Mining and Plantation Industries Deemed Most Prone to Human Rights Violations
The mining and plantation sectors are considered the business fields most vulnerable to triggering alleged human rights violations. Direct involvement with communities’ living spaces and environmental impacts make these two sectors the most frequently complained about by residents.
Deputy Minister of Human Rights, Mugiyanto, revealed that complaints received by Komnas HAM and the Ministry of Human Rights are dominated by issues involving mining and plantation companies, particularly due to land conflicts and ecological impacts.
“The companies most frequently questioned by residents are indeed related to mining, which is the most common, followed by plantations. The context with residents is what is most prevalent,” Mugiyanto told Media Indonesia in Jakarta on Monday (31/8).
According to Mugiyanto, the risk of human rights violations in the extractive sector is far greater compared to manufacturing, which is generally limited to labour issues.
“In manufacturing companies, factories, there are not many issues. At most, violations relate to labour rights. But modern slavery has the potential to occur in plantations, in palm oil and so forth,” he said.
Given the high potential for such impacts, the Ministry of Human Rights is preparing a human rights due diligence policy. This policy targets not only large companies based on workforce numbers, but also corporations with high levels of human rights and environmental risk.
“A company with, for example, 100 or 200 employees, but which is a mining or plantation company that has serious impacts on the environment and communities, can be assessed and subjected to due diligence,” Mugiyanto explained.
He emphasised that the application of Business and Human Rights principles requires corporations to move beyond mere legal and licensing compliance.
“Business is business, because this is business. But the ethics are respect for human rights, the environment, and surrounding communities. That is what has not been widely complied with,” Mugiyanto stressed.
He assessed that compliance with formal law or holding permits does not guarantee that a company’s operations are free from human rights violations.
“A company can be legal because it has permits. That is why the issue then concerns the permits themselves, the regulations. It could be that the permits are what is wrong,” he said.
Mugiyanto cited the issue of forest and land fires, which are often followed by replanting the land with certain commodities. A comprehensive evaluation needs to be carried out, starting from licensing aspects, land governance, to corporate operational methodologies.
“It is indeed business, but the ethics are what matter. The ethics are respect for human rights, the environment, and surrounding communities. That is what has not been widely complied with,” he said.
Through the human rights due diligence instrument, the Ministry of Human Rights is encouraging early prevention efforts so that corporations can identify risks, minimise adverse impacts, and provide recovery mechanisms for affected communities.
“The essence is that we are all inviting corporations, all companies, to become ethical companies that are human rights based, environmentally friendly and caring,” he concluded.