SITUATION ANALYSIS OF THE SMALL-SCALE GOLD ... - WWF

Table 10. Zones where the GMD has informally agreed to not grant mining concessions.
Areas Reasons
Sela Creek mining zone, a tributary Request of the Ndjuka Maroon granman, in order to
of the Tapanahony River
prevent conflicts with and among Ndjuka miners.
Along the Upper-Suriname River, Some fourteen tourism enterprises are operational in this
south of the village of Pokigron area; the Saramaka Granman introduced a ban on gold
mining in this area and the government supports it
Along the Tapanahony River south Wayana Amerindians living in this area have indicated
of Sela Creek.
that they would like to keep this area free of gold mining
Around the village of
Kwamalasumutu, Sipaliwini savanna
(southern Suriname).
The village council has advocated a no-mining policy
Migration. In 1986, it could not be foreseen that thousands of miners from Brazil would
flock to the Suriname mining zones. According to oral records, Brazilians began working
in the Suriname SSM industry around this time, but by 1986 they still presented a rather
small minority. Hence the current mining code does not consider or deal with the
presence of migrant miners, who now dominate the mining population.
Even in the absence of special provisions to deal with migrant miners in the mining law,
the government should have a plan to manage migrant labor. No such plan seems to exist.
Migrant laborers are not registered. The process to obtain a residency permit is lengthy
and full of bureaucratic hurdles. During the earlier-mentioned Operation Goldfinger,
there was an effort to register Brazilian miners. Apparently, some 15,000 miners were
registered after payment of an annual fee of US $ 200. Opposition members posed
questions in parliament about the legality of the registration exercise vis-à-vis national
labor laws. Miners were efficiently registered but the procedure did not comply with the
regulations for obtaining a work permit in Suriname.
Assistance schemes. Article 39-e of the mining code of 1986 stipulated that the holder of
a SSM rights is entitled to seek technical and administrative assistance from the Minister,
and if feasible, this assistance will be provided free of charge.
Article 6 of the draft mining code prepared by the BGS expanded this provision
considerably and stipulated that the proposed Minerals Institute should provide technical
assistance to small-scale miners. It would do so by setting up training centers throughout
the mining regions of the interior, prepare training material and issue free of charge a
manual of procedures to small-scale miners. Article 15 of the draft law to establish the
proposed Minerals Institute outlines the infrastructure that should be created in the field
to:
Provide technical assistance to small-scale miners (through experimental mining
centers, amalgamation centers or demonstration pilot mines)
To coordinate local activities of other organizations in the minerals sector
To monitor mining activities, environment and health and safety measures
To survey and verify boundaries of concessions
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