Porgera Alliance

Category: Fly in/Fly out (FIFO)

  • Landowners respond to 50% sale of Porgera Mine to Zijin Mining Group

    The Porgera Landowners Association sent a letter to the head office of Barrick Gold outlining their concerns about the sale of 50% of their Porgera Mine stake to Zijin Mining Group. They are calling for Barrick to convene a high level delegates meeting with stakeholders of the Porgera Mine, including Zijin, so that these concerns can be addressed.

    These concerns include:

    • losing local employment to Chinese employees
    • losing local business if the procurement process is affected
    • severe damage to the environment
    • lack of respect for MOA commitments
    • the resettlement project could be negatively impacted
    • the Fly-in, Fly-out agreement will be undermined

    Read the full statement here.

     

  • In response to paid Press Statement done by Honorable Philip Kikala, Member for Lagaip

    Response to paid Press Statement done by Honorable Philip Kikala, Member for Lagaip ““ Porgera on the Post Courier dated 8th December 2010.

    Surprise but not surprisingly, Mr. Kikala seems to have gone off the track in his attempt to answer numbers of sensitive issues connected with the operation of the Porgera Gold.


    The decision to sale 5% shares in Mineral Resources Enga was decided on pure commercial reasoning by the MRE board. We understand that the Porgera mine is lucrative but we have not seen any dividend benefits over the last 7 years from the shares. Year in-year out”™ cash calls from the major shareholder and the joint venture partnered of the mine has become common practice and, we the Porgera Landowners Association representing about 10 000 people of the Special Mining Lease Area wish not to be seen stuck with 2.5% shares whilst no benefits. Window dressing and waste of time in holding unto the 2.5% equity.

    I understand the nature of the Ok Tedi deal; BHP excited from the Ok Tedi mine free off loading some 63.4% ownership right to settle out of court after class action by the people of the Fly River delta. The PNG government reached a deal with BHP guided by an Act of Parliarament known as the Ok Tedi Act and PNG Sustainable Development Trust set up.

    Apparently, Mr. Kikala was given the mandate in 2007 and whilst being fresh and in form with the ruling NA government, the opportunity was there for him to hold grips on the issues affecting the Porgera mine and the people of Lagaip-Porgera if he was that genuine. The landowners have been struggling with the mining impacts for some time and we cannot continue to hold on to shares that are of no value. I recall that at a public rally in Laiagam in September 2008, Mr. Kikala cited that, Barrick (PNG) Limited was big brother to him and he was smaller brother to Barrick.“ So by way of selling the 5% share to Barrick could mean we are trying to make his big brother even bigger.

    Moving on to the points of MOU Review and Resettlement, I appreciate the call by the local MP but than, his statement gives rise to a very serious question how genuine is he? What really prompted him to make a call at this juncture when the Mining Minister, Honorable John Pundari is providing the leadership and the MOU Review is expected to commence mid January 2011.

    Despite Mr. Kikala is correct in pointing out that landowners are living inside the SML, the issues are not new and his statement was not a surprise call. In numerous petitions to the government, Porgera Landowners Association has repeatedly demanded for the MOU review and a comprehensive resettlement package from the National Government and Barrick PNG Ltd.

    Politicians like Mr. Kikala should not size the opportunity for political convenience. Before he became an MP, Mr. Kikala was Porgera Project Coordinator, Deputy Secretary in Enga, National Planning Secretary and member of the Porgera Investigation Committee in 2006. Mr. Kikala was well acquainted with the issues affecting the landowners and yet he pretended to know nothing. I begin to wonder at one stage Mr. Kikala made a statement in Parliament in May 2010 that, “four Porgera landowner leaders have visited Canada”™s House of Commons and trying to sell fabricated stories.” He even went on the extreme of asking the Foreign Affairs Minister to prosecute the four leaders.

    I was amongst one of the four Porgera leaders who visited Canada between April-May 2010 and raised the issue of MOU Review and Resettlement with Barrick Senior Executives at Headquarters in Toronto and with like-minded Politicians and senior civil servants in Ottawa. Now I find Mr. Kikala”™s statement contradicts him. The four Porgera leaders where not in Canada at that time trying to sell fabricated stories but raise serious issues that are affecting the SML landowners.

    Hence, the issues of MOU Review, Resettlement, and the failed FIFO program at Paiam are all part and puzzle of the Porgera Landowners Association Position paper before the Mining Minister for renegotiation purpose start mid January 2011. For benefit of Mr. Kikala, I suggest he visit this web site; www.porgeraalliance.net.

    Otherwise I appreciate the leadership that has been provided so far by Honorable John Pundari, Minister for Mining within his brief period at the ministry and the initiatives taken to move forward to address issues affecting the SML landowners in Porgera.

    Finally, I ask Mr. Kikala to allocate some funds from the Lagaip-Porgera JDBP to assist the PLOA Land Negotating Committees for the MOU Review. The outcome of the MOU is off course, Rural Development.

    Authorized for Release,

    Mr. Mark Tony Ekepa

    Chairman

    Porgera Landowners Association

  • Letter to Barrick Management on behalf of Porgera Landowners Association

    Toronto, CANADA

    For the attention of Mr. Greg Wilkins and the board of Barrick Gold:

    We are indigenous  Ipili  from the  Highlands  of  Papua  New Guinea.  We have travelled half way across the world, to speak out  against  the grave issues our people face because of your Porgera mine.  “¨ “¨When you came to our place you offered us cash-for-land deals that have turned our traditions upside-down. “¨ “¨Your mine has destroyed our ancestral land, our sacred places, environments pollutted and our gardens, which we need to feed ourselves. You dump your mine waste directly into our river system contaminating 600 km of river all the way to the sea.  You do this, even though you know that it is illegal to dump your waste into rivers in Canada. “¨ “¨As you know, our people have been pushed to living on the very edges of your open pit and very close to your massive piles of waste rock. Our houses are so close to the mine pit and to your mountainous waste dumps that our people, especially our children, are always in grave danger of falling into the pit. As you know, many of our people have already lost their lives this way. Others have been swept away and drowned when they have tried to cross the river of mine waste because there are no safe bridges across.

    We thought that it was strange that you stated at the Annual General meeting yesterday that you had built infrastructure at your mine sites for surrounding communities. To date, we have seen no tangible or sustainable developments on account of the Porgera Mine.”¨ “¨Finally, as you know, your security guards have been shooting and killing our people and raping, even gang-raping, our women with impunity for years now. This issue has now been raised with the Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial killings at the United Nations. “¨ “¨You have destroyed our land, our water, our safety and our ability to feed ourselves. We know that we can no longer live on our ancestral land. We know that we must leave our place so that our children can have a future. But now your company – Barrick – is refusing to offer us fair terms for our resettlement.

    As a matter of urgency, we request that:

    1. Barrick agree to resettle the more than 5,000 families who live within your mine lease in a way that is fair and will provide us an opportunity to be healthy, to feed our families, and to educate our children.

    2. Barrick finally pay fair compensation to the families who have lost their loved ones to the guns of your security forces, to the rape victims, to the families who have lost members in your open pit and in the waste dumps and who have drowned in your river of tailings.

    3. Barrick finally carry out the recommendations of the 1996 CSIRO report that was commissioned by the mine management that recommended an end to the dumping of mine waste into our river.

    4. Barrick review the fly-in, fly-out arrangement for mine employees, and revive the agreement that was signed in January, 2001 with the landowners, the State of Papua New Guinea, the Enga Provincial government and Porgera Joint Venture, which was subsequently suspended. The agreement has been suspended for almost four years.

    We suspect that the field managers at the Porgera site are telling you incorrect information about the impacts that your mine has had on affected communities and expect your immediate action now that these issues have been brought to your direct attention.

    On behalf of the Porgera Landowners Association and the Akali Tange Association,
    Mark Ekepa
    Chairman, Porgera Landowners Association