A lack of legal certainty surrounding the Escobal mining licence in Guatemala is fuelling violence in the region, TSX- and NYSE-listed Tahoe Resources said at the weekend, reporting that 12 security contract workers at the Minera San Rafael mine were attacked and kidnapped for several hours.
Tahoe, which is in a long-running dispute over the Escobal licence, said that a group identifying themselves as the Peaceful Resistance Group of Mataquescuintla kidnapped the unarmed contractors on Friday evening.
The kidnapping followed an incident earlier in the week when the same group installed an illegal blockade on a public road at the entrance of the municipality of Mataquescuintla, near the Escobal mine.
The mining company stated that the lack of legal certainty about the Escobal licence had allowed attacks to occur more often, with reports of attacks on supplier vehicles and helicopters, threats to local community members and their families and other kidnapping attempts. It noted that 300 days had passed without the Guatemalan Constitutional Court issuing a final decision on the mining licence, which was suspended in July 2017 after an anti-mining organisation claimed that the Xinca indigenous people were not consulted before the licence was awarded.
Tahoe president and CEO Jim Voorhees commented that the mining company condemned the incidences of violence and that the firm continued to engage government and community leaders to resolve roadblocks in a peaceful manner.
Since the suspension of operations, Tahoe has dismissed 70% of Minera San Rafael’s workforce, with the latest round of suspensions having been announced last week.