Dear Editor,
I recently visited the Karrau Amerindian village, very close to the ‘green’ town of Bartica, in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) where I was confronted with numerous complaints of mining lawlessness by persons who own mining properties on Karrau’s village lands. Village residents are highly concerned that their resources are being harvested out because ‘tributes’ of at least seven per cent are not being paid to the Village Council to assist in village development which is a total violation of the Amerindian Act 2006 (sec 51 (1)).
What is even worse is that village residents employed by the big miners are not being paid for their services granted. Further, gold mining activities are taking place within the village’s proposed land extension areas which have extended onto titled village lands. The Village Council, and even the residents when they make complaints to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) Bartica office, their complaints are most times ignored.
No investigation being carried out to stop the lawless mining activities taking place on Karrau’s titled village lands. It must be noted that the big miners working on Karrau’s village lands are known to the GGMC Bartica office. This is highly suspicious. The village residents have not been paid by one of the big miners (an overseas resident) since the year 2015 and they are fed up with the Bartica mines office on the basis that their complaints are not being addressed. They are appealing to the Commissioner of the GGMC to assist with their problems of mining lawlessness taking place on their village lands and if not, they may have to take matters into their own hands. The intervention of the Commissioner of the GGMC is therefore urgently needed at the Karrau Amerindian village.
Yours sincerely,
Peter Persaud
