Communities Demand Parliamentary Action Over Destructive Mining in Boterekwa, Shurugwi
Harare, Zimbabwe – The Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG) formally submitted a petition to the Parliament of Zimbabwe calling for urgent intervention in response to escalating environmental destruction, public health risks, and human rights violations linked to mining activities in Boterekwa, Shurugwi.
The petition, grounded in Sections 59 and 149 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, reflects the voices and lived experiences of affected communities who continue to bear the brunt of unregulated and harmful extractive practices.
Despite the presence of regulatory authorities, including the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development and the Environmental Management Agency, mining operations in the area have reportedly failed to comply with environmental and legal standards. Communities have raised serious concerns, including:
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- Severe environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity
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- Hazardous dust pollution causing respiratory illnesses
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- Unsafe use of cyanide and toxic chemicals
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- Contamination of water sources such as the Mutevekwi River with heavy metals
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- Structural damage to homes due to mining blasts
“These violations are not just environmental, they are a direct assault on community dignity, health, and livelihoods,” said CNRG. “The Constitution is clear: natural resources must benefit the people, not harm them.”
The petitioners beseech the Parliament of Zimbabwe to exercise its oversight role, on administrative bodies and ministries charged with monitoring and evaluating the implementation of mining development policies; regulating the management of the environment and promoting, coordinating, and monitoring the protection of the environment; and ensure the rampant unsafe mining practices taking place at Boterekwa mountain range in Shurugwi.
The petition calls on Parliament to:
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- Investigate the reported violations and take corrective action
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- Ensure mining companies comply with environmental and cultural protection laws
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- Compel compensation for affected households
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- Strengthen regulation of artisanal mining
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- Implement urgent measures to protect public health and the environment
CNRG emphasizes that this petition is part of a broader push to ensure accountability, transparency, and justice in Zimbabwe’s extractive sector. The organization urges Parliament to exercise its constitutional oversight role decisively and in the public interest.
About CNRG:
The Centre for Natural Resource Governance is a Zimbabwean civil society organization dedicated to promoting equitable, transparent, and sustainable management of natural resources while defending the rights of affected communities. CNRG, works to defend the rights of communities affected by extractive industries. This is response to how extractive industries expose rural communities to an avalanche of rights violations which include land and water grabbing, water and air pollution, and direct violence by a combined force of state and corporate power.
For more details, please contact.
Centre for Natural Resource Governance
(CNRG) Information Department,
Email: info@cnrgzim.org
Cell: +263 786 913 423
Twitter: @CNRG_ZIM
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cnrgzim
Website: https://cnrgzim.org/