-says Greenidge at African Guyanese Awards Ceremony

By Svetlana Marshall
THE value and importance of education must be instilled within the minds of Afro-Guyanese, Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carl Greenidge, said as he underscored the importance of education in the transformation of the physical, economic, and social landscapes of Guyana.

“Education is very critical,” Minister Greenidge said, as he delivered the keynote address at an African Guyanese Awards Ceremony held at the Pegasus Hotel on Monday night. In the past, the African community had committed to the edification of its children in a decision which entailed many years of sacrifices, but had proven to be beneficial, the Vice President posited.

“It is important that we find a means of ensuring that the current generation can also value education (and) recognise the role of education in social mobility,” Minister Greenidge added, while emphasising that education must be seen as a change agent that recognises the evolution of technology.

While education is important, attention must also be given to application, he posited, while noting that institutional arrangements should be put in place to ensure that the necessary skills are regenerated or generated.

Boasting of their contributions, the Vice President said Afro-Guyanese have mastered many skills, and have contributed significantly to the development of Guyana through their active roles in the Public Service.
“There is nowhere…that this community has not left its mark…in relation to the volume and quality of public servants — a quality which has enabled us to stand proudly anywhere in the world,” Minister Greenidge posited.

The African Guyanese Awards Ceremony, which was organised by the Pan-African Movement, Cuffy 250, Women’s Roundtable and the Miss Emancipation Committee, was held in observance of the Decade for People of African Descent.

During the well-attended awards ceremony, more than 50 stalwarts in the Afro-Guyanese Community were honoured, including some posthumous, two of whom received standing ovation.

Guyana’s First Executive President, the late Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, was praised for his contributions to the development of this country.

“I’m humbled to accept this award on behalf of the son of a school teacher who became the first Executive President of Guyana,” Roxanne Burnhman said as she received the award in her father’s honour.

Her mother, the late Viola Burnham was also recognised for the contributions she had made in the area of Women’s Rights and Empowerment.

It was an emotional evening for the parents and supporters of Courtney Crum-Ewing, who was murdered in March 2015 while encouraging Guyanese to vote in the May 11, 2015 elections.
In a brief statement, they emphasised the need for justice to prevail. The late Crum-Ewing was among those who were honoured as Afro-Guyanese political activists.

Political activist Dr Walter Rodney, who was assassinated on June 13, 1980, was among the other posthumous awardees.
President David Granger; Minister Greenidge; Dr Grantley Walrond, a professional geologist who once served as Commissioner of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC); Dr Joycelynn Loncke, Head of the Pan-African Movement; political activist Ruel Johnson; youth activist Sharma Solomon; Dr Melissa Varswyk, an expert in Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematic (STEM); and Vincent Alexander, who continues to serve in the area of Local Government, were among the other awardees.

According to the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Flavia Pansieri, human rights’ violations are still part of the daily reality for many people of African descent.

“Whether as descendants of the victims of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade or as more recent migrants, studies and findings by international and national bodies demonstrate that people of African descent still have limited access to quality education, health services, housing, and social security,” Pansieri had said during the launch of the International Decade for People of African Descent (2014-2024) held in Geneva.

She added: “In many cases, their situation remains largely invisible, and insufficient recognition and respect has been given to the efforts of people of African descent to seek redress for their present condition. They all too often experience discrimination in their access to justice, and face alarmingly high rates of police violence, together with racial profiling,” she said.