District Councils Are Legitimate Indigenous Governance Institutions

Feb 11, 2026 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Recent statements made on 9th February 2026 by the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Honourable Gail Teixeira, asserting that the Upper Mazaruni District Council (UMDC) is “not a legal organisation [because it has not followed] the procedures as required by the Amerindian Act to … legitimately represent the villages of the Upper Mazaruni”, are inaccurate, misleading, and undermine our internationally recognised legal rights as Indigenous Peoples.

Gazetting is not necessary for a District Council to be a legitimate Indigenous governance institution. Our people have been organising and acting collectively for generations, long before the Amerindian Act was created. Gazetting is merely a recognition of a District Council’s existence by the Government. But our right to manage our affairs collectively does not come from the Government; rather, it is inherent and protected by international law.

For instance, Article 18 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) guarantees Indigenous Peoples the right to participate in decision-making through our own representative institutions, while Article 4 affirms our right to autonomy and self- government in matters relating to internal and local affairs. Further, we have rights to maintain our own institutions (articles 5, 20) and to determine our institutional structures and membership under our own procedures (article 33(2)). Having endorsed UNDRIP in 2007, the Government must take appropriate measures to honour our Indigenous rights (article 38). Where our rights are violated, we are entitled to both effective remedies and a prompt decision through just and fair procedures for the resolution of disputes with States (article 40), including our current dispute over the Government’s failure to recognise UMDC in violation of our rights.

In addition, Minister Teixeira is wrong to suggest that our people have not followed the procedure for seeking recognition as a District Council. The procedure for establishing District Councils is outlined in section 35 of the Amerindian Act. Despite our compliance with this provision 5 years ago, the eight villages of the UMDC still await Ministerial decision recognising the existence of our governance body. Further, our ongoing attempts to engage the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs through various follow-up letters, resubmissions, phone calls, and meeting requests continue to be ignored.

The Upper Mazaruni villages submitted our first gazetting request to the Minister on 12^th February 2021. After our follow up letter on 25th August 2023, our village leaders resubmitted our request to Minister Sukhai on 14 February 2025, followed by another resubmission to Minister Browne-Shadeek on 9th October 2025. Despite our numerous phone calls to the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs in the 4 years following our initial

application, the Ministry failed to process our application or provide a reason for the delay. Our leaders then scheduled an in-person meeting with then-Minister Sukhai, only to be told upon arrival that the appointment was never confirmed. Having confirmed to the Ministry for a third time last October that our villages seek recognition as a district council, Kako’s Toshao was informed that the Minister awaits guidance on the application. We remain hopeful that the Minister will issue an order for gazettement. If our request is declined, the Ministry has a duty to provide a reason.

To suggest that the UMDC is illegitimate not only misrepresents Ministerial failure to process our legally compliant application, but also contradicts our constitutional rights. The Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Article 149G explicitly guarantees Indigenous Peoples’ rights to the protection, preservation, and promotion of our languages, cultural heritage, and way of life. Giving effect to this extends to enabling Indigenous governance bodies, such as UMDC, to advance this constitutional right.

The UMDC remains a valid, functioning, and representative body that reflects the collective will of the Kapon and Pemon. Any attempt to delegitimise our institution violates Indigenous rights to self-determination and self-governance, and in turn undermines the protection of our language, culture, and way of life. We therefore call upon the Government to retract the Minister’s remarks, respect our Indigenous governance structures, and uphold both domestic law and international human rights standards by recognising UMDC’s existence. We share a goal with the Ministry to work for the benefit of our people, and casting the UMDC as illegitimate only hampers this goal.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Alma Marshall

Chairperson

Upper Mazaruni District Council (UMDC)

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• Alma Marshall, District Councils, Gail Teixeira, Letters, UMDC

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