THE MINING MURDER: AN INSIDER PERSPECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 000354

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E AND EEB
DS/IP/AF, DS/TIA/ITA, DS/IP/SPC/SO
LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/13/2019
TAGS: EMIN PTER ASEC PGOV ER
SUBJECT: THE MINING MURDER: AN INSIDER PERSPECTIVE

REF: ASMARA 350

Classified By: CDA Melinda Tabler-Stone for reason 1.4(d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Poloff recently met with a long-time
ex-patriate from the mining community who offered his
personal take on the October 4 murder of three Eritrean
mining workers (reftel). He did not believe the culprits
were an organized militia and emphasized that Eritreans
living near mining sites may not be as happy with the mining
companies' presence as is the Eritrean government (GSE). End
Summary.


2. (C) David Daoud (protect) has worked for mining companies
in Eritrea for seven years. He first worked with Nevsun's
Bisha discovery in 2003 and is now the Exploration Manager
for Sunridge. Mr. Daoud was one of the few people present on
April 12, 2003 when colleague Tim Nutt, a British geologist,
was found with his hands and feet tied and throat slit. Both
the mining community and Eritrean officials at the time
blamed the murder on the Eritrean Islamic Jihadists (EIJ),a
Sudanese-backed Islamist movement operating in northern
Eritrea. The group was also believed to be responsible for
the murder of two Mercy Corps employees in August of the same
year. While Daoud still attributes the 2003 murder to the
EIJ, he is not convinced that Muslim radicals had anything to
do with the recent murders.


3. (C) Daoud believes the three mining workers were shot dead
by Eritrean residents near the mining area, who either were
looking to steal gold from the workers or were simply
frustrated by the intrusive mining activities in the area.
Since the 2003 incident, Daoud continued, the GSE granted
Nevsun a 2,000 person security team permanently assigned to
the Bisha area. The three workers killed were employees of
Chalice Gold Mines, which merged with the long-established
Sub-Sahara in early October. According to Daoud,
Chalice/Sub-Sahara, did not request a security force from the
government, and was thus vulnerable to attack.


4. (SBU) Not all Eritreans are ecstatic about mining
operations. During the 6th Annual Horn of Africa
Geo-Congress, just days before the three murders,
representatives from Sunridge described attempts to make
friends of residents in Asmara's rural districts. The
presentation was the only one during the meeting to be met by
a confrontational question from an Eritrean: "I don't see how
Eritreans will benefit from these mines. Where are the
benefits?"


5. (C) COMMENT: If Daoud's view is correct, the recent
murders demonstrate two things: A) The mining community has
a long way to go to win friends, especially as they continue
to publicize their mineral discoveries while Eritrea's
population increasingly suffers from hunger and an oppressive
government. B) Despite GSE assurances otherwise, the mining
community is still vulnerable to attacks, whether from an
organized threat such as EIJ or from disgruntled residents
who are desperate to escape poverty.
TABLER-STONE