分类： politics

After decades of unregulated, unpaid river sand extraction in Suriname’s Klaaskreek and Nieuw-Lombé regions, Minister of Natural Resources David Abiamofo has announced a definitive end to the long-running illegal activity that has cost the state millions in lost revenue over 25 years.

Speaking before the National Assembly (De Nationale Assemblee, DNA), Abiamofo detailed the scope of the problem: for more than two and a half decades, multiple mining barges operated simultaneously in the region without the required government permits, and no royalties were ever paid to the state for the extracted sand. What is more, the minister confirmed that political leaders, administrative officials, and even segments of traditional local authorities had been aware of the unauthorized operations throughout this entire period, allowing the illegal activity to continue unchecked and rob public coffers of consistent revenue.

Efforts to regulate the sector and formalize legal operations have been underway for several years, but the process has faced significant legal hurdles. After the ministry revoked one previously granted mining right, the license holder filed a legal challenge. In a May 12, 2026 ruling, the court sided with the claimant, ordering the state to reverse the revocation within two months and imposing a penalty for non-compliance. Abiamofo confirmed his ministry has since honored the judicial ruling.

Following the court decision, the ministry facilitated closed negotiations with all involved stakeholders to resolve tensions and establish a clear framework for future operations, a process that has now reached a successful conclusion. Under the new agreed terms, the current mining right holder is barred from entering the two affected local villages. In exchange, village authorities have agreed to stop acting as unauthorized permit-issuing bodies for extraction activities, a practice that had long contributed to the region’s regulatory chaos.

To give local communities a formal stake in legal operations, Abiamofo announced that village groups will now be able to nominate legal entities to apply for official mining rights on their behalf. The Ministry of Natural Resources will provide full guidance through the application process, in partnership with local administrative services and the district commissioner. The new framework, the minister emphasized, will put a permanent end to the toleration of any extraction activity that falls outside official legal processes.

“Anyone who wants to engage in sand mining must apply for the appropriate permit through the official legal procedure,” Abiamofo told parliament. The core end goal of the reforms, he added, is to bring all extraction activity into full legal compliance and ensure the state receives rightful revenue from the exploitation of national natural resources.

During parliamentary questioning, the minister also faced questions about the role of traditional authorities in managing natural resources within their traditional territories. Lawmakers raised particular concerns about cases where revenue from community assets, including community forests and sand mining operations, fails to benefit the broader local population.

The discussion in the National Assembly made clear that the crackdown on illegal sand mining touches on a far broader national issue: beyond simply legalizing existing extraction operations, the debate forces a reckoning with two unresolved core questions—who holds the legitimate authority to approve natural resource exploitation, and how can the country ensure revenue from these public resources is distributed fairly and benefits all relevant stakeholders.

Suriname’s debate over gold mining concessions has intensified following a recent outbreak of mass fish deaths in the Saramacca River, with Natural Resources Minister David Abiamofo pushing back against accusations that his administration approved new mining permits in the sensitive region surrounding Pikin Saron and Maripaston. In testimony before the National Assembly (DNA) on August 20, the minister firmly stated that all contested mining rights in the area predate his assumption of office, clarifying that no new concessions have been granted under his watch.

The controversy surrounding the concessions emerged as lawmakers pushed for full transparency around mining activity in the area affected by the recent fish mortality event, which has raised widespread public concerns about the environmental impact of unregulated or poorly monitored gold extraction. Abiamofo has already submitted an initial overview of active gold concessions to the National Assembly, but lawmakers specifically requested additional, targeted details about permits in the Pikin Saron vicinity.

Addressing parliamentary questions, Abiamofo emphasized, “This minister has issued zero new gold concessions in that area – zero.” He went on to outline that many of the active mining rights in the region were first granted as far back as 2011, 2012, 2015, and 2017, long before he took up his ministerial post. To resolve lingering confusion over the timing of permit issuance, the minister has committed to expanding the existing concession overview to add a new column explicitly noting the original year each mining right was first granted. This additional context, he explained, will clarify the historical background of each concession, a critical detail given that permits are often extended or modified over the course of their lifecycle, leading to misperceptions about when the original approval was granted.

The parliamentary discussion soon expanded beyond concession timing to broader questions about how Suriname regulates and oversees its lucrative gold mining sector. Lawmakers noted that current rules require concession holders to submit regular activity and production reports to the Geological and Mining Service, but many argue existing oversight frameworks are fragmented and insufficient.

VHP party faction leader Asis Gajadien has proposed a sweeping overhaul of sector transparency, calling for the integration of disconnected datasets covering concession issuance, production volumes, extraction methods, environmental impact, tax payments, and gold exports. Gajadien argued that linking these disparate information streams would allow authorities to track the entire gold supply chain from initial permit approval through to final export, closing gaps that enable illegal activity and environmental harm.

Gajadien also brought forward the proposal for a dedicated Gold Board, framing the institution not as an unnecessary additional bureaucratic layer, but as a coordinating mechanism to unify information flows across the sector and strengthen regulatory oversight. The parliamentary session also raised fresh questions about the state-owned gold mining company Grassalco, with lawmakers demanding greater transparency around reports that third-party operators are exploiting portions of the company’s concessions. Legislators have called for full clarity on the terms of these third-party arrangements and the revenue that Grassalco earns from these agreements.

Bangladesh is making a notable mark in its modern political history on Thursday, as the country holds its first contested presidential election with multiple candidates since 1991. The vote, cast by 349 sitting members of parliament, is expected to deliver a final result within hours of polling closing, according to the country’s election commission.

The election was triggered by the mid-term resignation of former President Mohammed Shahabuddin last month. Shahabuddin, an Awami League (AL) nominee elected in 2023 when ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina still held power, stepped down after Hasina was removed from office in August 2024, an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took office, and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) returned to power in February this year, cutting short what was meant to be a five-year presidential term.

Thursday’s vote marks the first time Bangladeshi parliamentarians have had a choice of presidential candidates in 35 years. The last competitive presidential election took place in October 1991, when BNP candidate Abdur Rahman Biswas defeated AL nominee Badrul Haider Chowdhury 172 votes to 92. Every presidential vote held after that contest went uncontested, with no opposition candidates putting their names forward.

While the outcome of Thursday’s vote is widely seen as a foregone conclusion due to the BNP’s parliamentary majority, the election carries heavy symbolic weight for a country still rebuilding and reforming its state institutions two years after the 2024 pro-democracy uprising that upended the country’s political order.

The two candidates on the ballot bring decades of Bangladeshi political experience to the race. The ruling BNP’s nominee, 78-year-old Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, is one of the party’s most recognizable and long-serving leaders. He became acting secretary-general of the BNP in 2011 before being officially confirmed to the post in 2016, and emerged as one of the party’s most prominent public faces during its years in opposition to Hasina’s government. Following the BNP’s electoral victory earlier this year, Alamgir was appointed Minister of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives.

Speaking at a party rally on the eve of the vote, Alamgir thanked Prime Minister Tarique Rahman for his nomination and pledged to uphold Bangladesh’s independence and national sovereignty if elected. Rahman, in turn, formally urged all BNP members of parliament to cast their ballots for Alamgir.

Alamgir’s challenger is 85-year-old retired army colonel Oli Ahmad, a 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War veteran who is running as the candidate for an 11-party opposition coalition led by Jamaat-e-Islami. Ahmad, who currently chairs the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and has served six terms as a member of parliament, first entered politics after leaving the army in 1979, joining the BNP in 1980. He served as a communications minister under former BNP Prime Minister Khaleda Zia before splitting from the party to found the LDP in 2006. He was once a close ally of Ziaur Rahman, the founder of the BNP and father of current Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.

Ahmad’s nomination is a politically notable one: his main backer, Jamaat-e-Islami, infamously sided with Pakistan and opposed Bangladesh’s independence during the 1971 Liberation War, while Ahmad himself fought on the pro-independence side. Though Ahmad is widely considered an underdog with little chance of winning, the opposition coalition has framed his candidacy as a way to force a contested vote, ending more than three decades of unopposed presidential appointments.

Public opinion on the two candidates is deeply divided among Bangladeshis. Anwarul Islam, a former Bangladesh Bank employee, praised Alamgir for his personal integrity, saying, “I visited Mirza Fakhrul’s constituency. People across all castes and religions hold deep affection for him. His integrity is rare among Bangladeshi politicians.” By contrast, Abdul Baten, a construction site manager in the capital Dhaka, said he favored Ahmad, noting, “I definitely prefer Oli because he is a seasoned politician. His opponent Fakhrul and the BNP have failed to keep their promises on state restructuring.”

In terms of the office’s actual political weight, Bangladesh’s constitution designates the president as a ceremonial head of state with very limited independent executive power. Article 48(3) of the constitution requires the president to follow the advice of the prime minister on all matters except the appointment of the prime minister and the chief justice.

Ali Riaz, a political scientist who contributed to state reform efforts under Yunus’s interim government, welcomed the return of a contested election but warned against overstating its practical impact. “It is good to see someone who led the democratic movement and fought against a fascist regime become president,” Riaz explained. “But because of the limited powers of the presidency, the election is less significant politically.”

Riaz pointed out that the National Charter on State Reform, approved by referendum in July, already outlines a plan to have future presidents elected by a bicameral parliament, but the creation of a powerful upper house to improve checks and balances has not yet been implemented. He also questioned how meaningful a contested vote can be when the ruling party already holds a clear parliamentary majority: “The election is more of a ritual than a substantive political event.”

For families of the more than 1,400 people killed during the 2024 uprising, Shahabuddin’s resignation and this new presidential vote is a necessary step forward, but many still hold concerns about the integrity of the process. “It should have happened much earlier, but it is good that it is happening now,” said Sanjida Khan Deepti, whose 17-year-old son Shahriar Khan Anas was killed during the uprising. However, she raised questions about the impact of party discipline on free voting: “If a member of parliament cannot vote for who they think is best for the country, what is the point of voting? Our children gave their lives for democracy.”

The election has also reignited long-running debates over Article 70 of the Bangladeshi constitution, which strips parliamentarians of their seats if they vote against their party’s line, and whether this rule should apply to presidential voting.

Despite its inherent limitations and widely expected outcome, Thursday’s vote marks a historic turning point for Bangladesh: for the first time in more than three decades, voters in parliament have a choice between two candidates for the country’s highest office.