VANCOUVER - A small Canadian mining company says two of its employees in Bolivia and a local policeman have been set free by opponents of a silver and indium project after government officials intervened.
The employees work for a subsidiary of Vancouver-based South American Silver Corp. (TSX:SAC), which has been working on the Malku Khota project in Bolivia's Andean region.
The company announced Monday that they were freed after the Bolivian government helped secure their release.
It says Bolivian president Evo Morales and the Government Minister Carlos Romero agreed on Sunday that "prior consultation" with all indigenous communities in the project area would be required.
Bolivian Labour Minister Daniel Santalla also signed an agreement with a group that has been seeking a cancellation of the mining concession, although the company says Santalla acknowledged that would be difficult.
South American Silver says there has been no change in the status of the project concession at this time and that it will continue to work with Bolivian governments and local communities in hopes of reaching a workable consensus.
The company's shares lost more than one-quarter of their value Monday, dropping 29 cents to 73 cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange
