Mali arrests four senior employees of Canadian mining company as it presses firms for more taxes

abcnews.go.com:

Authorities in Mali have arrested four senior employees of a Canadian mining company as the military regime in the West African nation continues to detain workers to pressure companies in its crucial mining sector to pay millions in additional taxes

BAMAKO, Mali — Authorities in Mali have arrested four senior employees of a Canadian mining company as the military regime in the West African nation continues to detain workers to pressure companies in its crucial mining sector to pay millions in additional taxes.

Barrick Gold in a statement Tuesday confirmed that four employees at its Loulo-Gounkoto mining complex had been charged and awaited trial after their arrests Monday evening.

The company said it rejects the charges but did not say what they were. Malian authorities refused to comment on the arrests.

The same Barrick Gold employees also were briefly taken into custody in September. Barrick Gold says it has been seeking to finalize an agreement that would guide its partnership with Mali's government, including the state’s share of the economic benefits generated by the mining site and the “legal framework under which this would be managed.”

In Tuesday's statement, Barrick Gold CEO Mark Bristow said that “attempts to find a mutually acceptable resolution have so far been unsuccessful, but we remain committed to engage with the government in order to resolve all the claims levied against the company and its employees and secure the early release of our unjustly imprisoned colleagues."

Earlier this month, the CEO of Australian company Resolute Mining and two employees were arrested in Mali's capital, Bamako. They were released after the company paid $80 million to Malian authorities to resolve a tax dispute and promised