Miners on Friday raised concerns over the recently established checkpoints in sections of the interior, and questioned the legitimacy of mines officers and the police demanding permits to convey gold.

According to Edward Shields of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Associa-tion (GGDMA), miners leaving the interior with their gold do not have to report to the mines officers.

"The stopping at stations has been taken off the books since 1992... it is not lawful. The only document you need to bring out your gold is your form 14," Shields told the gathering at the end-of-year meeting at the association's Quamina Street, Georgetown headquarters.

The mines officers and policemen were placed at the various checkpoints to monitor persons entering the mining districts, by ensuring that they have legitimate reasons to be in the area.

The mining sector lost a substantial amount of investment earlier in the year due to the crime situation in the country. Robeson Benn, head of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), estimated losses in the first half of the year to be about US$2M to US$3M.

The GGMC, together with the police, subsequently took the initiative to set up checkpoints at strategic points early last month in an effort to curb the increased incidents of crime against miners, but one miner on Friday labelled the monitoring officials "hustlers".

According to the man, neither the mines officers nor the police should seek to stop miners late at night while they [the miners] are leaving the interior with large quantities of gold and diamonds. Before the checkpoints were set up, a Brazilian miner was shot and killed at around noon by a group of men who had stood across the road. The bandits made off with a large quantity of gold and cash.

"Well it is not working perfect because it has some teething problems. For example, normally at these checkpoints you would find a mines officer and two TSU [ranks]. Now the object of this entire exercise is to prevent people who have no legitimate right to be in the interior [from being] there. However, like everything else, the ways they try to impose it, sometimes create more chaos. For example, we have had reports at Itaballi that unless you had a mining privilege, they were sending you back to Bartica. This, of course, was creating quite a few problems because you know that as dredge owners and claim owners when you have six men going in and they reach Itaballi and they have to go back to Bartica, next day you might be lucky if one reports," Shields explained.

As such, he said, the GGMC Commissioner has agreed that mines officers would have the authority to issue privileges. Also at Itaballi, Shields said Benn had agreed to use cellular phones to communicate and assist in alleviating the problems.

Another problem area that has surfaced in the past month is the setting up of landings or legal shops too close to the mining camps. Prior to this, the miners complained of the 'kayamoos' or illegal tent shops, which they claimed promoted prostitution and the selling of narcotics and liquor.

Shields reported that, "some action has been taken and these shops [kayamoos] have been removed... that is good news and I hope it spreads throughout. I also understand that they have been identifying landings. Now there is a problem that is coming up whereby some people are saying that these landings are coming too close to their claims. Well we have to investigate that [because] the landings must not be in a position to create difficulties for miners, and I know there is a law [which] says that a business has to be a certain distance away from a mine, so our job is to remind them of that law."

On the issue of firearm licences, the GGDMA official reported that few people had received firearms since the last meeting about a month ago, while others who applied before, are yet to be granted the permits.

Meanwhile, he said companies applying for supernumerary status are granted assistance in getting firearms, and would have special powers of arrest and to set up roadblocks. According to Shields, previously, supernumerary constables were only responsible for the client's property, but given the situation, the association was able to renegotiate that position.

"We have been able to negotiate the situation whereby you can identify some people [who] would be given special police powers. That means that they can leave the camp and follow the thief and arrest him anywhere or they can leave the camp and legally put up a roadblock, because the problem is, by the time they [the bandits] rob you in the interior [and] you call the police to get any help, they have long left the location. So you yourself would have people who would be specially trained and sworn in to have those powers to follow them...that has been agreed to and quite a few companies are involved in it actively."