Deal #1999 Version #56587

Community leaders say the land was taken from them illegally and that they never gave their consent for Feronia to operate there and did not agree to the negotiated terms. Community members wish to start the negotiation phase with the company. On March 8, 2015, over 60 customary chiefs and other community leaders gathered in the town of Mozité to call for the resolution of their longstanding grievances against Feronia. In late October/early November representatives from the company visited the local communities and heard their concerns.

The local community state that the land was illegally taken from them and reject the project. The communities claim that the title deeds for the land are falsified to represent Feronia as the legal owners. One report states that the community suffer from intimidation from the police if they protest against the project. The company response to intimidation is that the company has a whistleblower policy in place and is developing a community grievance mechanism. The community is fighting back, claiming their lands back. In October 2015, 12 leaders from communities affected by the plantations met in Kampala to discuss actions which can be taken in order to get their land back. NGO's and civil society organizations were also at the meeting. The leaders established a new alliance of communities affected by Feronia. on May 24 and 25, 2018, the Lokutu people protested vigorously against the recent cases of abuse committed by the new armed security company TANGANYIKA. peace agreements had been signed in August 2017. However, the PHC - FERONIA had unilaterally renounced the implementation of these agreements. Conflict persists in 2021 after four community members were arrested during a march protesting against the new boss Mr Mpinga.

Violence flared up again in March 2019 where community protested against the expansion of plantations onto their land and unpaid wages. Police were brought in and live bullets were flying around. Congolese communities affected by the palm oil business were forcibly displaced from “over 100,000 hectares of foreign controlled oil palm plantations established on their ancestral land

The company prevents local people from raising livestock or farming within the company's concession, even on lands that the company has abandoned. Community members caught by company guards carrying just a few nuts fallen from the oil palms are fined or, in many cases, whipped, hand cuffed and taken to the nearest prison. One report states that the number of displaced villagers are 45000.

Mwingi community denounced Feronia's practice of abandoning polluting industrial waste in their village of Yalifombo. Workers in the plantations have been exposed to dangerous pesticides, which causes serious health problems, Feronia company has taken all the topsoil, to the point where the community is left without land to cultivate. In parts of the three plantations, residents said their drinking water has been contaminated by PHC activities. A 2019 Human Rights Watch report detailed how Feronia had abused the rights of local communities this includes routinely dumping untreated industrial waste, which contaminated a major supply of local drinking water, amongst others.It was also reported that company security staff “forcefully repressed opposition through murder, unlawful detention, beatings and torture” As the legal cases unfold, violence perpetrated by PHC plantation security guards has continued unabated. On February 15, 2021, Blaise Mokwe, a 33-year old villager, was falsely accused of stealing palm fruit from the plantation and beaten by PHC security guards. He died from his injuries a few days later. The same month, 20-year old Efolafola Nisoni Manu and another young man were accused of stealing plastic chairs from the plantation by security guards who reportedly sent soldiers to arrest them. While being transferred to prison in a PHC-owned motorized canoe, the two young men were allegedly handcuffed and beaten. According to local sources, Efolafola Nisoni Manu was then thrown into the water and killed.

Unilever originally promised to hand one plantation out of every three back to the community.

No compensation has been paid to date (2015). Communities are demanding that compensation occurs.

Feronia announced at the end of 2014 that it wanted to "engage with local communities in the development of new facilities meet their daily needs". To date the communities have not seen any of the stated benefits. US$3.6m has been ring-fenced to support the company to strengthen business standards and enhance community facilities -- this includes: refurbishment of the housing and sanitation available to workers; a road maintenance program to update the infrastructure on Feronia land that all local people can use; appointing new health & safety staff and community relations managers; undertaking a comprehensive study of the needs of workers and the local community; a new grievance procedure for workers and community; and land mapping to clearly mark out where the company's land extends. Community homes, schools, clinics and roads are in awful condition, and contrary to what Feronia maintains, no newinfrastructureorworker homes havebeen built. The company signed a specification with the customary chiefs of these territories of Tshopo on 22 November 2017 regarding their socio-economic projects.

Yalifombo believed that, according to the timetable of Feronia's promises, the school and the dispensary should already be built. "They said that they will build roads, hospitals ... It's been 2 or 3 years now and after Feronia has done nothing about these things, "says Pierre Kumyele.

The local communities are requesting the mediation of DEG (German development bank which co-finances Feronia) to find a real solution to the conflict between communities and this multinational. The nine communities filed their complaint with the DEG's complaints mechanism on Monday, November 5, 2018. The nine communities are being represented by the Congolese NGO RIAO-RDC, and are supported by an alliance of international organisations and NGOs from countries with development banks involved in financing Feronia