Ontario Court Shuts Door on Appeal Against Barrick Gold Over Tanzania Mine Human Rights Claims

An Ontario court has dismissed an appeal seeking to revive a lawsuit against Barrick Gold Corporation over alleged human rights abuses at its North Mara gold mine in Tanzania. The decision represents a significant legal setback for the plaintiffs, who accused Barrick's local subsidiary of complicity in killings and violent assaults by Tanzanian police and security forces at the mine site between 2014 and 2019. The court's ruling effectively upholds a lower court's 2023 decision that found Ontario was not the proper jurisdiction for the case, arguing the claims were more appropriately heard in Tanzania.

The lawsuit, filed by a group of Tanzanian villagers, alleged that security personnel employed by Barrick's subsidiary, Acacia Mining (now Barrick Tanzania), were involved in a series of violent incidents, including shootings and beatings, resulting in deaths and serious injuries. Barrick has consistently denied liability, maintaining that the incidents involved state police and that the company has implemented reforms. The appeal dismissal reinforces the high jurisdictional bar for holding multinational parent companies accountable in Canadian courts for alleged overseas misconduct of their subsidiaries.

This ruling intensifies scrutiny on the legal avenues available to victims of alleged corporate human rights abuses abroad. It places pressure on the plaintiffs to pursue their claims in Tanzania, where they may face different legal and procedural hurdles. For Barrick, while the Ontario case is closed, the underlying allegations and ongoing operational challenges at North Mara continue to pose reputational and operational risks, keeping the mine's security practices and community relations under a persistent international spotlight.