Engaging a Mines Officer earlier this month, John Spencer became alarmed when the official said that a map of mining blocks obtained by his village, Tasserene, was outdated and from a month ago, 60 new mining blocks now cover land claimed by the indigenous Region Seven community.
“Why we are so concerned about the situation? There is a lot of concessions still [being] given out by the GGMC. They have given out this land. We are in a concession. The village is in a concession at this point. So right now if dem people come with their equipment to work in that area, we have to move. I don’t know what we will do… at the moment, our village is in a concession,” the distressed indigenous leader said.
Located in the Middle Mazaruni, Tasserene is an indigenous Akawaio community of approximately 400 persons. On August 9, 2012 then President Donald Ramotar handed over the “land title certificate” to then toshao of the village Alvin Joseph. But moments later, after the cameras recorded the moment, Joseph said, officials took away the “certificate.”
A neighbouring village, Kangaruma with some 300 residents, suffered the same fate. Since then, the village councils of both communities have been trying without success to obtain their land titles. Unsure of their land tenure status, alarmed at the mining blocks being granted in their proposed titled area, and wary of broken promises by the authorities, residents of both communities are in limbo, seeking and awaiting word on their land.
At least one development project in Tasserene has not happened and this has been linked to the village not having title to the land. Over the past two years, villagers grew alarmed as more and more mining concessions were being issued for the areas located in what was supposed to be village land.
“What is really troubling is that…the community falls within a block that was issued and now we have the majority of blocks that was given in the immediate environment of the community… If mining occur within that area, it gon directly affect the community because the blocks are not like at the end of the boundaries, it is direct around the community itself,” Ridley Joseph, the secretary for the Tasserene village council, said.
Villagers want the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) to halt the granting of concessions for mining on their proposed titled area and for their land titles to be granted quickly. So far, there has been no definite word from the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs and the toshaos are unhappy.
“We are not happy about that…. The government gave us the title and then take it back. That is one of the saddest part of the story,” Spencer said.
“The government should do something… At least this present government because we voted for change… At least … I still looking out for change, at least not from bad to worse… We looking for betterment,” Ronald Joseph, the toshao of Kangaruma said. “We are there and we are not owners [but] we are catering for
hundreds of years to come for our [future] generations and this is how we deh. We ain even deh nowhere yet… What gonna be there for our children? I don’t know what to do with this situation,” he lamented.
Mervyn Williams, an adviser to Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Sydney Allicock told Stabroek News that the ministry is looking into the matter. However, he declined to give a timeline regarding when the matter is expected to be resolved saying that not all of the issues are under the control of the ministry. He also said that the ministry could only play a facilitating role as it relates to resolving the granting of mining blocks in the proposed titled area by the GGMC.
Commissioner of the GGMC Rickford Vieira acknowledged that there are a lot of issues as it relates to the land in the area. He emphasised that the blocks shown on the GGMC-produced maps for the area relates to applications and are not approved blocks so miners cannot work on the land. He said the GGMC is required to publish the maps showing the applications made.
“It can’t be a block, it has to be an application,” he emphasised while noting that he was not contacted about the application that covers Tasserene’s village site. He said that the GGMC has not approved any applications for a while now as the board has not sat for some time. He also said the land is still State land and the GGMC has a mandate to fulfil and does not deal with proposed titled lands. He added that the agency is forbidden from entertaining applications on titled lands.
Since the land title “certificates” were taken away in 2012, Tasserene and Kangaruma have been in limbo. The village councils of both communities sought to find out the status of the matter from former minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai numerous times but never got a response, the leaders said.
When the new APNU+AFC administration was elected, they also sought to follow up on the matter. Spencer said they met Williams in July and were told to return in August for an update on the matter. This was pushed back to September and earlier this week, they were told to return next month. Both the toshaos and a few councillors travelled to the city as their alarm grew over the reported new mining blocks on their community lands.
Ridley said that in 2014, there were 134 medium-scale prospecting and mining permits on Tasserene’s proposed titled area and in 2015 this rose to 380. Earlier this month, the Mines Officer told them of the additional 60 prospecting and mining permits within the proposed area. Additionally, five large-scale prospecting and mining permits on the proposed titled area were added to the GGMC map for this year. In Kangaruma, there are 121 medium-scale prospecting and mining permits and two large scale which amount to about three quarters of the community’s proposed titled area.
Spencer said they want to get the GGMC to halt all issuance of concessions and lamented that when they do get their land title, it would be covered with a lot of mining concessions. He said that there are lots of miners in the proposed titled area and they do not have respect for the village council. Additionally, their last remaining water sources are under heavy threat.
However, recently, GGMC officers halted mining in Tasserene Creek and told villagers that in relation to the applications, mining cannot happen unless these are approved.
There are other concerns about drugs and influence of miners on girls. Spencer lamented that to date, they have not gotten any satisfaction from the authorities but Williams told them that they would get a response next week.
“What is really worrying is that at the moment…the miners, the claimholders, or the block owners, they have the power over the council because we don’t have the title so we don’t really have much say in it. According to what the GGMC official told us, once the title is not issued then we don’t really have much say as to the mining because the GGMC has the authority to issue mining permits to persons and knowing that we don’t have any title as yet, we don’t really have any say pertaining to the mining… So our power is very weak within the council,” when it comes to mining, Ridley said.
He lamented the increase in mining over a short period of time. “The lands that we normally use are the traditional lands that we have there. We use it for hunting, fishing, farming and if these immediate blocks around the community are given out and mining starts occurring we have to go to far areas to look for farmlands, then you will have your flora and fauna being destroyed, the wildlife because they do hunting, we have to go far areas now to do hunting. Then you look at pollution in terms of that, when the land is being destroyed now you don’t have anything left for the people when…you obtain your title,” the councillor added.
He noted that previously, there were a lot of miners but the area was worked out and they left. “They just leave some big some excavations there lodging a lot of water,” he said while adding that no refilling or replanting was done. Mining blocks now cover the upper part of the Asura Creek –their main source of water.
If nothing is done, he said, “We nah gon gah no more community because everybody gon look to scatter out.” He urged the authorities to look into the matter and resolve it as soon as possible. “Something gah do because how long we gon deh crying out suh,” he questioned. He said he feels their rights are being violated. “Like nobody ain checking into us, nobody ain tekking things serious on us cos it’s not easy being around here and trying to get appointments,” he said.
According to Ridley, they have sacrificed to get their voice heard but nothing is being done. He asserted that development was being hampered as a result of the situation. The councillor related that Tasserene was granted a $5 million loan for a community development project from the government and proposed a fuel depot.
“However, when officials from the Ministry of Indigenous Affairs came to us, they asked us if we get title, how can we build on land if we don’t (have) title because it could be owned by somebody and if you build a fuel depot on somebody’s land then…the person could come and simply move you off the place if we’re not titled and the land isn’t issued to us,” he said. “We can’t go ahead because we are uncertain at the moment,” he said.
According to Ridley, their rights are more than being violated. “If we are the first people of Guyana and then we are not given the preference in terms of just getting our voice heard by persons that we think that should represent us and you come here and making all effort, I think just a simple few minutes….you coming here and not getting your voice heard, it’s very, very hard,” he said.
Joseph recalled receiving Tasserene’s land title before it was “taken back moments after never to be seen again.”
“Those documents were not legal documents,” Williams said. The ministry official related that Ramotar had not signed the title certificates. “The people were fooled because the documents never had any authenticity about them,” he said. He noted that the paper looked authentic and the coordinates appeared to be correct but the lack of the president’s signature ensured that the documents were of no legal effect. The documents should not have been issued, he emphasised.
He said that after the APNU+AFC coalition came to power, Allicock put a pause on the Amerindian Land Titling project to that he could determine the status of the project. He noted that there were issues with the GGMC issuing mining permits on the proposed land. According to Williams, the indigenous leaders should understand that the land remains State land and a state agency, the GGMC, can do what it is mandated to do.
Further, he said, the ministry has to seek the advice of the Attorney-General on whether or not it is lawful to proceed with the coordinates from the first “title” or if it has to launch a new investigation. “It has to go through a process,” he said, adding that the ministry is trying to do what it can to “remedy the effects of being fooled by the PPP.” Pressed on whether the matter had already been sent to the AG, Williams was vague saying that “the matter is being attended to,” it was “under consideration” and “we are examining the matter.”
He also said that there is little the ministry can do in relation to the issuance of mining permits and it can only play a facilitating role in trying to get the matter resolved. “We are trying to accelerate the process of getting these matters resolved,” he said. “I don’t think we can tell the GGMC what to do.”
Meantime, indigenous rights activist Laura George, declared that the situation is alarming. She said the fact that the previous “land titles” were never signed by Ramotar was a “total betrayal” by his administration and “that was a total deceit by the president to our people.”
Now, she said, the long response time and non-definite response of the ministry and the fact that they still cannot get anything resolved, is troubling. “It’s alarming, of course again with all those concessions being given out that they’ve showed us the maps. It’s alarming. What do they have? Is it another case that they will be facing more court cases just trying to secure their lands? Something is not working and it has to be fixed very quickly,” she said while recalling the court case Isseneru faced in a battle with miners over land and lost.
“Here is a situation that can potentially have the communities being taken to court by the miners…they have these legal papers before they have been issued theirs which is still very uncertain at this time but the communities are of the expectation that this is now, their legally titled lands,” she said. “Again you may very well find our communities being taken to court by miners again and they have such influence in our country today,” she lamented.
“The communities have to have their land tenure security and it’s important that they have that resolved now because otherwise they can also end up having a piece of paper with the lands covered by another set of owners,” George said while calling for the issue to be resolved immediately.
“The rights of indigenous peoples has always been on shaky grounds with the previous administrations and the time has come…it’s the last remaining lands that our peoples are trying to secure, it’s the last resort because everything else has gone to other extractive sectors and other private investments. So with Guyana pushing for financing to keep forests standing under the climate change initiative, as long as human rights are not protected adequately, as long as indigenous peoples rights are not protected then it would just be business as usual… Trying to get monies under the façade of keeping the forests standing. Who really will benefit in the end? It’s the environmental, social and the cultural rights of indigenous peoples that are under threat,” she said.
