Ivanhoe Mines Ltd (C-IVN) - News Release
Ivanhoe's Friedland accuses Forbes of "masquerading"
Ivanhoe Mines Ltd IVN
Shares issued 248,133,621 Nov 7 2003 close $ 11.76
Monday November 10 2003 News Release
Mr. Robert Friedland reports
IVANHOE MINES CHAIRMAN ROBERT FRIEDLAND SAYS FORBES MAGAZINE FAILS TO ACCURATELY AND FAIRLY REPORT THE FACTS ABOUT MONGOLIA DISCOVERY
The following statement was issued Nov. 10, 2003, by Robert M. Friedland, chairman of Ivanhoe Mines:
"I am aware that an article, prepared for the Nov. 24 issue of Forbes magazine and already circulating on the Internet, questions the significance of Ivanhoe Mines' gold and copper discovery in Mongolia's South Gobi region.
"The Forbes article suppresses and obfuscates the truth about Ivanhoe's discovery and its project transactions and falsely defames me by impugning my business ethics. Unlike some other media, Forbes expressed no interest in visiting Mongolia or the Ivanhoe property to verify the extent and significance of the mineral discovery. Forbes apparently did not speak to any of the scores of independent experts -- professional geologists, engineers and analysts -- who have personally visited the Mongolia project and confirmed the world-scale scope of the discovery that is continuing to unfold at this time. The readily available, first-hand knowledge and opinions of such recognized authorities are not even referred to anywhere in the main article -- although Forbes does devote precious space to quote the questioning views of two individuals who have never been anywhere near the Ivanhoe discovery.
"The Forbes article is a contrived, one-sided account. As a commentary column, it would be deeply flawed; but masquerading as news reporting, it is a shameful deception. Forbes, which declared that it would not wait for a comprehensive interview to be scheduled, now has rushed to publish information that it was formally advised in advance was inaccurate and misleading. Such conduct is an abrogation of journalistic responsibility and fails the fundamental tests of accuracy, balance and fairness. It is not an honest report.
"Ivanhoe's discovery in Mongolia has been examined by some of the world's most respected and authoritative news and business media. Ivanhoe always has been available to assist responsible media that are interested in understanding its remarkable discovery, and a number of writers have visited the Turquoise Hill exploration camp. Leading investment analysts with expertise in the global minerals sector also have made numerous visits during the past two years and have written extensive reports that confirm the significance of the work in progress. Ivanhoe Mines issued a new independent update today on the mineral resources at Turquoise Hill, in which AMEC E&C Services reported that drilling completed since August of this year had increased the inferred resource at the project, based on a 0.6-per-cent-copper-equivalent cutoff, to approximately 14 million tonnes of copper, an increase of 39 per cent since August, and 8.8 million ounces of gold, an increase of 61 per cent since August. The project also has an additional indicated resource of 1.4 million tonnes of copper and 7.3 million ounces of gold, at the same cutoff.
"Ivanhoe and/or I will publish a detailed response to the Forbes article, verified against a written and recorded record of our contacts with the magazine's representatives. Based on my previous experience with this biased publication, in which Forbes refused to correct false and misleading allegations, I am not going to wait in this fast-moving Internet information age for Forbes to do the responsible thing and address its errors and misrepresentations solely through the pages of the magazine."
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