United Nations Human Rights Commission / Letter and Responses
The United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC) Special Procedures sent a Joint Communication to Barrick and Veladero Gold Mine, dated 16 September 2022, raising queries regarding a complaint submitted to the Special Procedures concerning alleged spills at Veladero, and notably an unsubstantiated allegation of a spill in 2021.
Barrick welcomed the correspondence and submitted a detailed response to the UNHRC, dated 15 November 2022. In addition, the Government of Argentina, and JV Partners Shandong Gold, provided their own respective responses.
The Joint Communication and comprehensive responses from Barrick are provided herein. The respective responses from the Government of Argentina and Shandong Gold can also be found here.
In summary, there is no evidence to support any allegation of a spill taking place and Barrick believes the complaint to the Special Procedures to be the product of a deliberate and orchestrated agenda against the company. It must be noted that the contents of the Joint Communication merely quote the allegations of the complaint and do not represent the findings of the UNHRC Special Procedures, as some media publications have incorrectly purported to say.
Barrick remains committed to engaging with transparency through this process. It has already followed up on three occasions with the UNHRC Special Procedures, with the latest correspondence having been sent on 9 January 2023 (below), offering to assist in the investigation, including by facilitating site visits, and requesting that the working group publish their conclusions so that this matter can be resolved as expeditiously as possible.
Letter to Barrick from Special Procedures Branch / 16 September 2022
Barrick Response to Special Procedures Branch / 15 November 2022
Barrick Follow-Up to Special Procedures Branch / 12 January 2023