Latest update August 20th, 2026 12:07 AM
Amerindian group tells UN forum Indigenous Peoples in Guyana have no ownership of resources in titled lands
-calls on the govt. to reform legislation
Kaieteur News- President of the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA), Mark Hastings, has informed the 24th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) that despite having titles to lands, Indigenous Peoples have no ownership of the resources from them.
President of the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA), Mark Hastings alongside Policy Officer Ms. Dawn Stoll at the 24th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York.
He also said that they consulted on when these resources are being exploited by companies or the government.
As reported previously, the 24th Session of the UNPFII is being held at the UN’s headquarters in New York from April 21 to May 02, 2025 and is being attended by members of the APA and the government through the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs.
Addressing the UN forum on Wednesday, APA’s President said that his organisation has been calling for the government to reform its laws and practices to enshrine the human rights standards of the UNDRIP that the country has already adopted. “However, our people’s right to free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) is still not respected, nor required in our laws,” he mentioned. Hastings further revealed that the government’s actions directly violate the Indigenous Peoples’ collective rights to self-determination and their land. “Our sacred lands that have been handed down through generations with care and reverence are being stripped, our rivers are being poisoned, and our environment is being desecrated in the name of extractive industries and profit,” he expressed.
The APA’s President further explained to the UN forum that the government speaks glowingly about Indigenous communities benefiting from funding from its Low Carbon Development Strategy through the sale of carbon credits, and noted this is not the full picture.
“The processes arriving to this agreement were deeply flawed. Again, we were not properly consulted on how our forests and lands would be used in this scheme. We were not allowed to consent to this programme with the mandate of our people. And, we were not part of any negotiations to determine how our peoples could have benefited from the national initiative according to our needs prior to the carbon sales agreement,” he informed.
With this being said, the President disclosed that stronger incorporation of the UNDRIP would increase the protections of Indigenous Peoples’ rights and ensure that they are respected and upheld, rather than overridden by corporate or state interests.
Turning his attention to the government, Hastings said “We call on the Government of Guyana to take tangible steps towards the revision of the 2006 Amerindian Act, and incorporate the articles of the UNDRIP into our national laws to ensure the protection of our peoples in the face of growing threats from the old and new extractive industries.”
He also asked them to take on the recommendations made by Guyana’s Villages and District Councils for amendments to the Act in the national revision process. “We also ask that the Permanent Forum monitor the government’s process to ensure that Guyana’s Indigenous Peoples are part of this national exercise that will determine the future of our rights, culture, and lives,” he added.
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