Rio Tinto investors have given the miner a slap in the face at the company’s annual general meeting in Perth by voting against big bonuses for top executives to protest the destruction of sacred Aboriginal caves at the Juukan Gorge.

Key points: 60 per cent of Rio Tinto investors vote against executive pay plans after destruction of ancient caves

Traditional owners of Juukan Gorge say they are heartened and not surprised by the protest vote 

Rio Tinto boss says progress is being made in negotiations over protection of cultural heritage

It was the big miner’s first shareholder meeting in Australia since the destruction of 46,000-year-old Indigenous rock shelters in the Juukan Gorge in Western Australia’s Pilbara nearly a year ago. More than 60 per cent of shareholders in Australia and the UK voted against the company’s executive pay package which included a huge payout for former chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques.

Mr Jacques and two top executives were forced to resign last year because of the destruction of the sacred site in May 2020, which was not illegal, but was against the wishes of the traditional owners, the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura People (PKKP)

Rio Tinto hit by huge protest vote on executive pay over Juukan destruction – ABC News