Bolivia: 19 miners trapped by rival group inside mine

LA PAZ, Bolivia – A group of wildcat miners used dynamite to trap 19 rivals inside a mine in a remote area of Bolivia, authorities said on Friday.

Police said that about 100 miners used dynamite blasts to block the mine’s entrance and took control of another way out of the Asientos mine. Police said the life of the trapped miners is not at risk.

The silver, lead and zinc mine is located some 200 miles (320 kilometers) southeast of the Bolivian capital. A police unit was sent to try to rescue the miners, who were getting food and water through ventilation ducts.

“We don’t want to take the other entrance by force to avoid clashes,” said Eleuterio Galindo, a leader of the Asientos mining cooperative that includes the miners who were taken hostage.

Bolivia’s informal or artisan miners number about 100,000 and work in self-managed cooperatives. Clashes between wildcat miners are frequent in the mining-dependent Andean nation and some have turned deadly.

Last year, striking informal miners kidnapped and beat to death Bolivia’s deputy government minister after he traveled to the area to mediate in a conflict over mining laws.

“Conflicts between miners in these work zones are frequent, but they never took anyone hostage,” said Melecio Garcia, the mayor of Mizque, a town close to the mine.