A Poisonous Mix - Human Rights Watch

to open or close a mine. On behalf of the village chief, the tomboloma (traditional mining
chief) deals with management issues at the mine. He assigns each group of miners a shaft
and, in some areas, receives a payment for it. 23 He also manages conflicts among miners.
Mayors also sometimes charge for shafts or get other revenue from the mine. 24 A mayor in
Kolondiéba circle moved his office from the regular town hall in the commune’s central
town to a mining site when the mine was opened during 2010, and was receiving one third
of each payment for each newly assigned shaft when we visited. His tomboloma explained:
The task of the tomboloma is to organize the space, set boundaries for each shaft,
and guarantee security of the site. When I allow a miner, or a group of miners, to work
there, I get money, and so do the mayor and the chef de village. Depending on the
quality of the ore, the miner has to pay between 10,000 and 12,500 CFA francs
(approximately between US $20.73 and US$25.91). One third of this amount goes to
the tomboloma, one third goes to the mayor, and one third to the chef de village. 25
In addition, miners frequently pay part of their earnings to more wealthy and powerful gold
miners who rent out machines and equipment miners cannot afford to buy themselves.
Such gold miners are persons of status and influence in the community, most commonly
traditional authorities (or ‘notables’) or local government officials. For example, one mayor
told Human Rights Watch that he “owned” a mine where he was renting out machines. 26
His advisor had 70 to 80 people working for him on eight sites. 27 The relationship between
the wealthy gold miners and the ordinary artisanal miners sometimes resembles a
relationship between an employer and an employee. Some wealthy gold miners also lend
money to poorer miners, creating a burden of debt. Community leaders at one mining site
described how the debt creates severe pressure on the artisanal miners, who try to pay the
money back within a month, and they cited this as one of the reasons why parents send
their children to work in the mines. 28
Mali/ Pact/ Deutscher Entwicklungsdienst/ Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Guide juridique. Les
ressources naturelles, les collectivités et leurs territoires (Bamako: Communiconcon 2007), pp. 12-13.
23 Human Rights Watch interview with tomboloma and mayor, Worognan, April 9, 2011; ILO, “Etude transfrontalière des
enfants dans l’orpaillage,” p. 32; Seydou Keita, “Etude,” pp. 16-17.
24 Human Rights Watch interview with official from National Directorate for Mines, Bamako, February 15, 2011; Human Rights
Watch interview with government official, Ministry of Mines, Bamako, April 6, 2011; Human Rights Watch interview with
village chief and community leaders, Baroya, April 3, 2011.
25 Human Rights Watch interview with tomboloma and mayor, Worognan, April 9, 2011.
26 Human Rights Watch interview with mayor of Tabakoto, Tabakoto, April 3, 2011; Human Rights Watch interview with advisor to
mayor, Baroya, April 3, 2011; Human Rights Watch interview with gold trader, Kéniéba, April 4, 2011; Seydou Keita, “Etude,” p. 16.
27 Human Rights Watch interview with advisor to mayor, Baroya, April 3, 2011.
28 Human Rights Watch interview with village chief and community leaders, Baroya, April 3, 2011.
19 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | DECEMBER 2011