The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) continues to lose popularity among mining businesses.
The sector, employing some 150,000 people, complains that the CHP seeks to undermine local production in mining, an essential element of every high-tech product, from cellphones, computers and defense to the aerospace industry. The Mining Platform, comprised of 18 nongovernmental organizations, and the Miners Association of Türkiye took offense at recent statements by Gökhan Günaydın, deputy parliamentary group chair of the CHP.
Günaydın has lashed out at the mining sector and the government in recent remarks in which he criticized mining royalties for the state, alleged gold smuggling and claimed widespread use of cyanide in mining, “whereas Europe abandoned cyanide use.”
Statements by the Platform and Association on Saturday said that the mining sector has been a primary sector taking critical responsibility to reduce Türkiye’s dependence on other countries.
“We are sending more than $60 billion in total resources abroad because we are not adequately utilizing the mines within our own territory. Supporting domestic production means keeping this enormous resource in our country and enabling our industrialists to access raw materials more easily,” the statement by the Platform said. Responding to claims that royalties paid to the state are low, the statement added: “A false perception is being created that mining enterprises pay very low shares to the state. Last year alone, our sector paid more than TL 32 billion ($700 million) to the public treasury under the heading of state royalties. In general terms, when calculated, approximately TL 30 out of every TL 100 earned by a mining enterprise goes directly to the state through various taxes and shares.”
The Turkish Miners Association also pointed out that the serious allegation that “smuggled gold is transported by helicopters,” which is not based on concrete data, is incompatible with current production and inspection processes. “Mining activities are carried out under the supervision of more than 30 public institutions. It is a legal requirement that every gram of gold produced is first refined to a purity of 99.5 out of 100 in accredited refineries in our country and then offered for sale on Borsa Istanbul. For gold bullion offered on Borsa Istanbul, the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye has the right of first purchase in exchange for Turkish lira. In addition, the claim that European Union countries have abandoned the use of cyanide is also untrue. Eighty-five percent of the gold produced worldwide is produced using the cyanide method. Modern gold facilities operate in countries such as Finland, Sweden and Norway,” the statement said.
The statement also argued that: “Mr. Günaydın’s remarks clearly contradict even the vision of domestic production initiated under the instructions of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our republic, as well as the founding philosophy of the CHP (also founded by Atatürk). This approach, which targets mining, does not align with the republic’s vision of production and its goal of economic independence.”
