On Friday, May 12, Rosebel Gold Mines N.V. (RGM) held the DENKI YU TAMARA Job Fair in Brokopondo. The job fair was also the kickoff of the Pit Intrusion Public Awareness (PIPA) campaign.
The PIPA aims to provide national education and information about the dangers and tragic consequences of what is known as “Ukem”, or illegal intrusion into the industrial zones within the RGM mining operation. At the job fair, local businesses and government agencies provided students from the district with information on alternative occupations available outside of small-scale gold mining and the Ukem phenomenon.
For Jerry Finisie, Community Relations and Development Manager at Rosebel, this is a much-needed initiative within the district to bring awareness about what Pit Intrusions are all about; “We want the Surinamese society to be aware of the dangerous situation that exists. There have been fatal incidents, and now we’re also seeing that there are rival gangs forming between the Ukemmangs. This is not a situation that can continue, so we need to start a national discussion that could lead to possible solutions.”
For the PIPA campaign, there are 3 songs produced by local artists, Enver, Rise-L, and Fayah Shule, highlighting the dangers of Pit Intrusion. The songs were officially released during the Job Fair. Besides the leadership of RGM and the DC of Brokopondo, the minister of Education, Science & Culture was also present during the opening ceremony. The aforementioned have also encouraged the attending students in a special motivational session to continue the path of education for a broader and renewed future perspective.
