KillerMittal: The Name Liberians Gave to Corporate Abuse, Exploitation and Neglect

In Liberia, names carry weight. They reflect truth, pain, and memory. So, when communities across Grand Bassa and Nimba counties began calling ArcelorMittal “KillerMittal,” it wasn’t a slogan—it is a verdict. A name born not from rumor, but from grief. From lived experience. From the unbearable silence that follows preventable death.

This name echoes through the corridors of mourning—from the tragic death of Trokon G. Sayweh, struck by an ArcelorMittal train near Kilometer 16, to the loss of Macdonald P.S. Dolo and Justin Mars, rail workers killed in a collision that should never have happened. It reverberates through the homes of hundreds of victims, whose lives were cut short or shattered by a company that treats safety as an afterthought and accountability as optional.

Each year, more than 20 people are killed in train-related accidents tied to ArcelorMittal’s operations. These deaths are not statistical noise. They are fathers, mothers, children, workers—lives extinguished by a corporation that refuses to invest in basic safety infrastructure. No warning systems. No pedestrian crossings. No community consultation. No accountability. ArcelorMittal Liberia operates one of the most profitable concessions in the country, yet its railway slices through vulnerable communities with impunity. Residents have pleaded for years for protective measures—barriers, signage, safe walkways. Instead, they’ve received silence, spin, and settlements that bury truth beneath paperwork. The company’s response to tragedy is often slow, inhumane, and dismissive. Families are left to pay hospital bills, donate blood, and beg for funeral support while executives issue press releases calling the deceased “committed staff.” That’s not compassion—it’s mockery.

The cruelty doesn’t end with the tracks. Workers injured on the job are routinely denied urgent medical leave. Survivors are pressured to sign waivers before receiving basic benefits. Communities near mining sites report environmental degradation, unsafe housing, and broken promises of development. ArcelorMittal’s footprint in Liberia is not just physical—it’s psychological, economic, and spiritual.

The Liberian government must stop shielding concession giants and start enforcing the laws meant to protect its people. The Ministry of Labor, the Legislature, and the Judiciary must treat these deaths not as accidents, but as corporate crimes. And the international community must recognize that ArcelorMittal’s operations in Liberia are not just economically extractive—they are morally corrosive.

“KillerMittal” is not just a nickname. It is a warning. A reckoning. A call to action.

We will not stop until every victim is named, every abuse exposed, and every life honored with justice. Silence is no longer an option. Accountability is overdue. And the world must understand when profit comes at the cost of human life, it is not development—it is devastation.