For the first time the Tanzanian Government has acknowledged the scale of violence surrounding the North Mara Gold Mine, say MiningWatch Canada and the British NGO Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID) in their most recent field assessment, Adding Insult to Injury at the North Mara Mine (released today). A Tanzanian Government investigation confirms receiving claims that 65 people have been killed and 270 people injured by police responsible for mine security. However this may be only a fraction of the actual number of victims. According to human rights monitors and opposition sources there have been more than 300 violent deaths at the North Mara mine since 1999. The government report has not been widely disseminated and a Swahili summary has only been made available in the villages closest to the mine.
For further information, see:
RAID and MiningWatch Canada, Press Release, ‘Tanzanian Government investigation receives hundreds of reports of violence and deaths at Acacia’s North Mara Mine’.
RAID and MiningWatch Canada, Adding Insult to Injury at the North Mara Mine.