A call for integration to strengthen the confrontation with illegal mining in the municipality of Baraguá─with the rigor, rationality and systematicity required─, made the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de La O Levy, in exchange with directors of Ciego de Avila.
• On this subject, read the information They face depredation of natural resources in Ciego de Ávila.
He stressed that the tendency to control the facts is evident, appreciated during a tour of the site, where citizens of this and other provinces, mainly from the eastern part of the country, exploit a gold deposit without having authorization for that activity.
He warned about other actions, constituting a crime, associated with this activity and the risks to the safety and health of the people involved, since they do not have adequate equipment and means of protection for mining.
He also referred to the impact on the local economy by influencing the devaluation of the national currency, so that the price of goods is established accordingly with the mentioned natural resource.
In such circumstances, he evaluated the relevance of dialogue with citizens who engage in illegal activity, mostly with an adjusted social behavior, however, encouraged by the possibility of obtaining economic benefits.
He informed that decisions were adopted aimed at favoring the reduction of these events, so that the mineral reserves are safeguarded for their correct exploitation, with the objective of generating new and necessary income for the country.
De La O Levy explained that during the stay in the territory of the municipality of Baraguá, where the site in question is located, they developed technical actions and in the next few days, a group of specialists will arrive to continue studies in the area.
The actions correspond to the approval, by the Council of Ministers, of a mining concession for that area, where there is potential for progress and an international economic association showed interest in participating in extractive work.
He insisted that the confrontation is not only the responsibility of the forces of the Ministry of the Interior (Minint) or the judicial bodies, the action of social and mass organizations is also required to prevent, increase the perception of risk and raise awareness about the danger to which they are exposed.
MININT representatives advocated organized action, with ethics, discipline and the commitment to protect people who directly face the facts, taking into account the hostility and risks in the environment where they will perform their duties.
Osmany Vicente Quintana, mayor of Baraguá, expressed that it is one of the most complex situations faced in the town, which even entails the displacement of labor forces, motivated by obtaining significant profits.
Fabio José Raimundo Paz, president of the Geominero Salinero Business Group, specified that the confrontation demands will, but also adequate planning and allocation of human and material resources that allow the sustainability of the actions.
He alluded to the experience of the neighboring province of Camagüey, with positive results in the management of solutions to similar problems, by establishing a work system that brings together various factors and is based on the correct organization of operations.
Ángel Aragón Cesar, coordinator of Defense Programs and Objectives in the Provincial Government of People's Power in Ciego de Ávila, explained that a special confrontation plan will be designed for Baraguá, with the aim of reducing illegal mining and other events linked to that practice.
The governor of the territory, Tomás Alexis Martín Venegas, stated that the province will have the necessary forces and resources to contain the depredation of the aforementioned natural resources, an action that will be carried out responsibly.
To this are added, he said, other irregularities associated with the establishment in the area of people from other provinces, which requires the linking of numerous organizations to the Minint to counteract the multiple effects of this illegal activity.