The Lamaha Embankment squatters

Jul 27, 2008 Editorial

The Lamaha Embankment is a narrow strip of Government reserve. It formerly served as the railway lines for trains coming in and out of what in colonial Guyana used to be old Georgetown.

That was before the railway was abandoned in favour of a more developed road network, a decision which was later deemed a mistake. After the railway was closed, a number of small gardens sprouted on the Lamaha side of the embankment. On the other side was a major drainage canal and there was no cultivation on that side, no doubt in recognition that this would encumber the cleaning of the canal which was known as the Forty Feet trench.

The gardens of the embankment consisted of lovely cut beds of cash crops, mainly lettuce and callaloo. They were ordered and actually enhanced the beauty of the area. When ready, the persons that eked out living from this subsistence cultivation would cut and sell the produce in the markets. The railway embankment thus became a valuable source of green vegetables for the city.

Hard times and larceny brought about change. The persons who cultivated the plots found that their produce was being stolen and some of them took to erecting small shacks so that they could keep an eye on their gardens. Over time, these shacks took on the features of permanent homes and entire families began to move in.

The Lamaha Embankment soon became an eyesore. The then government moved quickly but controversially to dismantle the structures that were erected.

Despite this, however, persons still continued to take up residence on the embankment. Over the past ten years, the ingenious residents even found ways of getting a water supply to their homes, some of which can hardly be called shacks.

This was, however, always going to be a temporary arrangement since there are no facilities for the safe and hygienic disposal of human waste, which in the vast majority of cases is believed to be dumped into the trenches on both sides of the embankment. The situation has now come to a head with the government having entered into a major expansion of the electricity sector, requiring the use of the strip to run high powered electric cables.

Apart from the fact that the persons now occupying the area are illegally squatting on a government reserve and are contaminating the environment with the unsafe disposal of sewage, there is simply no way that the government can allow such a shanty town-type development right in the heart of the city. The shacks had to eventually go. This is something that those residing on the ‘train line” need to understand.

At the same time, they need to appreciate that should there be a need to clean the canals on both sides of the embankment, the present structures would pose a serious impediment. But even more dangerous is the idea of having citizens living under the magnetic fields created by high-powered cables running overhead.

Not only is this dangerous but it is inconceivable that anyone would want to remain living under high powered electric lines for if these lines snap, the consequences will be catastrophic.

The Ministry of Housing is moving to relocate those living on the embankment. For their own health and safety, we urge them to cooperate. The conditions under which they are living are not safe and hygienic and their continued presence on the embankment will stand in the way of a major development project for Guyana, one that is absolutely necessary at this time.

We therefore urge the squatters to work with the government to resolve their problems.