Former Canadian PM urged to withdraw from Ivanhoe

by Salai Pi Pi
Friday, 10 July 2009 22:08

New Delhi (Mizzima) - The Canadian Friends of Burma (CFOB), a Non-Governmental Organization, has exhorted Jean Chretien, former Canadian Prime Minister to cancel his contract with the Canadian firm Ivanhoe Mines operating a copper mine in northwest Burma.

Speaking to Mizzima, Tin Maung Htoo, Executive Director of the Canada based CFOB on Friday said, it is disgraceful that Jean Chretien had taken a consulting contract with Ivanhoe Mines for personal interests. He urged him to cancel the contract.

“As a former Prime Minister [of Canada], he should not have accepted a contract with the company which has had a bad record regarding investment in Burma because of personal interests,” Tin Maung Htoo said.

“He should cancel his contract with the company [Ivanhoe],” he added.

The CFOB’s call came after Ivanhoe Mines on Wednesday issued a statement where Robert Friedland, Executive Chairman of Ivanhoe announced the appointment of Jean Chretien as the company’s senior international adviser.

CFOB said Chretien was recruited by Ivanhoe possibly as a move to remove Myanmar Ivanhoe Copper Company Limited (MICCL), with which Ivanhoe has a 50-50 joint venture in a copper mine in Burma, from the US sanctions list.

"Ivanhoe desperately wants to get their Burmese joint venture off the US sanctions list. It is a major embarrassment for them and an impediment to their international business interests,” Tin Maung Htoo explained, “Buying the support of a former Canadian Prime Minister will certainly boost Ivanhoe's efforts to remove their joint venture from the American sanctions list.”

The US had put Ivanhoe’s joint venture MICCL in its sanctions list imposed in 2008.

Moreover, the administration under Harper, Prime Minister of Canada in 2007, had imposed sanctions against Burma called the Special Economic Measures Act, which included a ban on new investment in Burma by Canadians and companies, following a bloody crackdown by the junta on the protests led by Burmese Buddhist monks in August in 2007.

However, Ivanhoe was exempted form Canada’s economic measures against Burma as the company was already in the country before 2007.

After the September protests, Ivanhoe in October 2007 announced that it has no interests or activities or no personnel employed representing the company in Burma. It said the company had divested all its interests in Burma to an independent, third-party trust, which CFOB called a ‘blind trust’ on February 27, 2007 under the terms of Ivanhoe’s negotiation of its strategic partnership with Rio Tinto announced in October 2006.

However, CFOB said Ivanhoe is still operating a copper mine in Burma as it has not publicly disclosed the ownership of its Burma assets known as an independent, third-party trust.

“The ‘blind trust’ is extremely convenient for Ivanhoe because the firm can continue to own a 50 percent stake in the mine and claim they've pulled out of Burma,” said the CFOB in statement.

Moreover, CFOB said, Ivanhoe has done nothing to maintain the environment and address toxic pollution caused by the mine which has severely impacted neighboring farmlands, forests and rivers.

“According to a survey, among 5681 acres of mining area, 1507 acres are contaminated by toxic pollution,” Tin Maung Htoo said.