inister Sukhai rebuts claims her Ministry is not addressing Amerindian rights- says protest an act to boost APA’s significance August 10, 2013 by Editor Minister Sukhai rebuts claims her Ministry is not addressing Amerindian rights- says protest an act to boost APA’s significance Georgetown, GINA, August 9, 2013 Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai has dismissed the Amerindian rights protest yesterday in front of Parliament and today in front of the Amerindian Affairs Ministry as nothing more than an advocacy group trying to boost their significance, which she described as being threatened by Government’s continued progress in enabling Amerindian development. In a demonstration to mark, International day of the World’s Indigenous people, which is being celebrated today, a group of picketers, led by representatives of the Amerindian People’s Association (APA) demonstrated in front of the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs on Quamina Street demanding that their rights as first people be respected. Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai with Chairman, National Toshaos Council (NTC) Derrick John, President, National Amerindian Development Foundation Ashton Simon and President, Amerindian Action Movement of Guyana, Peter Persaud at the press conference Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai with Chairman, National Toshaos Council (NTC) Derrick John, President, National Amerindian Development Foundation Ashton Simon and President, Amerindian Action Movement of Guyana, Peter Persaud at the press conference A smaller section of this group held a similar demonstration yesterday in front of Parliament. They highlighted the revision of the Amerindian Act 2006 among concerns that they wanted addressed. Minister Sukhai speaking at a press conference today said, “the revision of the Amerindian Act has been a call by the Amerindian People’s Association, who is an advocacy group whose existence is being threatened, as the Government continues to advance development of Guyana’s indigenous population, as the Government continues to partnership with the Hinterland and Amerindian villages, and as the Government continues to strengthen its position and engagement with the National Toshaos Council, which is the legitimate body of the Amerindians, who have elected them democratically.” Joining the Minister was Chairman, National Toshao Council (NTC) Derrick John, President, National Amerindian Development Foundation (NADF) Ashton Simon and President, Amerindian Action Movement of Guyana (TAAMOG), Peter Persaud. Simon noted that the revision of the Act has been the cry of this group for the longest while. He said however, during NADF’s nationwide consultations with the different Amerindian groups, including the APA and their sub-groups, no group has come forward with a proposal as to exactly what in the Act they want amended. “None has been saying this is what we want to be amended in the Act, so, there is nothing that you can focus on, that you can say that needs to be amended…,” he said. Meanwhile, Persaud said that he is in receipt of information from the Amerindian communities that the supposed representatives from the different Amerindian villages that are in the protest line are APA members. He pointed out that these APA members, in Region Nine, have been engaged in a struggle against the democratically elected village councils and are in fact against the NTC. Persaud said that the advocacy body is ‘pursuing a political agenda.’ One of the demands of the protestors has been that their concerns are not being heard by Minister Sukhai, however, today the Minister rebutted this, pointing out that her office is open, Monday to Friday, and to all. She pointed out that opportunities are provided for consultation during her many outreaches to the villages. It is again available at the level of the leaders at the NTC conference, which is hosted annually, at a great cost to the Government. Minister Sukhai also took issue with the protestors’ cry that the Ministry is not supporting villages including Isseneru and Chinese Landing that are facing mining concerns. She pointed out that some of issues that relate to mining are outside of the ministry’s purview, “because we are not the custodian of the mining sector,” she said. She acknowledged that the Ministry however, has a role to play in these issues and has been doing its duty by presenting them to the relevant agencies including the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission and now also to the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Environment. The Minister advised that the Ministry “has never been in dereliction of moving all the cases to relevant sectors.” Rejecting the cry of the ministry’s no-support to Isseneru, Minister Sukhai said, “We have stood at the side of Isseneru for a long time.” She said that even though there is sadness over the court ruling, the Government, President, or herself cannot interfere with that ruling. She informed however, that both Government through the GGMC and the Isseneru village council have appealed the case and that even at the highest level, the President has expressed to the village his full support on the issue. “In the case of Chinese Landing, I want to say this clearly to all of those who continue to say we are not doing anything. We have represented Chinese Landing when the Minister of Mining was the Prime Minister. We have umpteenth meetings with Chinese Landing with respect to the issue they have brought before us, and we have offered them solution. I am unable as a Minister to ring the hands of the village councils who do not respect the rule of law,” she said. Isseneru recently lost a court case concerning their right to prevent Platinum Mining Incorporated from mining on their grounds, which it commenced to do in 2011. Chinese Landing on the other hand, is in an almost two-decade case against a miner who leased his mining concession to a Canadian company, and most recently the villagers were ordered to stop mining on their titled land within which the concession fall, but say they will continue to work. Minister Sukhai on all her visits to hinterland areas has urged that the village leaders remember that the Amerindian Act provides the legal tools and policies for dealing with situations involving mining, forestry and other matters and that they must start to utilise it. She also advised that Guyana is a land of six peoples, and that the indigenous people should not be selfish, neither should they be greedy, in wishing to deny the other ethnic groups access to land and wealth.“As a Minister I would not tolerate people pushing an agenda to separate our people and to deny others right in this country which they too wish to enjoy,” she said.
Posted on: Sun, 18 Aug 2013 03:20:07 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015