Gov’t reiterates full support for Isseneru- Minister Sukhai

- village council has an option

Georgetown, GINA, January 23, 2013

Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai pointed out on January 23, that the Amerindian Act 2006 currently offers a clause that allows for miners to seek an agreement with the Village Council.

“It is up to the village to decide to choose whether they would invoke that clause and engage the miner in a discussion following this ruling so they can come to a level of agreement. It is an option offered by the Amerindian Act, or they can choose to go by way of an appeal,” the Minister said.

Minister Sukhai was commenting on the recent court ruling which went against the Amerindian Village of Isseneru, Middle Mazaruni, Region # 7. The ruling has since prompted calls for the Amendment of the Amerindian Act of Guyana 2006 amidst criticisms that the act does not offer enough protection to the people.

The Isseneru Village Council had contended that Joan Chang’s mining company was operating on titled lands without its permission as set out in the Amerindian Act and had sought the intervention of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) which subsequently issued two cease work orders on the miners. Chang then moved to the courts, and High Court Justice Diana Insanally on January 17, ruled that Chang had been granted a mining license before the Act came into force, and therefore, neither the Council nor the GGMC had the authority to stop Chang’s operation.

Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai

The Amerindian Affairs Minister reiterated Government’s commitment towards continued support of the development of Amerindians. “We are on their side; it is not a war between us and them. But of course we have to empower ourselves, we have to build capacity to manage situations that come before us and in a democratic society you would see that the Amerindians have recourse to the Court. I believe the village is considering appealing this ruling and Government will do the best we can offer in this situation in support of the village,” she stated.

Highlighting the fact that the Executive could not interfere with the judicial system she emphasised, “we have a duty to ensure that the people are provided with support, and that is something commendable that came out of the meetings with the villagers of the community.”
Government has made it very clear that it is going to work with the community in the direction that they choose to go.

She explained that the Ministry has been encouraging Village Councils to ensure that they use the Act which is a strong one. “No Act has total perfection and it is when we utilise it that we can identify if there are gaps,” she said.

Application of the Act, Minister Sukhai further stated, also identify if it does not serve in a very strong way the target group for which it is approved. If it does not, “then obviously Government will have to consider examining where those gaps exist,” she noted.

Observing that laws are not formulated and approved to last a lifetime, the Minister said “there will be changes and the need for revision as situations demand and change.”

However, she is of the opinion that there is much more need for village leaders to acquaint themselves fully with what the Act offers, “because many of them may not be the ones involved in crafting during the consultative period of the formulation of the Act, and therefore it is an ongoing process for all leaders to ensure that they understand what the Act offers them. It is a very useful tool,” she emphasised.

Reflecting on one particular aspect of the Judge’s ruling as reported in the press, Minister Sukhai observed that according to her interpretation, the ruling is saying in one respect that the village has the option existing within the clause which speaks directly to negotiations and agreements when mining takes place in the village.

In deference to the village, the Amerindian Affairs Minister said, “the need is much more important for them to abide by the law and for all other stakeholders to similarly respect the law.”

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MoAA‘s continued to support livelihood initiatives in Amerindian Communities.

The Ministry of Amerindian Affairs on January 3, 2013 hosted its year-in-review press conference, where the Hon. Pauline Sukhai, Minister of Amerindian Affairs, accompanied by Nigel Dharamlall, Permanent Secretary and the various heads of department of the Ministry provided a review on the successes and challenges of the Ministry in 2012.

Secure livelihood programme continues to sustain indigenous communities

The National Secure livelihood Programme (NSLP) is a project initiated by Government with the main objective of securing livelihood for Amerindian villages and hinterland communities, especially in Region One where it was piloted.

Agricultural projects such as aquaculture, crab fattening, honey and the cultivation of organic pineapples were implemented in fifteen communities in Region One. The NSLP also sought to provide employment opportunities, sustain food security and generate income, through the economic diversification and introduction of new farming techniques in the communities.

“Currently we are grappling with the sustainability aspect of the programme because we have had in the majority enough success to want to continue to invest in the sustainability of the projects,” Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai, said.

A fish pond in Region One

Minister Sukhai noted that farmers are much energised to get back into organic pineapple cultivation since the 39 acres pilot which they cultivated, produced and are ready for the trial run at the pineapple factory in Region One. The factory has been organically certified for production and the farmers’ cultivation plots have also received organic certification.
Despite some setbacks, the production of honey has been successful. Communities complained about the difficulties they encountered in maintaining permanent bee hives, but the ministry has constantly been assisting in rebuilding them. Additionally, crab wood oil and cassava products did well under this programme. On display at the conference were crab wood oil products, such as hair creams, soaps, and oils that were produced under the programme.

Challenges

There were some challenges, especially in the aquaculture and crab fattening and processing projects. These challenges were not in production, but rather in the sustainability aspect of the projects namely because crab is seasonal. The ministry is in the process of seeking additional technical assistance for the sustainability of these projects.

The ministry has engaged the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) in this regard. The organisations have expressed a willingness to provide technical assistance for the sustainability of the projects.

Tobago village, as part of this programme had set up an aquaculture farm in the community however, there were some challenges with stocking of the ponds with fingerlings. The ministry has already identified the areas to be tightened up, and has been working with the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) with respect to the fingerlings that have to be replaced in the ponds.

The ministry will continue to work with the farmers to overcome the challenges that would arise overtime for the continued success of these programmes.

Presidential grants continue to support hinterland communities’ projects

In an effort to elevate the standard of living of residents in hinterland communities, Government, through the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs continued to provide necessary support to Amerindian communities through the presidential grants programme. Projects funded under the programme have positively impacted Amerindian communities and have allowed for the implementation of various income generating projects.

Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai presents keys to minibus to St Denny’s Mission Toshao Doreen Jacobis funded by the presidential Grant Programme.

In 2012, the ministry was provided with two years of presidential grants, which were used to support the financing of community based socio-economic projects in hinterland communities across the ten administrative regions of the country.

About $241M of the $323M which was allocated for the 2011 and 2012 tranche of the programme was used to fund projects in the production, transportation, social and agricultural sectors, namely the construction of village shops, passenger, cargo and fishing boats, mini buses, tractors and ATVs to improve life at the village level.

Presidential grants assisted in purchasing this tractor for Malali

The investments made under the presidential grants have been very helpful to communities that have over the period aspired to implement projects that were initiated by the villages, the Minister said. Visits by Ministry officials to some of the projects have recorded successful implementation and impacts on community development.

Improving Hinterland Scholarship Programme- Enhancing the Lilendaal dormitory

As part of the Ministry’s initiative for 2012, the Ministry undertook enhancement works at the Hinterland Student’s Dormitory at Liliendaal. The project saw the clearing and land filling of the Dormitory’s compound to cater for the development of the environment that will support extra circular activities for the students.

Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai told the media that the Ministry has begun works to the value of $12M on the facility’s compound to enhance its external surroundings. She explained that the external works are being done so that cultivation by hydroponics method can be employed at the dormitory, and that the children could learn to employ this technology.

The Dormitory at Liliendaal accommodates the hinterland scholarship students pursuing studies in Region Four. Constructed at the cost of $95.4M, the dormitory has an auditorium, a library, a computer laboratory and caters for accommodation of about 120 students.

The Minister highlighted that the hinterland scholarship programme is a commendable one and pointed out that the Ministry will continue to provide hinterland and Amerindian students with scholarships once they qualify.

In 2012, sixty two students attending secondary and technical institutions graduated from the programme. There was a recorded pass rate of 86% among the 40 students who wrote the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate Exams (CSEC) in 2012. This demonstrates that once given the opportunity, which may not have otherwise been afforded through a scholarship that Amerindian Students can excel.

Hinterland School Uniform Project

The Ministry also executed the Hinterland component of the Government’s School Uniform Project. This project involved the procurement and delivery of School uniforms to children in Hinterland and Amerindian Communities and is in keeping with Government’s policy to ensure that no child is left behind and is afforded an equal opportunity to attend school.

In 2012, the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs expended approximately $76M on the procurement and distribution of school uniforms in Hinterland and Amerindian communities. This exercise benefited some 30,000 students attending nursery, primary and secondary schools in Regions 1, 7, 8 and 9.

This programme has positively impacted school attendance and learning in students in the hinterland and has supported community sewing groups, since contracts for the sewing of the uniforms are done by community sewing groups at a cost of $800 per child.

Community outreaches

Approximately one hundred community outreaches were done in 2012, both by the Minister and officials of the Ministry. These outreaches help the ministry to gain firsthand knowledge and understanding of the concerns and issues in Amerindian communities. It also helps the Ministry to better plan strategies and policies to mitigate issues which may arise in the Villages.

Minister Sukhai hands over the keys for a Tractor to Toshoa of Katoka Village, 

Region # 9 during an outreach (2012)

Minister Sukhai hands over a motorcycle to Senior Councillor of Rupertee, Region # 9 during an outreach

Minister Sukhai hands over agricultural equipment to Toshao of Tiger Pond Village, Region # 9

Welfare Issues

As the focal Ministry responsible for protecting and promoting the social and economic rights of Amerindians, the Ministry also addressed several welfare issues in 2012. Minister Sukhai reported that the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs did not receive any reports of Trafficking in Persons in 2012. However, there were several other welfare cases which were addressed and referred to the relevant agencies for investigation and action.

The Minister highlighted that the Ministry plans to continue some of its current programmes in 2013, while it seek to embark on new initiatives that will continue to support the improvement and development of Village economies in 2013.

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