Hey Man-

It appears that the Barrick's hedging was in fact shorting gold on behalf of the Governments or central bankers for many years. Barrick is now being squeezed by holding their short position as gold prices surge higher above the $1,000 mark. Barrick is in a hurry to beat their financial destruction to come-up with 9.5 million ounces of gold or do a stock delution of 81 million shares to raise money to cover their short positions or face bankrupcy ??
http://news.goldseek.com/GoldSeek/1252609733.php

Here is another intresting comment about Barricks' quandary....

In the case of the short sellers, the gold is gone and only cash is left. To the extent that a miner has excessively hedged (did I hear someone say Barrick (ABX)?), then they are also in this category. The crux of the issue is to what extent have the short sellers put up collateral and more importantly, have the ability to put up more (or the willingness to put up more)?

http://seekingalpha.com/article/161074-how-will-lease-recalls-impact-gold-s-price