SOME local leaders
from villages surrounding North Mara Gold mine at Nyamongo area in Tarime
district, Mara region have pleaded for government’s intervention in order to find
lasting solutions on recurrent conflicts between the Canadian miner and the
local communities surrounding the mining site. Speaking to the owner of this
blog who visited the area last week, some irate leaders said that they are extremely
disappointed by the government’s decision of keeping quite over the matter and turning
a blind eye which has never yielded a positive result at all. However, they
said failure of the government to mediate such conflicts for which they are
aware of, pose a great threat to the lives of the locals an aspect which continues
to affect them psychologically. However, they have also noted that, despite sporadic
killing of villagers which are occasionally taking place in the area, a
situation is likely to disrupt peace among the people thus, causing a growing
enmity. One of the local leaders, Nyamhanga Mnanka said that, the government
should have set aside special areas on which it should have licensed small
scale miners to dwell in as a move to empower them. Driving his points,
Nyamhanga admitted the fact that frequent killings of villagers is as a result
of some who invade the mining after having been attracted by small stones
believed to be having gold in it and which are openly exposed in piles within
the mining site. He said villagers are not happy at all to see the mining pits
in the areas are owned by foreigners alone, whereas for them they do not have
an area to conduct their small mining activities a factor which drives many
into such extremes and eventually ends up being fired indiscriminately. He has
however asked the government through the ministry of Energy and Minerals to
review the mining contracts so as to let the locals benefit the same way as
foreigners do, as this is one way to empower them. However, he said killings of
such innocent villagers would continue if the government does not take
appropriate measures as ways to help the unprivileged poor indigenous
Tanzanians who in everyday are looking for the livelihood. Weisiko Chacha, one
of the elders of the Ingwe clan of the Wakurya tribe in the area, sadly
lamented for his grandson who fell a victim three years ago when a group of
youths invaded the mining site and came
into confrontation with the police who used excessive force to drive them away.
His grandson Rioba Chacha aged 24 is now a disabled after being shot by the
police in a leg, a situation that had his left leg amputated by doctors when he
was taken in hospital in a grisly incident which he said left six people dead
in March 2012.
In view of this situation, an elderly man has called on the government
to consider the local people over the investments of the portion of the mining
operation in the area otherwise youths would continue losing their lives.
However, he further noted that, this is one way to minimize such chaos which
arises now and then. Mwita Mghendi, a hamlet leader in the area has asked the
government not to use force and live ammunition when dispersing the invading
youths from the mining site, as this is against the human rights and quite
illogical as far as police operations are concerned. He has however warned the
police force against using excessive force when flushing out intruders from the
mine except use tactics to apprehend them peacefully and take them to court as
per the procedures. The call by these
leaders has come just one week after two people were shot dead by
the police guarding the mining stones believed to be having gold in the area. Preliminary
investigations over the matter has found out that, it was alleged that the
deceased forced their entry into the mining site in attempt to steal stones at
the violence-plagued mine when they came into confrontation by the armed policemen
guarding the area and fired them. It is said that,
one could get between Sh. 2 million and Sh. 10 million for a single gemstone
weighing between 400 and 600 grams if crushed and process them for sale.
The North Mara Gold mine owned by
African Barrick Gold Corp sits in the midst of six villages in northern Tanzania.
The villages are Nyangoto, Kewanja, Nyakunguru, Matongo, Kerende and Genkuru. Reliable sources from the area maintains that,
desperately impoverished villagers often attempt to gather rocks arranged in
piles at the mine in the hope of finding tiny amounts of gold. The village elders had once complained
to the Deputy Minister of minerals Steven Masele that the mine has failed to support
development, artisanal miners and small scale projects in the area among other
things. Mr Masele called for effective
strategies that could help to end recurrent conflicts between the mine and the local
communities once and for all, but no effective measures have been taken so far.
The deputy minister noted that,
the government had started putting in place measures aimed at supporting
artisanal miners with skills, technology and capital in a bid to minimize
conflicts between large scale miners and local communities. But the local leaders countered the
deputy minister’s call as saying that, it was a mere joke that nothing has been
implemented as part to help them and their families in general. According to the Tarime/Rorya Special Zone Police Commander,
Mr Justus Kamugisha, More than 4,000 people in Tarime District armed
with traditional weapons have been raiding trhe the North Mara Gold Mine (ABG)
with the intention of stealing rocks rich in gold, prompting policemen who were
on patrol to use weapons to disperse them.
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