Tag: informal mining

The Andes

Colombia: Supreme Court justice gets prison

Francisco Javier Ricaurte Gómez, one of the most powerful men in Colombia's justice system for the past 15 years, is now the first former chief magistrate of the country's Supreme Court to go to prison. He is the most senior of several top judges and judicial officials convicted in accepting bribes to pervert criminal cases related to paramilitary activity and illegal resource exploitation.

The Amazon

Brazil: massacre of ‘uncontacted’ group reported

Prosecutors in Brazil have opened an investigation after reports that illegal gold-miners on a remote Amazon river massacred members of an "uncontacted" indigenous band. Two gold-miners have been arrested in the case. The killings allegedly took place last month in the Vale do Javari Indigenous Territory, known as the "Uncontacted Frontier," as it shelters more isolated peoples than anywhere else on Earth.

The Andes

Colombia: government seeks to restrict ‘consultas’

Community leaders throughout Colombia have spoken out against a proposal by the central government to limit the power of consultas populares, or popular referenda, to bar oil and mineral projects at the municipal level. Some are questioning the constitutionality of the government's plan to "fast track" a sweeping reform of the Organic Law of Territorial Ordering (LOOT) that would strip municipalities of the ability to restrict subsoil exploitation.

The Amazon

Brazil: vast Amazon reserve opened to mining

Brazil's government issued an order abolishing a vast national reserve in the Amazon in order to open up the area to mineral exploitation. The National Reserve of Copper and Associated (RENCA), covering an area larger than Denmark, straddles the northern states of Amapa and Pará, and is thought to be rich in gold, iron, manganese and other minerals. Opposition Senator Randolfe Rodrigues denounced the move as "the biggest attack on the Amazon of the last 50 years."

Afghanistan

Afghanistan: illegal mining fuels war

The Academy of Sciences of Afghanistan warned that continued illegal extraction of the country's mineral wealth is leading to serious security and political consequences. Acting ASA director Suraya Popal stated: "Terrorists and strongmen with illegal extractions and revenues from mines weaken the rule of law and fund the insurgency. Thus, extraction of the country's minerals should be done in line with the law and international standards before it's too late."

The Andes

FARC narco-factions refuse to lay down arms

FARC leaders admit that five regional commanders—those most co-opted by the narco trade—are refusing to lay down arms, and have been expelled from the movement.