Rio Tinto investors have voted against giving big bonuses to top executives at the company’s AGM.
This decision follows the mining company’s destruction of sacred Aboriginal caves at the Juukan Gorge in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, all for an iron-ore mine.
The 46,000 year old sites were sacred to the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people. Their destruction was not illegal, but nevertheless sparked global outrage, a federal parliamentary inquiry, and planned changes to cultural heritage laws.
The chief executive, Jean-Sebastien Jacques, was forced to resign, along with two other executives. A spokesperson for the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura People has said they are heartened by the vote.