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Govt. only addressing pollution and harassment, not impact to livelihoods of Amerindians at Chinese Landing – Jagdeo
Kaieteur News – The impact of mining on the livelihoods of the Amerindian people at Chinese Landing, Barama River, Region One will not be addressed now, only the allegations of pollution by miners and the harassment they face, Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo said on Thursday.
Jagdeo was at the time responding to questions posed by Kaieteur News at a Press Conference held at the Arthur Chung Conference Center (ACCC), Liliendaal, Georgetown.
Kaieteur News while seeking an update on the “fact-finding” team’s report following a visit to Community on Sunday, August 6, 2023, noted that the residents had also raised concerns that the takeover of their titled lands has left them without a main source of income to provide for their families.
Jagdeo in his response said, “That is not what went before the human rights body. You know what went there, we have to respond to that, the pollution in the area and its overrun by mining I don’t know what we gonna (do)”.
The human rights body, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) had called on the Guyanese authorities to implement a series of measures to protect the Indigenous Carib Community of Chinese Landing.
Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo
According to the Commission, the Carib community which has approximately 210 residents, currently is at serious risk of suffering irreparable harm to their human rights by miners and even some members of the Guyana Police Force.
A resident demanding the return of their lands at the recently held fact finding meeting (KN photo/Shervin Belgrave)
Details of those risks were outlined in a petition to the international body which was filed by the Chinese Landing Village Council, the Amerindian Peoples Association of Guyana (APA), and the Forest Peoples Programme. Some of the allegations made are pollution to the environment, destruction of their homes, and threats against their lives for protesting against the takeover of their lands.
A fact-finding team was sent to investigate the allegations and the residents had broke down into tears as they demanded the return of their lands.
According to residents, the lands are used to provide for their families. As many cried, the residents accused the Government of taking away their “daily bread” and giving them to miners thereby forcing them to suffer.
Jagdeo at his press conference on Thursday said that his government is aware of those concerns too, but in the same vein claimed that while a majority of the residents at Chinese Landing want the miners off their lands, specifically Mr. M.V, the legal holder of a gold concession on their titled lands, there are others who want him to continue working.
“…Some people want the mining and some don’t want the mining, a few believe that Vieira (M.V) should continue and the majority believe that he shouldn’t continue and it’s a complex situation,” the Vice President told reporters.
The Vice President continued: “One thing is sure, that we are on the side of the village and we have always been from the time we went to court and we want to protect the villagers and their interests.”
One of the interests that the IACHR asked the government to protect is the villagers’ “rights to life and personal integrity”. The government was reportedly given 20 days to respond to the IACHR’s resolution and that deadline was set for August 10.
The government has failed to meet the deadline but Jagdeo said the report will be “released shortly”.
“I guess that the response should be made shortly that is my latest update,” Jagdeo said.
While the residents await the government’s findings, the Moruca District Council (MDC), Region One in statement on Wednesday called for Mr. M.V. mining permits to be revoked.
“The residents of Chinese Landing have been clear that for their rights to be protected, the mining permits registered to Mr. Wayne Vieira must be revoked and the miners, along with all equipment and weapons, be removed from the village’s lands. We call on the Government to immediately implement this”, the MDC stated. The MDC also stressed that the lands are used by the residents of Chinese Landing people to maintain their families. The Council said it will be raising the issue at the upcoming National Toshao’s Council.
The MDC is made up of 12 indigenous villages, Santa Rosa, Kariako, Kokerite, Waikrebi, Santa Cruz/LiLle Kanuballi, Chinese Landing, Assakata, Warapoka, Santa Rosa, Kwebanna, Waramuri, Father’s Beach, and Manawarin.
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