APA..Newsletter # 3
National News..Prime Minister Visits the Upper Mazaruni

APA Team and Prime Minister Sam Hinds in the Upper Mazaruni

During February, Prime Minister Sam Hinds fulfilled his promise made during 1999 with a visit to the Upper Mazaruni. This was to have a first hand look into the situation in response to complaints made by the communities about problems caused by mining. The Prime Minister spent four days in the area along with a delegation that included the Minister Responsible for Amerindian Affairs, representatives of Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Guyana Gold and Diamond Mining Association (GGDMA), the Regional Office, Region 7 and the APA. The APA was represented by Kid James and, legal advisor, Melinda Janki.

The communities expressed deep concern about the pollution of water, social problems and encroachment of miners on Amerindian lands. There were also brief discussions on health and education. Residents emphasised strongly that Amerindians were the first occupants of the land and had rights to their ancestral lands.

At one of the sessions, the miners expressed dissatis- faction with neighbouring Amerindian communities - that they were lazy and were squatters in state lands, and that they were misleading the Prime Minister. Captain Czar Henry of Jawalla pointed out that the miners have these perceptions because of the lack of understanding of the Amerindian way of life. He said that time had come for full consultation and participation of Amerindians in matters that affect them and called for closer monitoring of mining activities by the GGMC. He recommended that Amerindians be trained as mines officers.

The Prime Minister agreed that miners must respect the rights of Amerindians, whether or not they live on titled lands, and that there must be regular visits by the GGMC to the area. He accepted seventeen out of twenty recommendations made by the residents of Kambaru for protection of Amerindian communities and the environment from the negative effects of mining. The Prime Minister said there should be regular meetings between the GGMC, the Amerindian communities and the miners to identify ways of resolving problems. He advised that miners meet with community leaders and inform them of their activities. He thought that there was not a problem between the coastlanders and Amerindians but a clash of lifestyles and that development of the nation could not take place without the participation of Amerindians.

Amerindian Village, Region 9