“It’s something that I am deeply,deeply apologetic for,and something that is a deep stain on our history that we have to deal with,” Barton said.
Barton was appointed Rio Tinto’s chairman at its annual shareholder meeting last year after his predecessor,Simon Thompson,stood down over the Juukan Gorge disaster.
Rio Tinto’s decision to blast through the site,although legally sanctioned,went against the wishes of its traditional owners,who said they were not aware of the company’s intention to destroy the site until it was too late for the explosive charges to be removed. It unleashed global condemnation,triggered a federal parliamentary inquiry and plunged the mining giant into crisis.
An uprising by Rio Tinto’s biggest shareholders in Australia and Britain eventually forced the resignations of its former chief executive,Jean-Sebastien Jacques,other executives and members of the board.
Although Rio Tintoclaimed it believed it had the traditional owners’ consent until it was too late to stop the blast safely,the miner has issued public apologies and has acknowledged failures in its communication that could have prevented the debacle.
Barton and Rio Tinto’s new chief executive,Jakob Stausholm,have made restoring trust with First Nations communities and improving cultural heritage processes top priorities,and have travelled to the Pilbara to meet the traditional owners,the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) people.