Oil firm accused in report on abuse in Africa

AN EDINBURGH oil firm has been accused of links to human rights abuses in Africa, a new report has said.

Cairn Energy is named in a report by global poverty charity War On Want as one of several British companies guilty of a “new colonial invasion”, leaving a trail of “social, environmental and human rights abuses in their wake”.

The report, called the New Colonialism: Britain’s Scramble For Africa’s Energy And Mineral Resources, claims that as many as 101 companies listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) have mining operations in Africa and control resources worth in excess of $1 trillion.

Cairn Energy is criticised specifically because of its plans to explore for gas and oil in Western Sahara, a disputed territory in northwest Africa, bordered by Morocco.

Morocco invaded Western Sahara in 1975, when it expelled much of the population by force, many to camps in the Algerian desert where 165,000 refugees still live.

War On Want say by doing deals with the Moroccan government, it is complicit in the illegal and violent occupation of Western Sahara.

Cairn said they have no current operations in the region and have a commitment to working with and consulting people living near their wells.

A spokesman for Cairn Energy reportedly said: “Cairn participated in one exploration well offshore Western Sahara two years ago, which was unsuccessful, and we have no current operations in the region.

“Cairn have always acted in accordance with international law.”