`It is sad and troubling that the government views differing opinions as destructive and rooted in political bias’
A non-governmental Indigenous Peoples organisation has taken issue with disparaging remarks made against it by Guyana’s Head of State at a meeting in Region Seven and has called for a retraction of the statement
In a release yesterday, the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA) strongly condemned what it termed as” unwarranted attacks” made by President Irfaan Ali against the organisation as reported by the Guyana Chronicle on May 10, and broadcast live on the President’s official social media pages.
The release said that during a meeting in Batavia Village, Region Seven, President Ali labelled the APA as a ‘political operative’ for the opposition, a characterization of the organisation it termed as “false and baseless.”
In response, the APA said that “it has never affiliated itself with a political party nor received any funding from them, neither has it funded any political party,” adding, “Our audited accounts would reflect that, and therefore such an unfounded accusation by the highest office of government only appears to be a distraction from the real issues facing Indigenous peoples, and the government’s unwillingness or sloth in dealing with them.”
Such issues, it suggested, include a lack of protective legislation and policies in key areas, and respect for Indigenous peoples’ basic human rights, a situation that has existed for decades with only some minor improvements, but with the need for much more protections to be in place in a fast-changing Guyana, all issues that the APA has advocated for. “It is sad and troubling that the government views differing opinions as destructive and rooted in political bias.”
The APA pointed out that since its establishment as representative body in 1991, it has dedicated itself to advocating for and advancing the rights of Indigenous peoples and individuals across Guyana. “Our work of empowering our people comes from the mandate from our community-based membership and therefore for decades, we have worked tirelessly to address issues ranging from land rights and environmental conservation to socioeconomic development and cultural preservation.”
The Association stressed that its efforts have always been non-partisan, and focussed on the well-being and empowerment of Indigenous peoples, and the protection of their rights. There, it contended, to characterise such work as “political” shows how much there is to be learnt about what basic human rights are, or how much the government wishes to detract from fulfilling one of its obligations to its people.
As far as the NGO is concerned, Ali’s remarks not only misrepresent the APA’s mission and objectives, but also undermine the critical work the organisation, and by extension civil society, does on behalf of Indigenous communities. It added that his “baseless” accusation against the Association with grassroots membership, of being a “political operative” is also a deliberate move to confuse Indigenous communities, especially when their voices are often silenced in their very communities and misinformation is being spread about the organization.
The APA disclosed that it has received reports of some government officials, including Ministers, REOs [Regional Executive Officers], Regional Chairpersons, and CDOs [Community Development Officers], going into some communities and in meetings, misrepresenting the work of the APA and its members and discouraging persons from associating with the organisation. “Such misrepresentation has taken on a life of its own, particularly in Region Eight, and during campaigns for Toshao and Council elections. We call on these people to stop doing this and instead, listen to the communities about the issues confronting them and help them to find solutions.”
Constructive discourse
As such, the APA said that it would be in the government’s best interests to respect the human rights of Guyana’s Indigenous peoples and to allow for “constructive discourse, representation and collaboration” not only between the government and Indigenous organisations but also between members of civil society in general.
It also reminded the President and his administration that civil society plays an important role in any society and that engagement with, rather than antagonism, indicates a healthy, functioning, and democratic society. And this is why, it stated, that it has continuously reached out to the government so that “they could understand our concerns and collectively find pathways for cooperation on our projects. However, President Ali’s government remains unresponsive and closed to dialogue with the APA.”
The release referred to President Ali’s comments on May 10 in the Guyana Chronicle article that states that the APA operates from a position of “political bias” and against the National Toshaos Council (NTC), and challenged him to substantiate these “baseless” claims. Meanwhile, it has noted that the NTC core executive consists of members who have openly aligned themselves with the party in government, which then begs the question, “Should the public then conclude the political bias of the NTC?”
In response to the President’s accusation of the APA and other civil society bodies being “hijacked” by Opposition political parties, the Association said it wishes to ask the President, “How would he explain recent NTC conferences and meetngs, sometimes being led by officials of the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs? Why does the NTC not mostly lead in organising its conference and setting its meeting agendas? Why are regional gatherings before NTC conferences led by political operatives?”
According to the APA, over the years, it has seen the process taken from the NTC Executive and controlled by the government, which has reduced the opportunities for Indigenous leaders to ventilate their issues and collectively come up with solutions. It opined that the NTC Conference seems to have now become a forum where the government flexes its muscles and presents cosmetic solutions to issues. It argues that by not setting their agendas, Indigenous leaders are limited in what and how they present their issues, quite often, in a language they do not understand or are accustomed to. “This is the very essence of discrimination and blatant disregard for the rights of Indigenous peoples. We therefore question President Ali’s statement of ‘political hijacking’ of representative bodies when the example just described is very clear to see from where this comes.”
The APA reminded that the NTC is supposed to be an independent body encompassing all Indigenous leaders and not one to be used to do the bidding of the government of the day. It stated that when it advocated for the establishment of the NTC and saw the body being established, it was the hope that the Council would work tirelessly with Indigenous communities to promote the recognition of basic Indigenous rights, among other things. and not compromise on any of their rights. It was expected that they would seek to usurp the powers of the very people they should be representing.
In this light, the APA sees the recent labelling of the National Toshaos Council as the sole “legitimate” representative of Indigenous peoples in Guyana as no more than an attempt to “sideline” other critical Indigenous Peoples representation, and to give voice to only those “favoured” by the government.
Additionally, the APA referred to the recent “interference” by government officials in elections for Toshaos and Councils, perceiving such action as part government’s active plan to interfere politically in these exercises and which should be rejected by all Indigenous peoples.
In light of all of the above, the APA called upon Ali “to retract his baseless allegations made against the organisation. Additionally, we remind him that the Constitution of Guyana affords all citizens, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, the right to free association and participation in the politics of this country,” the release added.
