Deep Sea Mining campaign steering committee member, Patric Kaiku refers to a photo from last year of PNG Mining Minister, Byron Chan when a petition coordinated by ACT NOW! and PANG of over 24,000 signatures was handed over to him – still no response from Mr. Chan:
“This was the moment in October last year 2012. Mining Minister Byron Chan, alongside Philip Samar from MRA received petitions of well over 20,000 inhabitants in the coastal communities in Papua New Guinea, calling for Nautilus and the State (DEC, MRA, and so forth) to halt proceedings in the experimental seabed mining ventures in PNG. Almost five months has passed and here we are, in the Year of the Snake (Chinese)/2013 with nothing coming from the mouth of Junior Chan. We hear and read about his sojourns to far-off places like Beijing, Toronto, Sydney and little else about the petition. Come on Chan …”