On July 27, an indigenous community in Suriname sounded the alarm after a large shipment of equipment suspected to be used for illegal gold mining was delivered to the border between Atjoni and the Matawai people’s traditional territory. The incident has sparked swift pushback from community leaders and environmental advocates, who are demanding an immediate end to the encroachment.
Visual evidence obtained by local media outlet Starnieuws clearly shows heavy machinery, water pumps, barrels of fuel oil, and other specialized gear consistent with small-scale and industrial gold mining operations already staged at a makeshift camp within the territory. Marlon Valentijn, captain of the Matawai community, traveled to the site immediately after receiving reports of the incursion to assess the situation firsthand.
In an interview with Starnieuws, Valentijn stated that camp occupants were given an unambiguous order to leave the area immediately. “We do not want any gold mining activities on our land,” he stated firmly, emphasizing that the Matawai have never consented to extractive operations in their traditional homeland, and the entire community remains united in blocking any attempts to begin mining. During his inspection of the camp, Valentijn encountered two Brazilian men who told him their project supervisor is based in Paramaribo, Suriname’s capital. He confirmed that a substantial volume of equipment has already been moved into the area, and additional excavators are reportedly en route to the site.
Valentijn announced that relevant national authorities have already been notified of the incursion, and the community is taking all available steps to prevent the unauthorized mining operation from expanding. The situation has also been brought to the attention of John Goedschalk, presidential climate advisor for Suriname and a prominent environmental activist. Goedschalk described the new incursion as deeply worrying, and extended his full and unreserved support to the Matawai community in their opposition to the mining.
He rejected outright any attempt to develop gold mining operations in the Matawai territory, stressing that no extractive activity should be forced on a community that has clearly stated it does not welcome such projects. For his part, Captain Valentijn said he chose to speak publicly about the incident to make the Matawai’s position clear to all outside parties: no form of gold extraction will be accepted on their traditional land.
“We want everyone to know that this activity is not permitted on our territory,” Valentijn said, adding that the community will formalize its opposition in official communications with national authorities. He reiterated that all people occupying the camp and all mining equipment must be removed from the area without delay. This latest conflict over unauthorized gold mining comes amid a broader ongoing public debate in Suriname over unregulated extractive activity across the country’s interior, with previous investigative reporting exposing systemic governance gaps and unaddressed environmental damage along key waterways including the Marowijne River.