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14 Sep 2016

Guinea: NGOs say hundreds of households to be displaced by AngloGold Ashanti were intimidated, threatened - company responds

In November 2015, Guinean military forces suppressed protests in the rural area of Kintinian in Siguiri Prefecture, on the pretext of evicting unauthorised foreign miners. AngloGold Ashanti is now beginning the involuntary resettlement of approximately 377 households in the area. Although it claims that the households have consented, villagers say they were intimidated into signing consent forms; many say they did not understand the contents of agreements they signed. In addition to concerns over intimidation and lack of informed consent, Guinean NGOs Même Droits pour Tous and CECIDE say that most affected villages were never consulted about the resettlement plan; the villagers are receiving drastically inadequate compensation for their lost land; and that the mechanism for resolution of resettlement disputes has not been disclosed to villagers and "is in the company's control".  

CECIDE and MDT are demanding the suspension of the resettlement until: (1) The resettlement plan has been fully disclosed to the communities in a language accessible to them. (2) The NGOs have completed an inquiry with the company's cooperation about the issues of community consultation, consent, and adequate compensation. (3) The affected communities and the company have agreed on a rights-based roadmap, with the facilitation of a jointly chosen mediator.

We invited AngloGold Ashanti to respond to these concerns and demands; its response is below.