«Only in 2017 they were legally given an opportunity to conduct production activities on Davydov and Lysii glaciers, but that law does not allow Centerra Gold to harm the environment,» Akylbek Japarov, deputy of the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan, chairman of the state commission on Kumtor, said at a press conference today.
According to him, since 1995, activities, which were prohibited, have been carried out on the glaciers. De facto, the work was carried out, so it was legalized in 2017.
«That is why we voted then, and I am not giving up this position. If this position is somehow changed, then the mine should be closed. There were also such proposals. But I think that the mine will serve us for years. Our commission found out that any violations by Kumtor Gold Company and Centerra Gold were not recognized and were exchanged for various funds and various sponsor support, which allows them to say that they did not violate anything,» Akylbek Japarov commented.
In turn, the director of the State Committee for Ecology and Climate Dinara Kutmanova noted that Centerra Gold is misleading.
«They say that the amendments to the Water Code passed by the Parliament gave the company the right to operate. Yes, the deputies met them halfway, allowed their activities. But no changes were made to the law on water. It says that harm to the environment is prohibited,» Dinara Kutmanova said.