Pemón activist María Iriarte is calling for a comprehensive approach to eradicate illegal mining operations. She identifies three distinct groups operating within the mines: powerful criminal organizations, their collaborators, and economically desperate citizens. These individuals often migrate from various regions of the country driven by financial necessity. Iriarte argues that the solution must address both the high-level leadership and the low-level laborers. By targeting all tiers of the operation, she believes the illegal structures can be effectively dismantled. Her proposal emphasizes the need to distinguish between organized crime and those forced into labor by poverty. This strategy aims to provide a sustainable path toward ending the environmental and social devastation caused by mining.