"The conversion mining has been a failure"
Sunday, 03 2008

With evidence in hand, a miner guayanés denounced a series of irregularities committed by the mining shaft in TO5 El Dorado-Tumeremo.


Herrera TO5 complaint with the Army for usurpation of functions. Photo Hannibal Barreto Ivan Herrera is a citizen who is described as "a miner long experience in this field in Guyana and that has waged a long struggle against" the mafia enquistadas in the jungle in the region. "

  "The contingency plan for the population mining, called 'Reconverción Mining', which proposed an endogenous development activity that has been a total failure, bogged down with the 'C' of corruption in the jungles guayanesas," said Herrera.

  This worker in the mining was presented to the wording of the Caroní Mail, and evidence in hand with a group of alleged irregularities being committed by the component of the National Armed Forces (FAN), attached to the Army as the Theater of Operations No. 5 (TO5), who according to Herrera "is usurping functions and committing abuses against property and human rights of miners Guiana."

  He assured that based on the Mining Act in force, and Decree 295, which states in Article 89 of the same as the guard mining shall be exercised by the Ministry of Defence, for body of the Armed Forces of Cooperation, National Guard (GN ). "They must understand functions of inspection, supervision and control of the national territory of mining activities," said Herrera.

  With regard to transport and use of fuel, the regulation of Mines in Article 93 states that "Guides mobilization" correspond to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, "but these features also TO5 exercises, a situation that has generated a sin end of corruption on the part of those responsible, "said Herrera.

  "Fuel is contrabandeado to the Esequibo through Brazilian and Guyanese, under the consent of some commanders TO5. For the cooperative mining is not delivered completely allocated fuel, and then sell it to illegally ", denounced the miner.

  Moreover, Herrera said that "in the Yuruari River, the company built a dam Cristallex, to work in the 'La Victoria Mine'. This is an illegal act which violates environmental management, which presumably is to evade this way, material aurífero unchecked by the authorities. "

  "The worst thing about all this is that in this sector operate water for human consumption, both for the population of El Callao and Guasipati, and no authority has been diligently to stop this activity," said the miner.

  Finally, Herrera calls on the competent authorities to "publish the areas of small-scale mining and artisanal mining, as said Act and Regulations so that there is an effective voice for the miners." (GDV)