The expansion of Brazil’s Morro do Ouro mine by Canadian company Kinross Gold, begun in 2006, resulted in the displacement of slave-descendent quilombola communities from their traditional lands. As we detail in our 2017 report, Swept Aside, the expansion of the mine by Kinross, a frequent client of Canada’s export bank, Export Development Canada, negatively impacted the lives, land and livelihoods of these communities, whose land rights are protected under Brazilian law.
Over a decade later, Kinross Gold has submitted a proposal to Brazilian authorities to provide benefits and/or compensation to the quilombola communities impacted by its mine. Neither the purpose nor the precise nature of the proposal is clear.
Above Ground and its Brazilian partners have written to the Brazilian agency responsible for the titling of quilombola territories (INCRA) in order to obtain further detail. In the letter, we request that the agency:
- provide us with a copy of Kinross’s proposal;
- clarify whether the proposal is intended to compensate quilombola communities for the collective territories that were destroyed by the mine;
- provide information about the legally-mandated consultation process that will be carried out with affected communities about the proposal, including the methodology and any protocols that will be employed; and
- clarify which studies are being relied on to assess the damages and rights violations suffered by the quilombola communities.
The letter is signed by:
Above Ground
Cáritas Diocesana de Paracatu
Justiça Global
Comitê Nacional em Defesa dos Territórios frente à Mineração
Read the letter below (in Portuguese):