Porgera Alliance

Category: Human Rights

  • Background – Issues Related to Barrick Gold”™s Porgera Joint Venture Mine in Papua New Guinea May 2011

    Violence Perpetrated by the Security Forces of the Porgera Joint Venture Mine

    Allegations of rapes, beatings and killings of community members by Porgera Joint Venture (PJV) security forces have been prevalent for at least a decade. In a news article in 2005 then-mine operator Canada”™s Placer Dome admitted to eight killings of community members by PJV security guards. 1 Early in 2006 Barrick Gold took over the mine when it acquired Placer Dome. There have been further allegations of killings and rapes by PJV security forces since 2006. Most of these cases have never been investigated. (more…)

  • PNG Mining Minister Responds to Munk’s Statement about Gang Rape, Porgera Alliance demands Accountability


    Download this letter from the Government Mining Minister demanding apology from Peter Munk for his statement about gang rape being a “cultural habit” in PNG.

    The following is the Porgera Alliance’s response the official response of Barrick’s Gary Halverson to the outrage cause by Peter Munk’s insensitive comments.

    Gary Halverson, Barrick Asia Pacific President’s response to public outcry over Peter Munk’s statement was short sighted and bad taste (Post Courier Monday 28 2011). The facts surrounding the rapes cases at the Porgera mine site reflects a pattern of continuous human rights violations at Porgera and it was not surprise for Mr. Halverson to say Mr. Munk”™s comments taken out of context.

    How can a man of Munks standing globally, a chairman of the world”™s largest gold producer says “Gang Rape A Cultural habit” in PNG and yet, one of his deputies defend him saying he was taken out of context. We understand that Munk is a no nonsense man and he meant what he said.

    Porgera Landowners Association through Porgera Alliance rang the bell on Barrick, exposing such in-humane activities in Porgera and demanding accountability for the crimes.

    We stand with the Minister for Mining and the Government of Papua New Guinea in demanding an apology, but we deserve more than that from Peter Munk and Barrick. Rapes and other forms of human rights abuses are the culture of Munk and Barrick pattern of operations globally. The Government of Papua New Guinea must act now to hold Barrick accountable for the crimes instead of just an apology. Evidence of transnational crimes has surfaced and the government of PNG must not shy away with a shallow defensive apology from Halverson to save Munk’s ass.

    Cash for land deals by transnational under pretext of social wages can be accepted but not with the kind of taste that we have experienced so far with Barrick in Porgera.

    Ipilis, Engans and PNG in general were a civilized society before western civilization. We had rules and laws guiding our way of life, far better than Munks way of business and life. Rape or Gang rape is unheard until recent times around our so-called urban centers and we do not promote or tolerate such crimes in our rural society.

    Mark Tony Ekepa
    Chairman
    PLOA

    Regards

    Mark Tony

  • Letter to Peter Munk regarding his statement: “Gang Rape is a Cultural Habit”

    The President
    Barrick Gold Corporation
    Toronto, CANADA

    Attention: Peter Munk

    Subject: Gang Rape A “Cultural Habit”?

    We write to seek clarification of the terminology you used in the Globe and Mail saying that Gang Rape is a “˜Cultural Habit”™ in Papua New Guinea, and we urge you to prove with facts and evidence of your statement.

    The indigenous population of Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous in the world having diverse culture. Papua New Guinea has several thousand separate communities, divided by language, customs, and tradition etc. Some 800 languages spoken in PNG reflect the diversity.

    Porgera is an ancestral domain where indigenous people interact to sustain life and lived in good peace and harmony by solving problems and conflicts the customary way. Young women were kept pure to deserve a bride price while young man undergoes cultural initiation to mark strength for future challenges. We promote preserving our culture as a source of pride and prestige for our future generation.

    Your Barick Gold Corporation extracting gold in Porgera in the Enga Province of Papua New Guinea is bringing wealth and luxury for your betterment alone at the expense of deaths, rapes and beatings of local indigenous people in the pretext of development. Your mining impacts have brought pain, disunity, poverty and cultural conflict induced by your way of operation.

    You are aware that our plea for justice and relief was expressed broadly and was even presented annually by us at your AGM in Toronto since 2008, where you were present.

    Rape is not tolerable in Porgera/Enga and PNG. It is subject to a high traditional penalty of compensation or the offender may be imprisoned for a maximum term of life through a court of law.

    A Gang Rape is a new phenomenon to us since your mine arrived and is only practiced by criminals as in western cultures. The practice of gang rapes in the mine at Porgera is reflecting your criminal paramilitary type goon guard security operation system.

    You have just violated the rule of law and our customary practices by introducing gang rape through the Porgera Joint Venture mining in Porgera in Papua New Guinea and you must know that gang rape is against our culture and is a serious offence with the highest penalty in the court of law in Papua New Guinea.

    We anticipate receiving a favorable response from you soon.

    Yours truly,

    “¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦..

    Mark Tony Ekepa

    Chairman ““ Porgera Alliance & Porgera Landowners Association

  • Human Rights Report Confirms Rapes by Security Guards at Barrick Mine in Papua New Guinea

    see: http://www.miningwatch.ca/en/human-rights-report-confirms-rapes-security-guards-barrick-mine-papua-new-guinea

    Ottawa) A report released today by Human Rights Watch confirms allegations of gang rapes and other human rights abuses by security guards of Barrick Gold“™s Porgera Joint Venture (PJV) mine in Papua New Guinea (PNG). This important report represents but the latest attempt to raise public awareness about these long standing abuses at the mine. Until now, Barrick and the personnel of the PJV mine have responded to numerous credible attempts to alert the company to the abuses of its security personnel with denial and, frequently, by attempting to discredit those who raised the issues.

    “We already alerted Barrick in 2005 to serial killings being perpetrated by PJV”™s security guards before Barrick took over the mine from Placer Dome” says Jethro Tulin of Akali Tange Association, a local human rights group. “We sent Vince Borg and Grey Wilkinson of Barrick Gold a letter and deposited our report called “˜The Killing Fields of Porgera Joint Venture”™ in the office in Port Moresby so that Barrick would know what was going on.” Pressure by members of Akali Tange Association and Canadian media attention, among others, contributed to an investigation by the PNG government of the alleged killings in 2006, but that report has never been released.

    Since 2008, Jethro Tulin has been travelling to Canada yearly to speak in front of Barrick”™s board of directors and shareholders at the company”™s annual general meeting. At these meetings Mr. Tulin has consistently raised the alleged killings and rapes by the mine”™s security guards, only to hear Barrick”™s directors assure shareholders that these allegations are false. Mr. Tulin has been accompanied in Canada by Mr. Mark Ekepa, the chairman of the Porgera Landowners Association for landowners living within the mine”™s lease area. Mr Ekepa too has repeatedly challenged the local mine management and Barrick Gold to acknowledge abuses perpetrated by the mine”™s security forces and take action on behalf of victims. Both men have met with senior Barrick executives in Toronto on two occasions.

    In response to a letter in May 2008 from Mr. Ekepa to Barrick”™s then-President and CEO Greg Wilkins, the Porgera mine manager responded to Mr. Ekepa saying, “we found your public allegations of our employees “˜gang raping”™ Porgera Land Owners”™ women to be most distasteful, to say the least, as you know these allegations to be untrue.”

    “I have done what I could for many years to raise the abuses by the mine”™s security forces with Barrick Gold executives, shareholders, and Canadian civil servants and members of parliament and my own government officials,” says Mark Ekepa, “As recently as June 5th 2010 I wrote to the mine manager about the rapes of three young girls by PJV engaged members of mobile squads.”

    While Barrick denounced allegations by local Porgeran leaders, the company also declined to investigate the activities of its security forces, even in the face of a three year investigation into the alleged killings and rapes by senior researchers from human rights institutions at Harvard and New York Universities. These researchers testified about their findings before a Canadian parliamentary committee in 2009 and 2010, and filed a substantial report in 2009.

    “Barrick has chosen for many years to ignore the urgent warnings the company has received in both written and verbal form about serious human rights problems associated with its security forces at the Porgera mine,” says Catherine Coumans of MiningWatch Canada. “This new report by Human Rights Watch appears to have finally moved Barrick to take some actions that may prevent abuses in the future.  We hope that Barrick is now also prepared to consider reparations for people who have been harmed by its security guards and will be more open to dealing with other environmental and human rights concerns at the Porgera mine.”

    Coumans further notes, “The Canadian government has also ignored information it has received about the human rights and environmental concerns at Barrick”™s operations in PNG. Porgerans have met with civil servants of CIDA, Foreign Affairs, and Trade a number of times starting in 2008 and raised these issues directly with them. Nonetheless, in 2010 CIDA provided $158,241 for a Barrick reforestation project in Peru, with more payments to come. With the defeat of Bill C-300 the Canadian government can continue to ignore complaints about human rights abuses and reward tax payer dollars to projects at the mine sites of Canadian companies against whom serious accusations have been made.”

    – 30 –

    For more information contact:
    Catherine Coumans, MiningWatch Canada, catherine(at)miningwatch.ca tel: 613-569-3439
    Jethro Tulin, Akali Tange Associaiton, Papua New Guinea, jctulin(at)gmail.com tel: 675 72817336
    Mark Ekepa, Porgera Landowners Association, Papua New Guinea, emarktony(at)gmail.com tel: 675 71234467

    For a copy of the Human Rights Watch report see: http://www.hrw.org/node/95776
    For a copy of the Harvard and New York University report see: http://www.business-humanrights.org/Documents/CanadaParliamentarytestimonyreBarrickPJV/

  • Latest Rape in Porgera

    LATEST INCIDENT

    Date of Incident: January 19, 2011

    Name of Victim: Elssie Kumbi of Anawe village Porgera, Enga Province Papua New Guinea

    Location of incident: Mines Lime plant site, Kumbipara,

    Nature of Incident: Brutality and torture in an attempt to rape causing severe internal and external damage to body

    Incident: In the evening of January 19, 2011, Helsy Kumbi aged 26 years went into the bush near the mines lime plant area to collect native vegetables that creep by the waters. All of a sudden a Barrick Security Guard on duty at the mines lime plant ran after her as she ran for help into an abandoned home. However there was no one there to help her. She was forced to have sex, and she refused and the offender kidnapped her and burnt her genital areas with hot rods repeatedly.

    The offender is arrested and in jail, medical report obtained, police report yet to be obtained.

    Information/evidence gathered by David Mandi ““ Chairman ATA and preliminary report by Jeffery Simon


  • Massive Arrest – Porgera

    Dear Editor,

    This morning, the Porgera Mine Police arrested 45 local Porgerans
    along the riverine tailings while they were panning gold. This local
    landowners live in the Special mining Leased area (SML). Their homes
    have not been relocated since the mine granting the Special Mining
    Lease and the licence to mine. This people’s land ones used for food
    gardening was taken by the mine, their traditional gold panning sites
    were covered by the waste debris and sentiments from the mine, The
    mine royalty obtained quarterly is insufficient amongst the growing
    population. This people have no ways to cater wants and needs
    especially food and drinking water. Thus this entire community is
    obliged to go into the nearby mine waste tailing sites to obtain golds
    to be redeemed for cash.

    This morning as usual the entire villagers set to the tailing mouth to
    find gold and suddenly group of mine machinery police fully harmed
    arrested man women kids including school students along the waste
    tailing river and are locked up in cell. The remaining tribesman are
    demanding the mine management to release the 45 arrested. The
    villagers are blaming the mine for creating an artificial environment
    which is conditioning the people go panning gold in the mine and be
    arrested, raped, tortured and even get killed by the mine security
    force.

    The situation is at tense and more shall be reported tomorrow.

    Regards

     Koyapal Napapen


  • Police swoop on Barrick employees

    by Joshua Arlo, Post Courier (PNG), January 18th, 2011

    POLICE have begun arresting terminated employees of the Porgera Joint Venture (PJV) implicated in alleged sexual assaults against women and other serious crimes, with many more terminations and arrests expected in the coming weeks.

    Acting Police Commissioner Tony Wagambie and PJV announced this yesterday, stating that this is a result of a three-month investigation by a special police team set up last year by then Police Commissioner Gari Baki in the Porgera District and an internal investigation conducted by the PJV in line with the mine’s zero tolerance policy regarding employee behaviour of any kind of violence or human rights abuse against women and men.

    Those terminated also include employees who knew about the assaults but failed to report to authorities, as well as those who allegedly misled investigators.

    PJV said it expected its employees who saw or heard about such acts to immediately report to the appropriate authorities.

    Mr Wagambie has warned he will not tolerate any kind of violent and criminal behaviour against women “on his watch” and perpetrators will be brought to justice.

    “Enough is enough. These arrests send a strong warning to those who would assault the most vulnerable members of our communities ““ women and young people ““ that their actions will not be tolerated,” he said.

    “The warning is clear ““ respect the human rights of others and follow the laws of this land, otherwise we will find you and we will bring you to justice without fear or favour,” He said after receiving solid intelligence on these matters from the mine mangers of Barrick Gold and their independent investigators, the police moved in quickly to identify the alleged offenders.

    “The mine took immediate actions after the disturbing results of an internal investigation into allegations of assaults and other serious crimes,” said Barrick executive general manager Mark Fisher in a joint statement from Barrick Gold Corporation and Mineral Resources Enga.

    “We have terminated employees who were found to have breached out strict code of conduct regarding employee behaviour.”

    He said PJV asked police to investigate when it received credible allegations in June last year. PJV also asked Ila Geno, the former Chief Ombudsman Commissioner and a former police commissioner to conduct an independent inquiry into alleged violence against women and report the findings directly to police.

    Barrick also conducted a thorough internal investigation which involved a 15-member independent investigative team.

    This team spent several months at the mine interviewing more than 650 employees and conducting a comprehensive investigation of staff and procedures.

    “We have been working in close co-operation with the PNG police and we will continue to provide information and support to aid in their criminal investigation,” Mr Fisher said. “We condemn these alleged crimes in the strongest possible terms and wish to see anyone involved brought to justice under PNG law.”

    Meanwhile, Mr Wagambie has revealed that investigations into other reported cases, including alleged abuses by police in the same area were continuing.

    “No-one is above the law, even members for the Constabulary. Make no mistake – we are coming for them too. The best course of action for anyone who has information about these matters, or who has witnessed assaults or sexual assaults on women and young girls is to come forward now and report these matters to police.

    “Don’t be afraid to report these things ““ staying silent helps nobody.”

  • latest killing and open fire shot out by Barrick private security force

    photo provided by Porgera Landowners Association

    One more unlawful shooting to death of an indigenous landowner at the Porgera Joint Venture Barrick mine site yesterday evening resulted in indigenous landowners confront Barrick.

    Related to the same shooting incident, of relatives of the late victim protest at the mine site Community Affairs Office today at about 12 o”™clock demanding remorse for unlawful shooting and Barrick’s private security guards further discharged live bullets against harmless locals at a public place. Amongst the victims of that second shooting involved Nixon Mangape, the chief land owner and chairman of Porgera Development Authority. According to eye witness, Barrick’s private security police shot at Mr. Mangape while he was in the crowd to control the situation. Mr. Mangape received a bullet wound at his back.

    Porgera Landowners Association claims it”™s not the first shooting and use of live bullets. Numerous complaints are with the PNG government, the UN Human Rights Commission that include investigative reports from various reputable institutions around the globe. Shooting to death of defenseless landowners is serious human rights abuses.  Therefore, the Porgera Landowners Association calls on the PNG government and local NGOs to urgently investigate the shooting and to allow law to take its course at with the police man who are involved with regular police.

    Further details of the report will follow suit.

    The incident also led to confrontation with the local communities and the Manager of Porgera Development Authority at PDA office at Porgera Government Station where Barrick’s private security police were in search of empty bullet shells and images from the scene of crime. The
    Barrick fully armed private police were in pursuit to destroy their evidence. (Attached images of empty shells used and Barricks private police at the mine gate).

    I now call for immediate investigation on the killings and the related incident. The Prime Minister and the Mining Minister must immediately take ownership of the issue because they have failed to resettle the (SML) Special Mining lease landowners.

    —————————–
    Mark Tony Ekepa
    Chairman – PLOA

  • Toxic Non-Neutralized Tailings emitted from Barrick Gold”™s Porgera Mine: Villagers poisoned (report w/testimonies)

    The Porgera Alliance compiled the testimonies of 25 victims poisoned from an unusually high discharge of unneutralized waste at Barrick Gold’s Porgera mine.

    Mark Ekepa writes:

    Find attached is the report done from my end just on the 27th of July PJV Barrick have discharged heavy pure (not neutralized) into the river system (red wara).

    The villagers have gone down to the (red wara) panning for gold and when the villagers have contacted the river they got burn up and sores were all over their bodies.

    Read report here.

  • Three girls raped at Porgera Mine site

    photo of children in tailings waste near Barrick's Porgera mine in PNG. (note: this is not a photo of the girls who were raped).

    We have received a complaint that three young girls at the age around 14 years were taken into PJV Yoko 2 camp on the 18th June 2010 and raped by PJV engaged police mobile squads.

    Also the victims have reported the matter at the Paiam Police Station on the 19th June 2010 OB no#6288/10 with full details of the transporting vehicle.

    Forced rape and violation against woman is serious crime in PNG and such unethical behaviours desire urgent investigation. We at ATA condemn the actions with term strongest possible terms and call for full investigation and appropriate actions taken with law.

    read full Akali Tange Association Statement.
    read statement from the Porgera Landowners Association on the rapes.