Evénements

Venue: Auditorium A2, Maison de la Paix, Chemin Eugène-Rigot 2, Geneva

The activities of multinational corporations (MNC) in volatile areas entail security risks. On August 16, 2012, local police killed 34 demonstrating miners during a strike at an internationally-owned mine in South Africa. This security incident illustrates that the presence of an extractive MNC can undermine a country’s stability and the security of its population when socio-economic and political interests collide. This event demonstrated an under-appreciation of the security risks associated with mining projects. It also highlighted the importance of multiple actors beyond the firm and the state, from security practitioners (firm employees, law enforcement officials, private security companies, armed forces, judiciary system) to community-level stakeholders (trade unions, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), youth and women’s groups, lawyers, civil society).

The panel will examine conflict in the extractive sector and how good security practices are developed by extractive companies in response to perceived risks

This event will coincide with the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, also held in Geneva during that week. 

Speakers :

• Isabelle Brissette, Manager, Governance, Risk and Use of Force, Group Security and Business Resilience, Rio Tinto
• Stefanie von Hlatky, Associate Professor, Political Studies, Queen’s University, Canada
• Claude Voillat, Economic Advisor, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)

Moderator:

• Achim Wennmann, Senior Researcher, Centre on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding (CCDP) and Executive Coordinator, Geneva Peacebuilding Platform.

This event is organised in collaboration with Rio Tinto, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), and the Centre for International and Defence Policies. 

Registration