In Henri Nouwen’s ‘The Wounded Healer’, Nouwen looks at ministry in a dislocated and fragmented world and at nuclear man’s [he apologises for the male-dominated language] loss of faith in technology. In technology’s power to create new life also lies the potential for self-destruction by nuclear or chemical warfare or by pollution and contamination. Nuclear man can not only destroy life but also the possibility of rebirth. It is into this situation in the Zambian uranium mining industry that the Council of Churches of Zambia is speaking.
Earlier this month Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) published its draft policy on uranium mining in Zambia suggesting how Zambia might use best practices from elsewhere to regulate its exploration, mining, processing, marketing and transportation and thereby establish a transparent, well- functioning and balanced uranium mining industry in Zambia.
The mining industry plays a crucial role in the Zambian economy and it is the recent boom there that moved Zambia from least developed to supposedly lower middle-income status according to the World Bank earlier this year.
An area of concern for many people here is the multinational-controlled uranium mining companies that have recently acquired uranium exploration concessions.
In order to protect people, the flora and fauna and the environment the report recommends training for those regulating the industry and for those monitoring the health of workers in the uranium industry.
There is a need to provide sustainable livelihoods that do not threaten the well-being of the workers or the people living in the area but these jobs should contribute to genuine poverty eradication through being economically sustainable. While uranium exploitation can bring benefits to communities in job creation, foreign exchange earnings and overall economic growth, there is also a need to protect lives and the environment.
Uranium is hazardous in water, food and air that we all drink, eat and breathe, to say nothing about its controversial use as a fuel for energy or the other immoral uses it is put to in weaponry.
The Report advocates better conditions of service for the local workers, and urges investors to use their social corporate responsibility to benefit the people in the areas they operate in and to do so but not just out of guilt, because of the considerable profits they were making.
CCZ Secretary General, Rev Suzanne Matale, said the Church, as the body of Christ, was concerned that the people to whom God had given the resources were being short-changed. She believed that the Church had a God-given mandate to be stewards of the earth, take care of one another and ensure life in abundance for all. CCZ was not against investment, but wanted to ensure that locals lived in a safe environment and benefited from the investment.
Reverend Matale said CCZ had commissioned a study on uranium mining in Zambia in early 2010 and that the findings of that study were published in a report, Prosperity unto Death: Is Zambia ready for Uranium mining? This can be googled
Rev Matale said for the Church there was no better way to preach the gospel than to act as a voice for the voiceless poor and clearly articulate their voices on issues that affected their livelihoods and put their lives in jeopardy, coupled with robbing them of their dignity.
"We believe that we have a God-given mandate to be stewards of the earth, to take care of one another and ensure life in abundance for all.” she said.
And on that uplifting note we wish you all the compliments of the season as we celebrate the Incarnation and look back with thanksgiving across the year which is passing from us now. May we in the words of Psalm 90, in the coming year, be taught to count our days and gain a wise heart. May the beauty of the Lord, Our God, be upon us and may he prosper and establish the work of our hands. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment