Clinton run for presidency swept up in Haitian gold permit affair
Clinton run for presidency swept up in Haitian gold permit affair
Andrew Topf | March 8, 2015
The presidential ambitions of Hillary Rodham Clinton have become ensnared in an obscure gold-mining project in Haiti, as the Democratic favorite for the presidency begins her second run for the White House.
In a story that suggests cronyism, questionable ethics and a blurring of the lines between charity and profiteering, The Daily Mail reported on Sunday that Clinton's brother, Tony Rodham, sat on the board of VCS Mining when the unlisted, Delaware-based junior was granted a permit to mine gold in Haiti following a massive earthquake on the impoverished island nation in 2010. The permit was the first to be granted in over 50 years, VCS Mining wrote in the press release announcing the awarding of the 5-year exploitation permit.
While Rodham's involvement in the gold project, called Morne Bossa, would normally be of little cause for concern, what has raised eyebrows is the timing of the permit, granted two years after the earthquake that killed over 100,000 people, and the fact that Rodham "was a board member of a North Carolina mining company that enjoyed prime access to Haitian gold deposits in the wake of post-earthquake relief work organized in part by former president Bill Clinton through the Clinton Foundation," according to the Daily Mail. Another VCS board member was Jean-Max Bellerive, noted the Mail, who co-chaired the charitable Interim Haiti Recovery Commission with former US president Bill Clinton.
More at the link:
http://www.mining.com/clinton-run-presidency-swept-haitian-gold-permit-affair-45216/
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