“The same river that brought us life, is now slowly killing us”~ Ikine Apalakali-Timpico, Resident in Suriname’s Wayana Indigenous Territory
Did you know that small-scale, illegal gold-mining activities are plaguing various Wayana Indigenous villages in the deep south of Suriname?
Located in Suriname’s Lawa area, these Indigenous villages have seen nearly every aspect of their livelihoods being affected by gold-mining.
Over time, rivers in these villages have been contaminated by the waste generated from these activities and the Indigenous stewards of these lands have been displaced by land grabs.
These illegal gold-mining operations have also disrupted traditional hunting grounds and holy ancestral locations.
In an interview with Cari-Bois, Indigenous environmental activist, Jupta Itoewaki, recounted how she witnessed her village – Kawemhakan – slowly being transformed from paradise to a casualty of gold-mining.
Also the Chairperson of the Mulokot Foundation, Itoewaki also constantly speaks out about the shear destruction occurring in other villages including Lensidede and Kumakhapan.
Wayana Indigenous Peoples
The Wayana people are an Indigenous group who reside in the northern Amazon region, specifically in Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil.
In Suriname, the Wayana live near the banks of the Lawa, Litani, Oelemari, and above Tapanahony in the deep southeast of Suriname.
Their ancestors came from the southern neighbouring country in the eighteenth century and founded the three main villages: Apetina (Puleowime), Palumeu, and Kawemhakan (Anapaike).
Over the years, the population of the Wayana has dramatically decreased due to a myriad of factors such as wars and diseases.
Currently, Suriname has approximately 800-900 Wayana people.
Together with French Guiana and Brazil, the total population is estimated to be around 2500 inhabitants.
During Itoewaki’s interview with Cari-Bois, her aunt, Ikine Apalakali-Timpico, who was sitting nearby, chimed in.
Like Itoewaki, she also grew up in Kawemhakan and could barely contain her tears as her niece was giving a breakdown of how mining activities are destroying the village.
Apalakali-Timpico told Cari-Bois, “When I was in Apetina last October, I looked down at the water and was immediately transported back to my childhood.
“I thought to myself, the water in Kawemhakan used to be the same way.
“Clean, healthy and pure. Now our water is murky and contaminated, the same river that brought us life is slowly killing us.”
Health and Wellbeing
According to Itoewaki, the Wayana’s main traditional food source is fish which is consumed in larger quantities than meats obtained from hunting.
However, smaller fish – like Opi and Talani – are vulnerable to the bioaccumulation of mercury which gets in their system.
Consequently, large predatory fish species such as Aïmala (Giant Wolf Fish/ Hoplias Aimara) and Pëne (Piranha), who feed on the small fish types, are also unsafe for consumption.
Itoewaki explained, “The health effects are experienced throughout our village.
“So many of our babies were born with disabilities in the past years.
“Our children have neurological disorders and the women are steadily developing loss of sensation in their arms and legs.”
Itoewaki’s presumptions about the health effects of mercury on her people are not unsubstantiated.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency classifies Methylmercury as a vigorous neurotoxin which has devastating and lasting health effects.
Exposure to methylmercury through the consumption of fish that have high levels of methylmercury in their tissues, can lead to various neurological disorders including loss of peripheral vision, muscle weakness, tingling sensations and impairment of speech, hearing, walking.
For fetuses, infants and children the exposure can negatively impact the developing brains and nervous systems.
Brazilian Gold-miners
For context, Kawemhakan is directly located along the Lawa River, near the borders with French-Guiana and Brazil.
Apetina & Palumeu are located along the Tapanahony river, which is a branch of the Lawa River.
Due to Kawemhakan’s geographical location, it is easy for Brazilian gold-miners to travel to the area.
Just a ten-minute boat ride away, within 5 kilometers of Kawemhakan and other Wayana villages on the French side of the border, lies the gold-mining village Jaw Pasi.
Itoewaki states that between 2000-3000 Brazilians live in Jaw Pasi where gold-mining activities occur front and center.
Itoewaki added, “Surinamese citizens have various gold-concessions in the area and allow the Brazilians to work for them.
“In some instances, the Brazilian workers get into conflict with the Suriname concession holders.
“In those cases, the Brazilians keep exploiting their activities.
“Because the concessions are extremely large in areas, the owners can’t oversee whether the Brazilians have left or not.”
Ordening Goudsector (OGS, the Planning Commission for the Gold Sector)
Suriname’s Ordening Goudsector (OGS, the Planning Commission for the Gold Sector) was founded in 2011.
In 2020, the committee for regulation of the gold-mining sector was established.
Now, the regulation of the gold-mining sector falls under direct coordination of current Vice President, Ronnie Brunswijk, a prominent figure within the Surinamese gold-mining business.
In December 2023, Brunswijk underlined the importance of regulation of the sector, but said that no funds were being released to do so.
The Minister of Natural Resources, David Abiamofo, also indicated that there are no funds available to regulate the sector.
While speaking to the media in January 2024, Abiamofo said, “ Gold-mining does not occur in Paramaribo or Wanica, it takes place in remote areas, you need financial resources to reach the areas.”
These dynamics indicate there is a lack of motivation on behalf of the authorities to invest in sufficiently regulating the country’s gold-mining industry.
Phasing out Small-Scale Gold Mining in Suriname
Suriname ascended to the Minamata Convention on Mercury on August 2nd 2018, vowing to phase out mercury use in small-scale gold-mining under article 7.
In a press release from the Surinamese government in November 2023, Minister of Spatial Planning and the Environment, Marciano Dasai, has set-out a time-line of five years for the mercury phase out to be completed.
Dasai indicated that this goal has its challenges, but promised to devise a detailed plan to achieve it.
Whether this plan will be translated from theory to practice remains to be seen.
To date, Itoewaki said she has not seen any efforts to combat the mercury use in gold-mining.
On the contrary, she claims the issue has worsened as the illegal-gold mining sector is expanding and more Wayana territory is destroyed each year.
In January, Dasai was invited by French ambassador in Suriname, Nicolas DeLacoste, on a helicopter flight above the Marowijne area overseeing various gold-mines.
The ambassador pleaded for a targeted bi-lateral approach in order to attain a sustainable solution.
Itoewaki lamented that the consequences of mercury use in Suriname’s gold-mining activities reach further than health and wellbeing.
Oftentimes, traditional Wayana hunting grounds and agriculture plots are occupied for gold-mining usage which destroys biodiversity in the process.
Furthermore, the scale on which deforestation is taking place is unimaginable.
She said, “Every time you fly above the area, you can observe the worsening deforestation with the naked eye, it’s devastating.”
