Indigenous people flay Govt reps over ‘ungrateful’ claims

…say State services provided an obligation, not favours to be repaid

Guyana’s Indigenous representatives have lashed out at Government emissaries that recently castigated hinterland communities that voted in favour of the political Opposition – People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) – as ‘ungrateful’, saying, “provisions by the State should be seen as its fulfilment of an obligation to one section of its citizenry in the same way it provides for others under different circumstances.”
The Amerindian Peoples Association (APA)—in lashing out at the derogatory outbursts—over the weekend said, “historically, Indigenous peoples have been among the most under-represented and under-served peoples with respect to fair participation in national decision-making processes and in receiving basic social services.
“The organisation particularly condemns such remarks made against Indigenous peoples through the use of numerous derogatory names and by flaying us for not being grateful.”
The APA was adamant, saying, “…these services [that] have been provided for our people over the years, not only the recent years, must not be seen as favours that need to be repaid to any political party, for past, current or future works.”
The representative body was adamant that “these services are, in fact, a small fraction of what is needed.”
According to the Indigenous body, “no political party must feel that votes can be bought by handing out gifts in kind, bribes or other incentives, as have been evident during this period.”
The grouping in its missive over the weekend, insisting “that our rights are not for sale,” said “we must understand that we have a right to organise and to belong to a political party of our choice but at no time must we compromise our rights.”
According to the APA, it notes with much condemnation, “the racist remarks and insults that have been circulating on social media and other places during this elections period…It appears that especially around this time, it surfaces even more strongly, to boil over as mistrust and enmity.”
Issuing a call for “Guyanese to refrain” the APA posited “we need to question ourselves about how we have allowed our society to sink further into this situation.”
This is not the first time that members of the APNU/AFC have been disrespectful to the Indigenous community. Former Government Minister, Keith Scott had previously referred to Guyana’s Indigenous people as “greedy”.
Scott, during a parliamentary sitting, had said that Amerindians are greedy because they requested security in the lands they have held since time immemorial.
Scott had also philosophised that sovereignty now belongs to the State, governed by APNU/AFC.
The then Minister was at the time debating the People’s Progressive Party’s (PPP) motion to halt the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the issues surrounding lands belonging to Amerindians and freed African slaves.
Several Amerindian leaders and organisations had rejected Government’s decision to establish the CoI into land rights, on the grounds of lack of consultation among others.
The National Toshao Council (NTC) had said it views this decision as a “blatant attempt” to dispossess the Indigenous people of their lands and has argued that the two issues are unique and need to be addressed separately.
The organisation said while it supports reparations and repatriation of African lands and addressing that issue with a great degree of urgency, the Indigenous lands issue cannot and should not be viewed in the same light, nor can it be addressed under the same framework.
Scott had initially refused to apologise.