A human rights assessment conducted between late June and mid-July 2014 at UK-listed African Barrick Gold’s North Mara Gold Mine Ltd. in Tanzania by MiningWatch Canada and the British NGO, Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID), confirms reports of ongoing excessive use of force by police guarding the mine, resulting in deaths and serious injuries of villagers from the surrounding area...“We interviewed more than 30 victims and their family members,” says Catherine Coumans of MiningWatch Canada. “Most of them had been shot by police or assaulted by the mine’s own security guards within the last five years.” During the visit, MiningWatch and RAID also had meetings with African Barrick Gold (ABG) staff at the mine and with its NGO partner, Search for Common Ground.