THE People’s Progressive Party (PPP) salutes our Amerindian brothers and sisters on the occasion of Amerindian Heritage Month. This is indeed a good time to reflect on the contributions made by our Amerindian peoples in the development of a strong and prosperous Guyana and also on the long and difficult road they have traversed over the several decades.

According to our historians, Amerindians were the first people who inhabited this beautiful land of ours. Attempts by the colonial powers to enslave them failed and they refused to be pawns for the capture of runaway slaves who sought to escape the brutality of plantation existence.

It is an established fact that historically our Amerindian peoples were neglected by the colonial administration. That trend continued under the previous PNC administration, which not only treated Amerindians as second-class citizens but denied them their basic and fundamental rights through rigged village elections and denied them access to proper health, education and recreational facilities.

The PPP is proud of the contributions made by our indigenous peoples and the fortitude and endurance they displayed in the face of the myriad challenges they experienced in the face of an uncaring PNC regime, which for nearly three decades relegated them to the back burner in terms of national development.

It took the return of the PPP/C government to restore the pride and dignity of our Amerindinian and hinterland peoples by way of a multiplicity of policy interventions, which included the establishment of a Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, the re-enactment of the Amerindian Act, giving more rights to Amerindians to manage their own affairs and the granting of titles to Amerindian lands. In addition, through the Presidential Grants introduced by the PPP/C administration, Amerindian villages benefited from government subventions which are utilised by Amerindians for community projects.

The PPP is pleased with the fact that our Amerindian peoples are today much more empowered, thanks to priority attention given by the PPP/C Government in the areas of education, health and water, which cumulatively have impacted on an enhanced quality of life of our Amerindian peoples. It is not accidental that Amerindians constitute the fastest- growing segment of the population, due primarily to better vector control programmes and a robust immunization programme for children among the several other interventions.

The PPP is aware of the several challenges still faced in hinterland communities, but remains optimistic that under the present PPP/C Government, Amerindians will take their rightful place as the architects of their own development. Already there are hopeful indications in the increasing number of Amerindian children who graduate from tertiary institutions, both locally and overseas, in a variety of fields including medicine, engineering, management and agronomy. The trained teacher/student ratio has improved significantly and the entire education infrastructure overhauled, thereby providing for much greater accessibility to quality primary and secondary education. The same is true for the delivery of health care due to more doctors and nurses who now service the hinterland areas and the construction of new health care facilities in those communities.

The PPP takes this opportunity to thank the Amerindian peoples for the support they have given to the party over the decades and looks forward to their continued support. The PPP has always been a friend of the Amerindian peoples and will continue to champion their cause.

Once again, congratulations to our Amerindian peoples.