The president ofNicaragua's Council of Bishops is backing independent, small-scale miners whoseprotest against the concession given to a Canadian mining company was broken upby police.
Msgr. Socrates Rene Sandigo says the miners and "areonly asking they be paid what is due them."
The Nicaragua government recently gave Canada's B2Goldcompany the rights to gold fields the miners had long worked.
The miners blocked a highway over the weekend to protest anddemand $38 million in compensation.
Police broke up the blockade and arrested almost 50 people.National Police spokesman Fernando Borge said nobody was injured, but saidthose arrested could face charges.
B2Gold said in a statement that it had tried to talk withthe miners, but they refused to end the blockade.