British oil company Soco International paid $42,000 (£27,000) to a Congolese military officer who allegedly tried to bribe opponents of its oil exploration in Africa’s oldest national park, according to a leading NGO.

Leaked documents released by Global Witness ahead of the company’s annual meeting in London appear to show Soco paid military liaison officer Major Burimbi Feruzi as it sought to search for oil in the Virunga national park.

Feruzi has been caught on camera in the filming of the Leonardo DiCaprio-backed, Oscar-nominated documentary Virunga, offering a $3,000 bribe to a senior park ranger. Company officials have previously denied paying him, saying Feruzi was a government military liaison officer assigned to them.

In a statement to the Guardian, the company said: “Soco has never denied that [it] funded the work of the DRC army in providing a security escort to ensure the personal safety of its staff and contractors during seismic operations, or that Major Feruzi was the DRC army’s military liaison officer assigned to Soco’s security.

“However, we strongly refute any suggestion that this funding was in any way improper or connected with alleged acts of intimidation or violence.



“During our seismic operations in the DRC, we were unable to enter the area without a military escort. The soldiers assigned to Soco’s security escort were always under the full command and control of the DRC army.”



The documents released on Wednesday show a series of cheques from Soco’s local bank account to Feruzi and his signed notes of receipt. In total, the company made payments to the officer of $42,250 in spring 2014.

Soco’s presence in the Unesco-designated world heritage site, which is home to a quarter of the world’s mountain gorilla population, is controversial. The World Heritage Committee asked in 2014 “for a clear and written commitment from Soco, or any other oil company, not to explore nor exploit oil and gas in any world heritage site, including Virunga national park”.

While Soco has said it has finished its seismic studies and will have no further involvement in its exploration block, international critics including Global Witness and the WWF say it has not provided a written commitment to respect Virunga’s current boundaries.

This, say the groups, could be because it is hoping that the Congolese government will redraw the national park boundaries, allowing it to exploit oil outside the protected park.

In response to questions about the cheques and receipts published on Wednesday, Soco deputy CEO, Roger Cagle, told Global Witness that Feruzi had been assigned to Soco following a requirement to have a military liaison in the region.

According to Global Witness, “Cagle said neither Feruzi nor any other soldiers were ever employed by Soco and all orders were provided to them by the DRC [Congolese] government. Any financial arrangements were “above board” and agreed with the Congolese government.”



Global Witness called on authorities in the UK and US to investigate the company’s practices in Virunga. “The company should not be allowed to sell its block before an independent and credible inquiry is undertaken and published, and appropriate action is taken,” said Nathaniel Dyer, head of the Congo team at Global Witness.