Emerald dust in Colombia: the dream of artisanal miners

First shouting, then pushing and shoving. As soon as the enclosure opens, hundreds of artisanal miners rush in and rush onto piles of black sand, waste from an emerald multinational, &agrav; the search for a small precious stone that will take them out of poverty.

In Colombia, 200 kilometers north of Bogota, in the foothills of the eastern Andes, the municipality of Muzo is known as the emerald capital of the world.

Since three in the morning, queues of a kilometer have been forming next to “la voladora”, a fenced area at the foot of a green mountain, where the American company Esmeraldas Mining Services (EMS) regularly deposits tons of earth from its production.

– Treasure hunters –

Miguel Hernandez, 72 years old, waits his turn. “May our Holy Father give me a gift to buy me a little house,” he confided to AFP, clutching his cane.

Emerald seekers in “La Voladora” in Muzo, Boyaca department, Colombia, June 19, 2024 © AFP – Luis ACOSTA

The “guaqueros”, or treasure hunters, search the piles of earth with bags and shovels. They also sift through a nearby stream in the hope of finding an emerald among the remains dumped by the excavators.

Local guaquero associations, with authorization from the EMS, organize the logistics. They divide the miners into groups of men, women, elderly people and disabled people… crowds of poor people living on the crumbs of industrial production.

” People push you, trample you,” says Maria Rodriguez, 58, who avoids the stampede and prefers to wait for her husband at the entrance to the “voladora”.

The scene repeats itself several times a month, in this region of central Colombia, one of the main emerald-producing countries in the world, with 122 million dollars in exports in 2022, according to the National Federation of the sector.

– Green fever –

After about four hours of searching, the minors came from different backgrounds –Venezuelan migrants who fled the crisis and residents of other regions– almost all finish their work empty-handed.

Emerald seekers carry bags of earth in “La Voladora” in Muzo, Boyaca department, Colombia, June 19, 2024 © AFP – Luis ACOSTA

The mayor of Muzo, Ximena Castañeda, considers that “mining poses a delicate problem” because “people live in the hope of one day being millionaires”, in a country where Extreme poverty affects 37% of the population.

“Some come to earn money, many will never earn any,” laments the head of the municipality of 9,000 inhabitants, nestled in the heart of the mountains.

If its administration focuses on agriculture and tourism to diversify the economy, businesses are multiplying around mine waste.

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Vendors and small businesses of food, beer and utensils earn, according to the associations, the equivalent of some 5,000 dollars per day.

Félix Osorio, 72 years old and visually impaired, dreams of ” spend a quieter old age. “It’s a job of patience and perseverance,” he wants to believe.

An emerald researcher shows his discoveries in a mine in Muzo, Boyaca department, Colombia, June 18, 2024 © AFP – Luis ACOSTA

Miners also try their luck in old abandoned pits or in the earth returned from old mines, in the era when dynamite was used.

“I have been here in the mine for 30 years. We bring out emeralds from time to time (…) but it is more and more difficult”, notes Gilberto Cifuentes, 54 years old.< /p>

– “Without God or law” –

In Muzo, the biggest share of the pie remains in the hands of mining multinationals or powerful families involved in the business.

An emerald prospector in the Las Animas river in Muzo, Boyaca department, Colombia, June 18, 2024 © AFP – Luis ACOSTA

Steven Ariza, 35, has chaired the committee of the guaqueros association of the intercommunal community of Muzo since his predecessor was assassinated in 2022. He advocates for the EMS to hire more villagers, source locally and invest in a region once plagued by violence, he explains.

In the 1980s, rivalries between emerald miners sparked a “green war” that left thousands dead in the department of Boyaca.

Muzo was then “a zone without God or law,” recalls historian Petrit Baquero. Then, Victor Carranza (1935-2013), nicknamed “the emerald czar”, imposed a monopoly, with the support of paramilitary groups and drug traffickers, according to intelligence reports.

An emerald researcher shows his discoveries in a mine in Muzo, Boyaca department, Colombia, June 18, 2024 © AFP – Luis ACOSTA

The region is peaceful today. The big families got along, the mafias apparently disappeared, the mines were privatized.

EMS, which did not respond to requests from AFP, a foundation which carries out social projects in the region, but in Muzo “people need help”, told AFP Steven Medina, organizer of visits for tourists and foreign buyers.

Almost sixty years old, Gilberto the miner recognizes that it is time for him to look for better work elsewhere after decades of misery and difficulties.

“Being a guaquero is hard (…) We set deadlines and deadlines (…)”. This permanent uncertainty, mixed with the illusory hope of making a fortune, was his fuel but also his perdition, he admits with resignation.

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