Before he jetted off for the Commonwealth Conference in Rwanda, President Irfaan Ali had visited Phillipai in the Upper Mazaruni, Region Seven. There he told residents that the government was committed to the revision of the Amerindian Act of 2006 in accordance with the promise that the PPP/C had made in its manifesto. This would be done, he told them, in full consultation with the Indigenous people and their leaders. “We can’t revise the Amerindian Act in some fancy office somewhere,” he said, “We [need to go into] every single community, listening to the people, listening to their voices …”
By the time the administration embarks on this project one hopes that they will have honed their listening skills to a level where they can actually absorb what the Indigenous communities are telling them, particularly when it comes to mining. Their deafness to Indigenous voices over the years has attracted international attention, and they have found themselves having to respond to reports from both the OAS Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in relation to the violation of the rights of Isseneru villagers in Region Seven, as well as the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination with respect to the community of Chinese Landing in Region One and the Wapichan in the South Rupununi.
The IACHR had set a deadline of June 20 to reply to its findings, while UN CERD required a response by July 15. Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance has told the Stabroek News that both deadlines will be met.
The Chinese Landing community has had title to their land since 1976, but this notwithstanding, the GGMC granted permission to a Mr Wayne Vieira to mine on the community’s land without first applying to the Village Council as required under the 2006 Amerindian Act. When eventually the Geology and Mines Commission issued a cease work order to the miner, he took them to court, winning his case all the way up to the CCJ. In their review of the various instances of violation both IACHR and UN CERD laid great stress on the absence of free and informed prior consent, a particular problem in the case of Chinese Landing.
One might have thought that following the issuing of reports by the international bodies, the government might have been galvanised into looking into some of the problems which had been identified. Not so. Where Chinese Landing is concerned, residents’ difficulties have now increased, not decreased. Yet according to the Toshao Orin Fernandes, no one from the government has reached out to the village or held a meeting to discuss their grievances.
Mr Fernandes told this newspaper that more miners were moving in to Chinese Landing, and that the threats from both miners and the police had been increasing. There was an initial marked upsurge in incidents of intimidation and assault on members of the village after their claim against the GGMC and Mr Vieira had been dismissed by the High Court, he said. The threats had further increased following the issuing of the UN CERD report, and the police had failed to respond to any complaints against the actions of miners.
We had already reported last week that new miners were continuing to move into the community without the approval of the Village Council, but a new group had now come, said the Toshao. And the village only became aware of them after they saw vessels and other equipment being offloaded at the Tassawini Landing, including three big crushers. He told the newspaper: “Like right now I am even scared to go around certain parts in my village where those miners are because there are too much threats. They are just doing what they want to do and we can’t say or do anything …”
Mr Fernandes said that the offenders targeted him and members of the Village Council whenever objections were raised to mining activities. “Mostly I’m the one they are after,” he said. “I don’t know if they have personal issues with me but the police [force] is not doing anything too. But I know that these men [miners] are capable of doing crazy things just to get their way. So, right now, I am hoping that the government does something to bring some relief …”
The police are typically incommunicado on this matter. We reported trying to contact Regional Commander Haimnauth Shaw, but were unsuccessful. And there is Commissioner (ag) Clifton Hicken triggering an investigation into the apparent attempted intimidation of the Opposition Leader (as well he might), but totally unconcerned about very real threats and intimidation against the residents of Chinese Landing, some of whom are afraid to go into those parts of their own village where the miners are. Should he not be rather more concerned than he seems to be that members of his Force appear to be in cahoots with miners who are targeting the legitimate residents of a village?
While the issue has been in the public domain for a little while, Minister Pauline Sukhai has had no comment to make that anyone knows about, and when the President ventured into the interior, it was into a community where he would not be beset by complaints of intimidation and questions about what the government was going to do about it. Whether he intends it or not he conveys the impression that his administration is prepared to continue sacrificing the rights of Indigenous people to the interests of miners.
There is an arrogance about the miners and the police in the area that they can do what they want especially given the outcome of the court cases, and that the Indigenous residents can be bullied into submission. In this instance they are tyrannizing people whose ancestors played a pivotal role in Guyana’s history. The villagers of Chinese Landing are Caribs, one of the smallest of the nine nations currently domiciled in this country, but descendants of what was once the largest Indigenous nation in Essequibo.
Not all the characteristics of that historic nation were appealing, but for two centuries they acted as the geopoliticians of the region, and it is to them that Guyana is partly indebted for the shape it is today. They recognised that the instrument of Spanish penetration in this part of South America was the mission, which, despite its name was a militarised institution. It is partly owing to Carib efforts that the furthest any mission came to what is now our border was Tumeremo, nowadays a town which is well within modern Venezuelan territory.
Be all that as it may, what matters is that whoever the historical antecedents of the present Caribs were, their descendants are being denied their human rights. One of the recommendations of UN CERD was that the state should “prevent and investigate incidents of threats and violence against residents of the Chinese Landing indigenous community by miners and by members of the Guyanese Police Force.” One wonders what government’s reply to that will be. As it is, far from addressing the problem, the government is allowing the situation to deteriorate.
Toshao Fernandes said he remained hopeful that the authorities could intervene and bring the situation under control. On present evidence it looks like that hope is misplaced.
