At five in the morning on Thursday, March 31, members of the
commission of communal property in Colula, Guerrero, blocked access to
Torex Gold Resources’ (Torex) Media Luna mine site. As of this writing, it
appears that the blockade continues.
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| Blockade at the Media Luna mine entrance (Milenio) |
The protesters are from three surrounding communities, and
have shut down access to the gold mine’s main entrance. They are alleging that during
the initial exploration period the Canadian mining company had promised to pay
compensation in excess of 500,000 pesos (C$37,500) to the surrounding towns. The company was also to make investments in social services.
The commission members argue that the mine is now well
beyond the exploration stage, yet they have yet to see any compensation.
