00:33
In Metlaoui, in central Tunisia, trucks 10 metres high shift tonnes of earth every day. It contains a precious ore: phosphate.

00:51
Selim: This truck weighs 520 tonnes. I can move 170 tonnes of phosphate per trip. Come on, we'll load up now. With God's blessing, everything will be fine.

01:14
Without phosphate, there would be no cosmetics, detergents, wine, or fertilizer. This essential ore effectively feeds the planet.

01:31
The vital resource is responsible for much of Tunisia's wealth - alone accounting for more than 10% of the country's exports. But while the State has certainly tapped into the region's assets, it has never properly developed the land. In spite of promised benefits, the local residents have been all but forgotten.


01:56
Metlaoui is situated in a dry and dusty valley on the edge of a desert, 400 miles southwest of the capital. It is Tunisia's main mining centre - a dormitory town founded in the late 19th century following the discovery of phosphate here by a French geologist.

02:17
Selim is 42 years old. He is a miner, like his father and grandfather before him.

02:32
Every day he thanks God for his work.

02:39
The ore is the region's only resource; the mine, the only way to make a living.

02:52
It's time to get ready. Out in the pit, conditions are harsh.

02:59
Selim: On-site, it is very cold at night. Abnormally cold. And with the humidity, it feels even colder. When the mist comes down, you can't see anything. Zero visibility. You only think about one thing: finishing, and going home. Come on, it's time to go.

03:31
The mine is located on the other side of town. There is no public transport, the roads are riddled with potholes, and the landscape is defined by industrial infrastructure.

03:42
Factories nestle among houses. Here, life revolves around ore.


04:04
The deposit is owned by the GAFSA Phosphate Company, a State-sponsored corporation that reigns over the region. Nothing is done without its authorization - from the extraction of the ore, to the production of fertilizers.

04:18
On this site, just over 100 workers like Selim are contracted full-time. Around here, the mine is the only employer. But times have changed since the early 1980s, when the company could guarantee 100% employment in the area. Back then, it supported 15,000 jobs. Now, the figure is less than a third of that. The underground mines have closed, with all extraction now taking place in open pits. And the process is fully mechanised.

04:46
Selim is a truck-driver. He drives a vehicle engineered specifically for this type of quarry. The cost - several hundred thousand euros. Before leaving, he takes one last look at the machine.

05:01
Selim: If you start early enough, you can do 35 to 50 trips. If the drop-off is nearby and the earth is soft, you could manage 50. Today, if we could do 25 or 30 trips, that would be good.

05:22
Selim earns 700 euros a month, excluding bonuses: three times the average wage in Tunisia. He is responsible for transporting the crude phosphate to the other side of the mine, where it is cleaned. The distances are short, but it is tiring work. Selim drives an average of 30 kilometres a day, on tracks that are often slippery and hazardous.

05:45
Selim: Safety? We don't know that word here. In 2006 I had an accident. Part of the mound gave way just as I was unloading. I fell 150 metres.

06:07
The result: several broken ribs, a fractured skull, and a damaged spine. But after 8 months in hospital, Selim headed straight back to the mine - his job too sought-after to take more time off. Even if it exposes him to another daily risk: dust.

06:27
To release the phosphate buried under layers of limestone, explosives are used.

06:35
Whenever a new deposit is identified, the area is locked-down, and charges are planted in the rock - something that happens several times a week.


06:43
Mohamed Yahya: We're just in the middle of drilling. We fill the holes with explosives, and then make the ground shake!

06:56
Phosphate is a composite of petrified fish bones and other marine animals. Millions of years ago, the sea covered southern Tunisia. As it retreated, it left behind this mineral treasure.

(Explosion)

07:15
These detonations can be heard for miles, and are often the cause of landslides. But more dangerous still, they emit plumes of toxic dust containing uranium, chromium, and fluorine that engulf the vicinity, and suffocate the surrounding villages.

07:38
A fine - and often wet - dust, it gets everywhere. Even into the workers' cabins. Nothing can stop it. It is the scourge of the miners, who have no way of protecting themselves.

08:03
Selim finishes work in a daze.

08:17
The only succour offered by the company: cartons of milk.

08:23
Selim: This dust here - you breathe it in every day. How do you cope with it? Milk. That's our day-to-day food, and that's what we use to fight it. It's all we can do.

08:44
Selim is able to go home. But for other workers, the day is just beginning. The quarrying never stops. For more than a century, production has been continually on the increase, with the company recording considerable profits - 500 million euros in 2010. Notwithstanding, the local people have seen none of it.

09:13
In its early days, the company itself ran the local civic services. Water, electricity, education. But by the late 1980s, it had ceased all such provision, and the State has never taken over responsibility.

09:34
In Metlaoui, the municipal administration is running on empty and 30% of residents are out of work. The town is a casualty of industrialization, and the people here are angry.

09:45
Abdeljelil Bedoui - Economist: There is generally poor governance. I want to give you an example. In the years 2006-2010, there was a coexistence between opulence and prosperity on the one hand, and a growing misery on the other. During this period, the global price of phosphate skyrocketed - not only the price of crude phosphate, but of everything derived from phosphate as well. Thus, the GAFSA corporation experienced a boom - a ‘fat cow' period, as they say. But this went hand-in-hand with a period of extreme privation in the region. The highest unemployment rate in the country is in the mining area.

(Social Struggles: Redeyef, 2008)

10:45
In January 2008, miners took to the streets to protest the hiring practices of the phosphate company. The local people joined them, demanding social and economic initiatives for the region - an unprecedented uprising in a country ruled with an iron fist by the Ben Ali regime. The movement was to have an explosive effect. Adnan Hajjiwas in charge of Tunisia's largest trade union at the time, the UGTT. He and his members led the revolt. It would be brutally suppressed, but the seeds of the Arab Spring had been sown.

11:30
Hajji Adnane: This is where it all began in 2008. This photo shows the stand-off between young people and the police. These are all memories that will stay with me forever. Precious. It is a clear warning to anyone who tries to ignore the facts. The revolt of 2008 was the very beginning of the revolution.

12:06
Whenever I look at these photos, I am moved to tears. When I think of what all these people and all of their families had to endure - the humiliation, the repression they suffered - you have to ask yourself where we are now. That was the first tremor that really shook the power of Ben Ali - at a time when the whole world was silent, when nobody would say a word.

(Coffee for the unemployed)

12:51
Six years and one revolution later, for people here, nothing has changed. And those who are paying the price are the so-called ‘children of the Arab Spring'. For them, the future is bleak. One in two young people are unemployed.

13:04
Mukhtar Kraymia: The revolution changed nothing for us. Look at the conditions we're living in! We don't even have enough to buy bread for dinner. We're all unemployed. God knows what we're going through. They go on at us, saying this and that, and we say ‘yeah, yeah, yeah, but there's nothing here!' The main need in these parts is jobs. If they want to know what kind of state we're living in, they should come here and see for themselves. We need major improvements. Just look at the roads, look at the health clinics. Even the doctors - if you ask them to move to Metlaoui, they say ‘I'm absolutely not setting foot in that area.' We've got nowhere to go, nothing to do - no beach or amusement park. All we have is phosphate.

13:39
And in addition to its dismal economic legacy, the phosphate operation is leaving another mark on the health of the region: pollution.

Every day, hundreds of tonnes of unrefined ore pass through these cleaning plants. Here, enormous centrifuges spin at full speed to rid the phosphate of its radioactive components - such as cadmium and uranium.

Worker: Hello! How are you doing?
Worker 2: The others are inside.
Worker: Yep. Come on, let's go.

04:17
Only a handful of workers are required to operate the machinery.


(People talking, cleaning plant control panel)

14:22
This button here, how many times do you think you've pressed it in total?
At least ten times a day.
You do the maths! Ten times a day since the early 70s! Look at this computer. What kind of computer is that big nowadays? It's a load of junk. It needs replacing. In fact, the whole system needs reviewing, with a proper budget. The entire plant needs changing!

14:49
A number of turbines are worn-out, and many of the filters are out of date - despite the process being a critical step in the production line. The plant consumes millions of cubic metres of ground water, drawn from the surrounding subsoil.

15:02
Worker with moustache: It uses 100 litres of water per second, taken from the water table. That enables us to work round the clock, 24/7.

15:18
And round the clock, the plant discharges heavily polluted water back into the ground. It contains the toxic residues separated from the ore.

15:48
The authorities have never sought to provide the region with appropriate water treatment facilities.

15:55
Abdeljelil Bedoui - Economist: You have been to the area, you have seen the cleaning plants right in the middle of town! You have seen the mountains of waste, and the riverbeds clogged up by thick layers of chemicals produced by the cleaning plants. And this has led to a deterioration in the flora of a region where pastureland is so important for livestock. Pollution is everywhere. Not to mention the health implications.

(Selim and his mother)


16:41
Selim visits his mother every day to bring her food and medication. Now 60 years old, she has been bedridden for several years.

Selim: Salaam.

16:56
She is paralysed.

Selim: Mother dear. My poor mum, I'm late today. Come on, mum.

17:11
Selim's mother suffers from osteoporosis - a bone disease that can be caused by the toxic phosphate particles present in the water and the air.

17:21
Selim: She has undergone five operations. She can no longer walk. She can only sleep on one side. She has bone problems. Obviously, frail people like my mother - and particularly women - have problems on account of the pollution. And above all, water pollution. The running water is very bad here. It is only used for building or household chores.

17:55
Selim's mother receives no help from the State. The responsibility for her daily care falls to her sons.

18:03
Selim: You see. She is the one who gives me strength everyday. You want another one? Can I go now, mum? Is there anything else you need?

Mother: You're leaving? Stay a little while longer. Give me 500 Milim. God bless you.

18:37
Selim: She always says that when I give her money. OK mum, I'm leaving.

Mother: God bless you.

19:05
In Metlaoui, her situation is not uncommon. Here, 60% of the population suffers from problems related to pollution - such as lung cancer, silicosis, and cardiovascular diseases. The average is much higher than in the rest of the country. But the subject is taboo. The few studies that have been done have never been published.

Nurse: Set yourself down there.

19:26
Mohamed is an electrician. He has worked in a cleaning plant for 32 years. He suffers from dizziness.

Mohamed: Whenever I go into the plant, I start to feel unwell. I get dizzy. And there's dust too. When I was younger, it never used to bother me. But now, with age, it's becoming really difficult.

(Mohamed talking to doctor)

Hello doctor
Hello, how are you?
Fine, I suppose. In a little discomfort.

20:03
Mohamed Mensia is GAFSA's official doctor. Once a year, he gives a check-up to each employee.

20:20
Doctor: Your blood pressure is a little high. Just rest for half an hour, and we'll take it again.

20:28
In 12 years of practice, he has never recorded any link between his patients' illnesses and the level of pollution.

Doctor: That's fine.

20:44
Mohamed Mensia - Company Doctor: People think there are so many serious illnesses in the mining area - cancer among them. But to date, not a single scientific study has corroborated this. For information to be reliable, it must be based on fact.

21:07
Life expectancy in the mining area is considerably lower than in the rest of Tunisia. In phosphate country, people die young.

21:17
Abdelsalem heads an environmental organisation.

Abdelsalem: Look, there. He's walking over the phosphate mound.

21:29
It seeks to raise awareness of the dangers of pollution in the local community.

Abdelsalem: Come on... Do you often play on these mounds?
Girl: Sometimes...
Abdelsalem: Be careful, sweetheart. That could make you very, very sick. Stop playing here.

21:49
These children, who have made a playground out of contaminated slag heaps, are most at risk.

21:55
Abdelsalem: Hello. Come with us. Is this your son?
Woman: Yes, he's my son.
Abdelsalem: You know it's dangerous for him to play here? You know that breathing in the phosphate can lead to respiratory problems? And skin diseases?
Woman: Yes, it's true. It's happened to many children - even at birth. My son - this one here - I had to go to hospital with him. He was in there for 40 days. He had bronchitis. That can only have come from the phosphate and waste bins.
Abdelsalem: Then, since you're aware of this, tell him to come down!
Woman: But he likes playing up there. Especially since his dad told him that he used to do the same. He wants to be like his dad.
Abdelsalem: But you live here, and phosphate is causing you harm! Why are you not up in arms? Go and protest, and say ‘We don't want it anymore!'
Woman: But who would we say it to?
Abdelsalem: Who? To the phosphate company, of course! To GAFSA.
Woman: Yes, I know. My husband works for them.
Abdelsalem: Well he shouldn't any longer.

23:11
The residents here have high expectations of the new government. But for Tunis, the priorities lie elsewhere. In the mining region, there is growing discontent. And this time, the people have nothing to lose.

23:27
This morning, the mine is at a standstill. Those out of work have closed off the quarry.

23:35
Mongi Torch: Not a single vehicle should move, and not a single handful of ore should leave until everything is resolved. Listen, brothers, I respect you all.
Site Foreman: OK, speak calmly. We're listening.
Mongi Torch: We went to see them, and told them calmly that all six of us are out of work, and all six of us are married, and not one of us was hired! My father carried this mountain on his back! I went all the way to Tunis. I took the train, and had to dodge the fare. Am I at an age where I should have to do that? In Tunis, they told me, ‘Go back, it's fine, we'll fix it.' And now they're hiring in transport. Why not me? Am I not a human being as well? Am I not a child of the mines too? A child of phosphate too? Now, I am blocking the production of phosphate. I am blocking the economy. Now they will have to come and see me here.

24:24
Selim: This is a reasonable demand. He says he's hungry. He needs something to eat. Our new constitution should guarantee dignity and employment. These people without jobs are our brothers, our friends. He is a friend. We went to school together. Am I supposed to oppose him all of a sudden?

24:54
The protest movement has spread through the region like wildfire. Now, the mines are blockaded every other day. According to GAFSA's CEO, it is the responsibility of the State to meet the demands of a desperate population.



25:09
Nejib Mrabet (CEO): The demand is a perfectly legitimate one - asking for jobs. But it is not the responsibility of the phosphate and chemical group to provide them. Rather, local and regional authorities must address the problem.

25:24
For the company, the financial impact has been enormous. Cumulative losses since 2011 amount to 800 million euros. In Gabes, in the east of the country, fertilizer production has all but shut down, and there is now only one convoy of ore leaving the quarry every day. Before, there had been six.

25:46
Some major buyers have even started looking elsewhere - to Morocco and Saudi Arabia. But the Tunisian company has somehow managed to retain the majority of its clients: this load of 5,000 tonnes of fertilizer, for example, is destined for France.

26:07
In failing to develop the phosphate-rich region, the Tunisian government has endangered its flagship industry. A recovery plan is expected soon - and this time, the children of the mines hope not to be forgotten.