was bad enough to scar his left foot. A welder with Bao Chico, Jackson sustained the injury after a welding fume melted an improper footgear he wore, suffering a burn to his left foot.
Anthony Jackson sustained a burn while welding for Bao Chico without proper footgear. The DayLight/James Harding Giahyue
Jackson told The DayLight Bao Chico gave him US$20 for almost four days of work lost because of the January 8 injury although he was being paid US$10 daily.
His ex-workmate Jedrome Biomah, sustained an eye injury due to a damaged goggle. A welding particle passed through the hole in the goggles and fell onto his eye, nearly blinding it.
Boimah, a former welder assistant, said he informed the company about his injury but was downplayed for about a month.
“So, when I was called to sign for my pay, I told them that I could not see anything and that’s how I got their attention,” Boimah told The DayLight.
Boimah took treatment at the JFK for six months, according to hospital documents seen by The DayLight. He alleges that he did not complete the full treatment due to Bao Chico’s failure to foot the bill. He was later dismissed over an alleged fuel theft.
Harris Kollie, a 26-year-old driller, sustained an injury to his neck and stomach. However, his aggressor was not a culvert, a machine, or welding particles. Kollie’s aggressor was a Chinese national.
On January 24, he quarreled with the Chinese man, which turned quickly to insults and then blows. Kollie sustained injuries to his neck and stomach in the ordeal.
A doctor at the Emirates Hospital in Bopolu gave Kollie a prescription, from which he bought medicines that were administered at home.
Harris Kollie was injured in a fight with a Chinese national at Bao Chico. The DayLight/James Harding Giahyue
Bao Chico apologized to residents for the incident, according to James Scott, an elder at Compound-Su Junction. However, residents want the Chinese man who beat Kollie out of the community.
‘Relocate us’
Amid workers’ injuries, residents endure Bao Chico’s noise pollution. Everyone The DayLight interviewed had a story from the roaring sound of explosion and rain of rock particles from the nearby mines.
Perhaps, the most infamous victim is Zoe Freeman. A 50-something-year-old woman, Freeman fell off during one of the company’s explosion exercises and was rushed to the Emirates Hospital in Bopolu. Reporters confirmed that information with a healthcare worker who helped care for her.
“I spent two days in the hospital. I didn’t have a sign of hypotension but doctors said it was shock,” Freeman recalled.
But Freeman’s experience has altered the company’s conduct of explosions. Bao Chico now makes announcements for people to evacuate the area before the explosions. The Monrovia-Bopolu and Bomi-Bopolu highways are closed for half an hour under police supervision.
Zoe Freeman fainted during a Bao Chico mine explosion last year. The DayLight/James Harding Giahyue
“The surrounding villagers, relevant construction personnel, vehicle and equipment should cooperate to withdraw from the warning range in time,” a January announcement read.
But affected communities say that is not enough. They want to be relocated to prevent any future injuries. They have repeatedly called on Bao Chico to relocate them but the company has not done so.
“We told them to relocate us but they said it can’t be done hurriedly. They have to put some measures into place,” Sampson Lamah, the communities’ spokesman, said.
‘Ministers will be involved’
The injuries at Bao Chico derive from the concessioner’s noncompliance with several levels of workplace safety standards. It lacks a workplace legal framework to secure the safety, health and welfare of employees, a violation of the Decent Work Act of Liberia.
Residents endure noise pollution and rock particles due to their closeness to Bao Chico mines in Compound-Su Junction, Gbarpolu County. The DayLight/Derick Snyder
It has violated the law by not establishing a safety and health committee to oversee and address all safety and health needs of workers.
Sumo, the Labor Commissioner, agrees Bao Chico is noncompliant with labor standards.
“It is true that they don’t have [legal framework and established safety and health committee] at all,” Sumo said.
“Workers need to be dressed up properly in protective gear before getting to work to avoid injury,” Sumo added.
“The Labor Ministry will engage Bao Chico on these issues. It has reached to a level now where all of the ministers will be involved and resolve some of these issues”.
Bao Chico’s violation of labor safety standards means it has breached the Minerals and Mining Law of Liberia.
There is no record that Bao Chico drew up its workplace regulations approved by the Ministry of Mines and Energy as required by the law. There is also no record it reported those injuries to the Ministry of Mines, another violation of the law.
Bao Chico did not respond to queries for comments on this story.
The United States Embassy provided funding for this story. The DayLight maintained editorial independence over the story’s content.
