On 27 August 2007 the UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, Miloon Kothari, issued the following statement on the Merowe dam in Sudan: "...I continue to receive disturbing reports that large-scale forced evictions may be imminent in the Merowe area...Last year, thousands of people in the Merowe area were relocated in similar circumstances which temporarily left them without food or shelter, and some remain homeless...I urge the companies involved in the projects, such as Harbin...Lahmeyer...and Alstom...to put a halt to their activities until a full and impartial assessment of the impact on the human rights of the population is made....I also strongly encourage that States...ensure that the work of their national companies does not -directly or indirectly- negatively impact the human rights of the affected people."  Full statement available here

Business & Human Rights Resource Centre invited the three companies to respond:

Alstom response [DOC], 10 Sep 2007

Harbin response [DOC] 10 Oct 2007

Lahmeyer response [DOC], 3 Sep 2007

Comments on Lahmeyer's response [DOC], from Ali Askouri, Leadership Office of Hamdab Affected People, and members of the Executive Committee of the Manasir communities affected by the Merowe Dam, Sudan, 13 Sep 2007

Lahmeyer's initial response to Ali Askouri & others [DOC], 19 Sep 2007

Photographs of the resettlement programme, provided by Lahmeyer [PDF] 17 Oct 2007