New complaints against harmful gold, oil exploration in Sudan

Residents in Kordofan and Darfur states have filed new complaints against the use of mercury, cyanide and other harmful substances in areas of gold and oil exploration.

People from North and West Kordofan, East Darfur and Red Sea state collaboratively filed the complaint to the Sudanese Parliament on Sunday. They accuse the oil exploration companies of evading their legal obligation and social responsibility to the people and the environment.

The deputy chairman of the committee on energy and mining, El Hadi Hamid Beto, claimed that gold mining and oil companies “have errors within the framework of social responsibility”.

“There is no motivation […] to conduct an investigation or to hold corporates accountable for such violations.”

Independent Member of Parliament Bakri Salamah warned for an escalation of the situation in South Kordofan, where locals burned parts of a mining factory that belongings to El Hadaf Company in Talodi on Saturday. The angry mob protested against the use of cyanide in the extraction of gold.

Demonstrations against the use of chemicals in the extraction of gold have popped up in the country as mining companies have increased their activities in parts of South Kordofan, as well as in Northern Sudan.