people on the ground and with colleagues. They can move in high or low circles, effectively and without falling out with anybody.
M ALOU VON S IVERS [ to Inna ]: So what’s Mauri’s strength, then?
I NNA W ATTRANG : Well, he’s got a real nose for a good business opportunity. An internal divining rod. And he’s an excellent negotiator.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : What’s he like as an employer?
I NNA W ATTRANG : He’s always calm. That’s the most fascinating thing about him. Things can get really rocky at times, like during the early years when he was buying concessions before he’d got the finance sorted. He never showed any hint of unease or stress. And that means that those of us who work around him feel enormously secure.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : But now you’ve been sounding off in the papers. Showing your feelings.
M AURI K ALLIS: You mean the mine in Ruwenzori? The AIDS business?
M ALOU VON S IVERS : You called Swedish AIDS a joke, among other things.
M AURI K ALLIS: That was a quote that was taken completely out of context. And I wasn’t sounding off in the press, a journalist came along to a lecture I was giving. But obviously I get annoyed eventually when I’m constantly pestered by Swedish journalists who haven’t done their homework. “Kallis Mining builds roads for militia troops.” And then they see me shaking hands with a general from the Lendu militia, and they write about what that particular group has done in the Congo, and all of a sudden my mining company in northwestern Uganda is the work of the devil himself. And so am I. It’s very easy to maintain your high moral values, simply by having nothing whatsoever to do with countries in crisis. Send in a contribution and keep your fingers out of it. But the population of these countries needs businesses, growth, employment. The government, on the other hand, wants budgetary assistance, with no form of control at all. You only have to look at the situation in Kampala to see where a great deal of the money goes. Incredibly luxurious houses all over the mountainsides. That’s where the members of the government live, and highly placed officials within the administration. And anybody who refuses to recognize that AIDS money is going to the military, who as well as terrorizing the civilian population spend their time plundering mines in northern Congo—well, they’re just being naive. Every year billions are pumped into Africa to combat AIDS, but if you ask any African woman in any African country you care to name, she’ll say: It doesn’t make any difference. Where does all that money go?
M ALOU VON S IVERS : Yes, where does it go?
M AURI K ALLIS: Into the pockets of members of the government, but that isn’t the worst of it. Better to build luxury houses than spend it on arms. But the AIDS workers have jobs they enjoy, and that’s fine. I’m only trying to say that if you’re going to run a company down there, you need to be prepared to interact with people who are dubious in one way or another. You’re going to get your own fingers a little bit dirty, but at least you’re doing something. And if I build a road from my mine, then it’s difficult for me to prevent opposing troops from using it.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : So you have no trouble sleeping soundly?
M AURI K ALLIS: I’ve never slept soundly, but that isn’t the reason.
M ALOU VON S IVERS [ he’s adopted a defensive stance now, she changes tack ]: Let’s go back to your upbringing then, can you tell us something about that? Born in Kiruna in ’64. Single mother who couldn’t look after you.
M AURI K ALLIS: No, she wasn’t really capable of looking after a child. My half brothers and sisters who came along later were more or less taken into care straightaway, but as I was her first I lived with her until I was eleven.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : And how was that?
M AURI K ALLIS [ fumbles for the right words, closes
M ALOU VON S IVERS [ to Inna ]: So what’s Mauri’s strength, then?
I NNA W ATTRANG : Well, he’s got a real nose for a good business opportunity. An internal divining rod. And he’s an excellent negotiator.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : What’s he like as an employer?
I NNA W ATTRANG : He’s always calm. That’s the most fascinating thing about him. Things can get really rocky at times, like during the early years when he was buying concessions before he’d got the finance sorted. He never showed any hint of unease or stress. And that means that those of us who work around him feel enormously secure.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : But now you’ve been sounding off in the papers. Showing your feelings.
M AURI K ALLIS: You mean the mine in Ruwenzori? The AIDS business?
M ALOU VON S IVERS : You called Swedish AIDS a joke, among other things.
M AURI K ALLIS: That was a quote that was taken completely out of context. And I wasn’t sounding off in the press, a journalist came along to a lecture I was giving. But obviously I get annoyed eventually when I’m constantly pestered by Swedish journalists who haven’t done their homework. “Kallis Mining builds roads for militia troops.” And then they see me shaking hands with a general from the Lendu militia, and they write about what that particular group has done in the Congo, and all of a sudden my mining company in northwestern Uganda is the work of the devil himself. And so am I. It’s very easy to maintain your high moral values, simply by having nothing whatsoever to do with countries in crisis. Send in a contribution and keep your fingers out of it. But the population of these countries needs businesses, growth, employment. The government, on the other hand, wants budgetary assistance, with no form of control at all. You only have to look at the situation in Kampala to see where a great deal of the money goes. Incredibly luxurious houses all over the mountainsides. That’s where the members of the government live, and highly placed officials within the administration. And anybody who refuses to recognize that AIDS money is going to the military, who as well as terrorizing the civilian population spend their time plundering mines in northern Congo—well, they’re just being naive. Every year billions are pumped into Africa to combat AIDS, but if you ask any African woman in any African country you care to name, she’ll say: It doesn’t make any difference. Where does all that money go?
M ALOU VON S IVERS : Yes, where does it go?
M AURI K ALLIS: Into the pockets of members of the government, but that isn’t the worst of it. Better to build luxury houses than spend it on arms. But the AIDS workers have jobs they enjoy, and that’s fine. I’m only trying to say that if you’re going to run a company down there, you need to be prepared to interact with people who are dubious in one way or another. You’re going to get your own fingers a little bit dirty, but at least you’re doing something. And if I build a road from my mine, then it’s difficult for me to prevent opposing troops from using it.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : So you have no trouble sleeping soundly?
M AURI K ALLIS: I’ve never slept soundly, but that isn’t the reason.
M ALOU VON S IVERS [ he’s adopted a defensive stance now, she changes tack ]: Let’s go back to your upbringing then, can you tell us something about that? Born in Kiruna in ’64. Single mother who couldn’t look after you.
M AURI K ALLIS: No, she wasn’t really capable of looking after a child. My half brothers and sisters who came along later were more or less taken into care straightaway, but as I was her first I lived with her until I was eleven.
M ALOU VON S IVERS : And how was that?
M AURI K ALLIS [ fumbles for the right words, closes
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