[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 169 (Tuesday, September 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6744-S6745]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 391--EXPRESSING CONCERN ABOUT THE RISE IN ILLICIT 
   MINING AND TRAFFICKING OF GOLD IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE PERVASIVE 
    PROBLEM THAT SUCH MINING POSES FOR THE SECURITY, STABILITY, AND 
                       ENVIRONMENT OF THE REGION

  Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Cardin, and Mr. Kaine) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Relations.:

                               S. Res 391

       Whereas during the 10-year period immediately preceding the 
     date of enactment of this Resolution, Latin America has 
     witnessed an alarming increase in the illicit mining and 
     trafficking of gold and other valuable minerals;
       Whereas illicit gold mining is a significant challenge 
     across Latin America, specifically in the Andean and 
     Amazonian regions, where, according to the internationally 
     recognized nongovernmental organization Global Initiative 
     against Transnational Organized Crime--
       (1) Venezuela leads the region with approximately 90 
     percent of the gold extracted in that country being mined 
     illicitly;
       (2) Colombia and Ecuador closely follow with approximately 
     80 percent of the gold extracted in those countries being 
     mined illicitly; and
       (3) nearly 30 percent of the gold extracted in Bolivia and 
     Peru is mined illicitly;
       Whereas illicit gold mining involves the extraction of gold 
     in violation of the laws of the country in which the activity 
     occurs and mostly takes place in remote geographic areas with 
     limited government presence, leaving opportunities for 
     transnational criminal organizations to exploit this practice 
     to generate billions of dollars in illicit profits to bolster 
     their strength and long-term viability;
       Whereas the profits derived from illicit gold mining have 
     become a leading source of the illicit financial activities 
     in the region, surpassing the profits generated by coca and 
     cocaine production in recent years;
       Whereas transnational criminal organizations use illicit 
     gold trafficking as a mechanism to launder profits from other 
     illicit activities, which frequently threatens the national 
     security of the United States and undermines legal 
     international trade by compromising the lawful gold supply 
     chain and exploiting the United States financial system for 
     illegal gain;
       Whereas the presence of transnational criminal 
     organizations in mining and trading chains of gold and other 
     valuable minerals profoundly threatens the safety, security, 
     and cultural integrity of indigenous communities across Latin 
     America;
       Whereas illicit gold mining often devastates the 
     environment and is destructive to rural and indigenous 
     communities since it violates legal standards and safety 
     requirements and often involves the illegal use of mercury, a 
     potent toxin that, when used improperly, contaminates water 
     supplies in the areas surrounding illicit mining sites, and 
     can result in acute and long-term poisoning in people;
       Whereas the recent activities associated with illicit gold 
     mining include cutting down rainforests and creating pools of 
     stagnant water, which contribute to the spread of mosquitoes 
     and insect-borne disease, inciting an epidemic of malaria in 
     Venezuela at levels not seen in the past 75 years;
       Whereas in May 2016, former President of Peru, Ollanta 
     Humala, declared a 60-day emergency in the Madre de Dios 
     region near Peru's southeastern border with Brazil in an 
     attempt to curb high levels of mercury poisoning of residents 
     due to the impacts of illicit gold mining;
       Whereas, on February 24, 2016, the authoritarian government 
     of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela enacted a decree that 
     announced a new legal framework for open mining under the 
     name of ``Orinoco Mining Arc'' as a means to diversify the 
     regime's cash flow, an action done without the approval of 
     the democratically elected National Assembly, as required by 
     Venezuela's Constitution;
       Whereas the Orinoco Mining Arc decree can impact the 
     mercury content in waters in southern Venezuela and devastate 
     the unique ecosystems of the Amazon, including World Heritage 
     Site Canaima National Park, which is the ancestral land of 
     the Pemon indigenous people and where at least 59 mining 
     sites have been detected;
       Whereas corruption and the weak rule of law in Venezuela 
     has allowed transnational criminal organizations, drug 
     trafficking organizations, insurgent groups, and other armed 
     groups to control and financially benefit from illicit mining 
     operations, many of which have exerted control over different 
     parts of the Orinoco Mining Arc region and beyond, such as 
     Yapacana National Park and the Alto Orinoco-Casiquiare 
     Biosphere Reserve, home to indigenous communities of 17 
     ethnic groups, including the Yanomami and Ye'kuana tribes;
       Whereas, according to the Center for Strategic and 
     International Studies, more than 500,000 workers are involved 
     in mining operations in Venezuela, of whom--
       (1) approximately 45 percent are underage; and
       (2) the majority are from indigenous communities who were 
     coerced into working through threats of violence;
       Whereas the Organization for Economic Co-operation and 
     Development, in a September 2021 report, expressed concern 
     that the flow of all the gold produced within Venezuela, 
     which is estimated to total as much as 75 tons per year, with 
     a market value of more than $4,400,000,000, has a high risk 
     of contributing to serious human rights abuses, direct or 
     indirect support for non-state armed groups, corruption, 
     money laundering, and tax evasion;
       Whereas Executive Order 13850, which was issued on November 
     1, 2018, sanctioned individuals involved in illicit gold 
     operations that propped up the illegitimate regime of Nicolas 
     Maduro;
       Whereas the United States signed Memorandums of 
     Understanding with the governments of Peru and Colombia in 
     2017 and 2018, respectively, in an effort to combat illicit 
     mining and minimize its negative impacts: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses deep concern about the threat that illicit 
     gold mining in Latin America poses for the security, 
     stability, and environment of the region;
       (2) recognizes the threat that illicit gold mining in Latin 
     America poses for the national security of the United States;
       (3) supports the rights of the rural and indigenous 
     populations that have been deeply affected by illicit gold 
     mining practices in the region;

[[Page S6745]]

       (4) supports the efforts of the United States Government to 
     expand bilateral cooperation with the governments of 
     Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru to combat illicit gold mining;
       (5) condemns the Maduro regime for directly and indirectly 
     facilitating illicit mining of gold and other minerals in 
     Venezuela;
       (6) denounces the Maduro regime's involvement in illicit 
     mining practices in the Amazonas and Bolivar states, which 
     have led to human rights abuses, destruction of indigenous 
     social fabric, deforestation, habitat loss, environmental 
     degradation, and a rise in cases of malaria and other related 
     diseases in Venezuela;
       (7) calls for better regional and international 
     coordination among government and industry actors to monitor 
     and mitigate the environmental, human rights, and security 
     risks posed by gold flows out of Venezuela; and
       (8) encourages efforts to promote legal, regulated, and 
     sustainable mining practices in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, 
     Peru, and Venezuela after democratic order is restored.

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