Mining-induced displacement and resettlement: social problem and human rights issue

Abstract

Mining is currently not a statistically significant category of development-induced displacement. Nevertheless, the social costs of exploitation are great, and that is why the topic is worthy of a wider and more profound scientific analysis. The first displacement caused by mining dates back to the late nineteenth century. As pointed out by Walter Fernandes, in the Indian region of Jarkhand alone, mining has led to the displacement of 2.55 million people. Contrary to the opinions of some specialists, the problem of mining-induced displacement and resettlement is a global problem, occurring on all continents. Countries with particularly large-scale MIDR include: India, China, many African countries (e.g. Ghana, Botswana), and even Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. The problem of forced displacement is also a consequence of open-pit coal mining in European countries like Germany and Poland. Although mining-induced displacement is a global phenomenon, problems experienced by the displacees in many parts of the world differ greatly. The largest portion of the displacement is caused by open-pit mining (associated with the extraction of lignite, copper, and diamonds).