Ronnie Brunswijk, former vice president and current deputy chair of De Nationale Assemblee (DNA, Suriname’s parliament), is not part of the new structure for regulating the gold sector. President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons confirmed on Monday, November 9, during a government press conference that the former Commissie Ordening Goudsector no longer has a legal basis. The government is opting for a different approach, in which policy, implementation and enforcement are clearly separated.
The president was responding to questions about Brunswijk’s involvement in gold concessions and his possible influence on the regulation of the sector. According to Simons, the former vice president has no role within the new structure.
“Mr Brunswijk has no role in the Regulation of the Gold Sector,” the head of state stated.
Simons made clear that the government does not want to continue with the old method, because in her view it has delivered insufficient results. The new approach must ensure greater transparency, better oversight and a clearer division of responsibilities.
Policy team and management team must carry out regulation
The government has opted for a structure consisting of a policy team and a management team. The policy team will be responsible for further developing policy, collecting data and evaluating progress. The management team will mainly be assigned implementation tasks.
Enforcement will be handled by existing government bodies that are legally authorised to do so. These include the Korps Politie Suriname, the Nationaal Leger and the Nationale Milieu Autoriteit (NMA).
With this, the government aims to prevent separate groups from acting on behalf of a regulatory commission without a clear legal basis.
Years of inadequate enforcement
According to Simons, the disorder within the gold sector has partly arisen because successive governments have for years provided insufficient oversight of compliance with existing laws and permit conditions.
“We have laws; we do not enforce them,” the president observed.
She pointed out that gold is being mined in various places without the proper permits having been issued. There are also situations in which people work on concessions issued to others. In addition, she said, gold is being mined on land for which concessions for the extraction of construction materials were originally granted.
The president acknowledged that such practices have developed over decades and that the government cannot end this situation in a short period of time.
It must therefore first become clear who is actually active in the sector, which permits have been granted and what agreements exist between concession holders and people working on their land.
No exceptions in approach to gold sector
Simons stressed that the regulation must take place without regard to persons. According to her, attention will not only be paid to small-scale gold miners, but to all parties involved in the sector.
Following the inventory, the government must determine which activities may continue, which must be discontinued and where legalisation or amendments to legislation may be necessary.
According to the president, this does not mean that the government can immediately address all existing violations. A hasty intervention could create new problems, including for people who depend on gold mining for their income.
Structural approach must prevent conflicts
The president also wants to move away from the current situation in which the government mainly intervenes after conflicts have arisen at gold concessions or when there is serious environmental damage.
In such incidents, police, military personnel and environmental services must regularly be deployed. According to Simons, this entails considerable costs, while the underlying problems remain.
The government therefore first wants to obtain a complete overview of legal and illegal activities in the gold sector. On that basis, agreements must be made on the conditions under which gold mining may take place.
Simons expects that the reforms will prompt resistance, particularly from persons and companies that have operated for years without effective oversight.
Regulation may take several years
The president takes into account that the reform process may take several years. However, she stressed that the current situation cannot continue.
With the new structure, the government aims not only to gain greater control over gold mining, but also to improve compliance with environmental regulations, reduce conflicts and ensure that the State receives more revenue from the sector.
The announced reforms are part of the broader government policy for the gold sector. Work is also underway on establishing a Gold Board, which is to play a central role in the purchase and export of gold.
By ending the old regulatory structure and keeping Brunswijk outside the new organisation, the government is opting for a different administrative approach. Whether this will actually lead to greater oversight and better compliance with the law will have to become apparent from the implementation of the announced measures.
