Guinea: Beny Steinmetz sues Global Witness

Israeli diamond magnate Beny Steinmetz and three fellow directors of his Guernsey-registered BSG Resources (BSGR) have filed a damages claim against London-based Global Witness at London’s High Court over violations of the Data Protection Act (DPA), following a decision by the UK Information Commissioner. They say that the NGO’s refusal to disclose personal information obtained during a long-running investigation of BSGR’s acquisition of mining rights in Guinea breaches their human and data protection rights. The dispute centres on BSGR’s controversial 2008 acquisition of the Simandou iron ore deposit in south-eastern Guinea, the largest undeveloped reserve in the world.