Peru’s Congress has passed an extension to a scheme allowing temporary permits to be given to small-scale informal miners, which allows them to continue working while seeking formalization, reported Reuters.
Legislators moved forward a bill proposed earlier by the Energy and Mining Legislative Committee to extend for six months a registry called REINFO, which is set to expire on 31 December.
The government has pushed for the scheme to end, claiming that its misuse over more than a decade has caused illegal mining to increase. However, Peruvian small-scale miners have been demanding REINFO be extended by two years.
Reuters noted that the miners have rejected the bill as inadequate and have been blocking a key southern transport route for over a week. In Lima, hundreds of artisanal miners have camped out in front of the legislature.
Source: Reuters