Dear Editor,

THE Amerindian Peoples Association (APA) notes the sudden rise in condemnatory and misinformed writings about the organisation in the Guyana Times newspaper by Ms. Anna Correia. In her seeming watchdog role of the Association, she has made a number of incorrect assumptions and false statements; and had they not been as vindictive and purposely misleading, the APA would have been content to leave her delusional writings alone, but we are pressed to clear up these falsehoods.

First of all, the APA is happy to announce that, during this month, the organization would be celebrating twenty-five years (or its silver jubilee) of existence; not twenty-three, as Ms. Correia incorrectly states.

Despite the odds — the misrepresentation and misinformation by the previous regime about the organization, discouraging communities to dialogue with us -– the APA has stood tall and has creditably represented the rights and interests of the Indigenous community in Guyana when the past government reneged on their electoral promises in this regard.

In calling on the then Government to uphold the promises its members had made and the principles they said they would abide by — when we consistently urged them to not violate certain basic principles of human rights, and to put policies and legislation in place to protect the rights of the Indigenous peoples of this country — we were not being anti-Government, and we did not “hate” the PPP, as Ms. Correia has stated. We were being pro-rights and pro-Indigenous, as Ms. Correia is now labelling herself. We were appealing to the basic good that all human beings possess.

We wish to also point out that the staff complement of the APA has remained constant before and after elections, and no “jobs for the boys” were provided, as Ms. Correia maliciously states. Jean La Rose was never a president of the organization, and is not employed by the Government. While David James and Martin Cheong were past employees of the organisation, they had, for years, left the employ of the Association to follow their own pursuits. We wish to point out that our members are free to belong to the political party of their choice, and free to seek employment where they choose.

We recall that Mrs. Yvonne Pearson, past Vice-President of the APA, who never resigned her position, joined the staff of the then Ministry of Amerindian Affairs; and later, while still in their employ, campaigned on behalf of the PPP throughout Guyana. As an employee of the then Government, and if we were to use Ms. Correia’s logic, couldn’t it be said that this is a case of “providing jobs for the boys”?

We are happy that the APA, not Sharon Atkinson, quoting Ms. Correia, “has a foot in the Amerindian Land Titling (ALT) Project”. Previously, after various correspondence to the interests involved in the project; after several meetings, at which the APA voiced its concerns about the development of the project document with little or no consultations with Indigenous communities; and where it was recommended that the project proposal needed strengthening to ensure that it respected Indigenous rights and fully ensured land tenure security, most, if not all of our concerns, fell on deaf ears. The then Government and their partners proceeded with the project despite its various shortcomings.

In the project document, where the APA is now listed under “Senior Project Beneficiaries”, this was carried without our consent. Our recommendations were never taken on board, and it is only very recently, in late 2015 and early 2016 -– more than two years after the signing of the Project agreement — the APA was invited to attend two Project Board meetings.

Anna Correia, as head of the project at the Ministry, did not ensure inclusivity, as the project document said it would do. This appears to demonstrate that there was no intention to apply transparency and elements of good governance.

That the APA was included in two team visits as Project Board observers is a result of a request by the organisation to be a part of the teams. That the APA President was part of a team visiting some communities was to ensure that the communities have their fair say. We were previously never given this opportunity.

We continue to speak with the current Government on the inconsistencies and shortcomings that still exist within the project, including the inadequate legislation that govern Indigenous peoples and the numerous problems that came with some of the titles previously granted. We have spoken and written to the current Minister of Indigenous Peoples Affairs on the subject, and therefore we feel it is only right that we give them time to fix things, as we had done with the previous Government when they came into power. After all, twenty-plus years of clean-up will take time.

Ms. Correia has suddenly become a voice for the people of Tassarene, and speaks about the mining concessions contained on their lands. Might we remind Ms. Correia that, in August 2012, the title certificate was taken back from the Toshao of Tassarene shortly after being handed over by the then President of Guyana. Perhaps she can explain why this took place, and state measures she took as head of the Land Titling Project to rectify this insult to the community? Tassarene is not the only community where mining concessions were granted on Indigenous lands, titled or untitled; most, if not all, were granted by the previous Government. The APA has always spoken up about these situations, and has been supporting the leadership of Tassarine in dialogue with the Government. That they choose to listen to the advice of Ms. Correia is their right, and I am sure that, together, the community and Ms. Correia are making great headway in resolving the community’s particular land problem.

While Ms. Correia writes about the good work done ‘under her watch’, today we see the result of how the project has created more problems for some communities. Chenapau now sees part of its land being titled to Karisparu (the latter received its title just before elections). Several communities received titles with active mining blocks on them, including one community that received its title certificate exactly one week before the General Elections of May 2015. As then head of the project, Ms. Correia must accept responsibility for the many violations of the principles of FPIC under the project, and the illusion that led some communities to feel that their land tenure was now secure.

Ms. Correia also speaks about allegations of sexual harassment of Amerindian women. We wonder if her memory is so short that she cannot remember the allegations of sexual harassment, allegedly by persons in positions of responsibility, in the not-so-distant past. The information was very public, and some of our own people were coerced into denying these allegations to protect the perpetrators. Sexual harassment then and now is never okay. If Ms. Correia has evidence of sexual harassment, she should take it to the relevant authorities and let them deal with it. We would also be happy to be privy to such evidence, once they do not violate any protocols.

We hope that Ms. Correia can say why she did not speak out when physical threats were made against some of our members, and why she never publicly denounced the numerous violations that communities previously experienced.

In her newfound status as a “protector” of Indigenous rights, we urge her to concentrate her energies in doing good for humanity. We will not engage in name calling, as she has done, and we will continue to struggle for the rights of the Indigenous peoples of this country. We will continue to hold this new Government accountable, and remind its members of their promises, as we did in the past.

THE AMERINDIAN PEOPLES ASSOCIATION