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Demonstrators march in a parade during a protest against a mining contract between the Panamanian government and the Canadian mining company First Quantum, in Panama City. November 3, 2023
PANAMA’S President Laurentino Cortizo signed into law an indefinite moratorium on new mining concessions on Friday, which also prohibits renewing existing concessions.
Panama’s National Assembly approved the Bill on Thursday. An article was removed, however, that would have revoked a controversial mining contract that sparked nationwide protests over the past two weeks.
The new law will still allow Minera Panama to operate an open-pit copper mine in the state of Colon for 20 years, with a possible extension for another 20 years.
One of the major criticisms of China’s breakneck development in recent decades has been the impact on nature — returning after 15 years away, BEN CHACKO assessed whether the government’s recent turn to environmentalism has yielded results
