The villagers led by George Makanjera and Judgmore Chibanda filed an
urgent chamber application on 30 June 2023 at Mutoko Magistrates
Court, seeking an order to interdict the Chinese mining company from
prospecting, conducting exploration or any form of mining activity in
four villages in Mutoko namely Moyosvi, Chibanda, Gumbeze and Kadore.
The villagers, who were represented by Tinashe Chinopfukutwa and
Kelvin Kabaya of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, also asked the
court to order Labenmon Investments to remove some pegs which it had
installed in the four villages within 24 hours. Apart from Labenmon
Investments, the villagers also listed Mines and Mining Development
Minister Hon. Winston Chitando, Environmental Management Agency and
Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency as respondents.
The villagers resorted to taking legal action against Labenmon
Investments after the Chinese mining company installed some pegs on
about 150 hectares of land covering grazing pastures, cultivation and
places of traditional and cultural significance in the four villages.
At one time, the mining company was fined a beast of cattle by a local
traditional leader for visiting and pegging the sacred areas without
notifying him or obtaining his approval.
Despite not holding the required paperwork, Labenmon Investments,
proceeded to bulldoze its way into the area to begin operations that
were threatening the livelihoods of dozens of families.
Chinopfukutwa and Kabaya protested in court that some Labenmon
Investments employees had in May 2023 camped on the villagers’ land
and had told them that they wanted to drill boreholes and inspect
their pegs as they had invested in purchasing the mining claims to
mine in the villages.
However, the villagers challenged them to produce documentation to
prove their claims and this exposed the illegalities behind the mining
scheme as the company’s representatives produced a copy of a
certificate of registration after transfer of mining claims in respect
of claims named Mudzonga located some 3.5 kilometres east of
Bandamakara School, a Zimbabwe Investment Development Agency (ZIDA)
licence issued on 27 February 2023 and a map for the mining project in
Mudzonga.
They also produced correspondence from the Environmental Management
Agency dated 13 May 2023, in which the company was advised to carry
out a full Environmental Impact Assessment.
On Wednesday 26 July 2023, Mutoko Senior Magistrate Terrence Mashaire
brought relief to the Mutoko villagers after ordering Labenmon
Investments not to prospect, conduct exploration or any form of mining
activity in the entirety of Moyosvi, Chibanda, Gumbeze and Kadore
villages without following due process and the law.
Magistrate Mashaire ordered Labenmon Investments to remove its pegs
installed around Moyosvi, Chibanda, Gumbeze and Kadore villages within
24 hours and also ruled that in the event that the Chinese mining
company does not comply with his order of removing pegs in the
villagers’ land, the Messenger of Court would be authorised to remove
the pegs from their fields.
Magistrate Mashaire noted that the villagers took action upon
realising that their environment was being threatened and said they
have a constitutional right to enjoy use of their property and defend
it against invasion as Labenmon Investments’ presence on their land is
inconsistent with the law.
The Magistrate ruled that the Chinese mining company had not been
certified or authorised to carryout mining operations in the four
villages and said for Labenmon Investments to want to carry out mining
activities without obtaining the relevant approvals and without
consulting the villagers would be a violation of Zimbabwean laws
governing the protection of the environment together with people
residing in the four villages.