The Supreme Court of Zambia on Thursday upheld a 2011 High Court verdict which found Konkola Copper Mines guilty of water pollution which poisoned thousands of Chingola residents in 2006…Today’s judgement delivered some justice to the poisoned victims after eight long years wait, but will not award compensation until an assessment is carried out by the High Court Deputy Registrar. This is likely to reduce the total award since the claimants were only able to show twelve medical reports which they had been able to obtain at the time of the pollution incident. The High Court had previously ruled that these twelve reports were indicative of the damage caused to all residents who had drunk the water, and had heard testimonies from victims who were unable to obtain medical reports from the doctors...Twenty two of the original 2000 claimants have now died, some from liver and kidney damage potentially caused by the poisoned water, but the rest have awaited justice for eight years. In the landmark ruling in 2011 High Court judge Phillip Musonda said he wanted to make an example of KCM for their ‘gross recklessness’. He also stated that the courts have a duty to protect poor communities from the powerful and politically connected. However, Vedanta (KCM) subsequently challenged this decision, claiming they were not responsible for the contamination...