Sukhai urges Amerindians to exploit natural resources to create wealth

Amerindian Affairs Minister Pauline Sukhai is calling on all Amerindians to tap into their resources in order to improve their livelihoods and add to the progress in their respective villages and regions. “Sometimes, we do not recognise how resourceful our villages are, and we tend to remain in a state of dependency and feel that others are obligated to bring development to us, but I want to encourage you to look within your villages, to see for yourself that you, as a people within Guyana, have rich resources and you will have to start to strongly examine those options,” Sukhai said.

Minister Sukhai was at the time addressing a gathering in St Ignatius, Region Nine, during the launch of heritage activities there. According to the minister, Amerindians should begin to recognise that the land they own have many resources. She urged them to make use of those resources.
Sukhai said one of the greatest achievements of the People’s Progressive Party administration was providing land tenure security for the indigenous people of Guyana. She explained that land provides a wealth of opportunities for people and Amerindians should take advantage of reaping the benefits.
The Amerindian affairs minister urged villagers to change their dependent mindset. Amerindians, she said, must now take responsibility for their own development, while government will continue to do its part in building on the progress already made. She noted that in the Amerindian Affairs Ministry’s five-year strategic plan, which began this year will focus on encouraging and promoting the use of Amerindian languages in the household and every area of work.
“I am challenging our people to be proud of your language, to use it every day, to pass it on to the younger ones, so that it survives and is passed down to many generations to come,” she said. The minister posited that language is an important aspect of the identity of a people. She said that the Amerindian Affairs Ministry is looking to source more funding, to help in the preservation of these rare languages. To date, dictionaries have been published for five Amerindian languages, with materials available for one more. The government, through the subject ministry, hopes to have translated and published in the form of dictionaries another three languages.
The minister said plans are in place to ensure the use of those dictionaries already published, as teaching materials in schools. While these languages are spoken in various Amerindian communities, they are not fully written. According to the minister, the North Rupununi Amerindian communities have taken action to ensure that their languages are preserved and have already moved to prepare written materials.
While stressing the importance of this year’s Amerindian Heritage Month theme, “Embracing our identity, celebrating our Culture”, Sukhai said: “I want to call on all Amerindians to be proud of who you are. We have indeed walked a difficult journey to be where we are today. In the past, we were marginalised and neglected, and due to our geographical location and occupation at large, we have been far away from the centre of services. We have, indeed, been looked upon as lesser Guyanese, but I wish to say that it is time that you stand up and recognise that you are first and foremost Guyanese. That you are part of this nation.”
Sukhai said it was the late president, Dr Cheddi Jagan who made the commitment when his party was in the opposition to ensure that the Amerindian culture does not die. One of the first things he did in less than five years was to have Amerindian advocates advise him on an appropriate month to highlight Amerindian culture, so that government could help to ensure that the Amerindian culture is maintained. “That, I believe, despite all the good things that Dr Jagan and his administration have done, that is one of his greatest achievement for a people,” she said.
“Another major achievement Dr Jagan made while he was in office was to ensure the furtherance of ownership of lands for Amerindians. He was speaking not only about the needs of the Amerindians, but the rights of land and also ensuring that Guyana stands out at an international level,” she noted. “Today, Guyana is a model to many countries and is one of three countries in the world that ensure indigenous peoples have access to land. Brazil and Indonesia are the two other countries, where the ownership of lands is legislated for the indigenous population.”
The Amerindian Affairs Ministry has dispatched teams across the country, to assist communities to plan their heritage celebrations. The minister was welcomed by a rally of cultural groups from the Wai Wai and Makushi tribes, and those from neighbouring Brazil. She said, “Amerindians today have risen to a level that is incomparable; we can compete, we stand our own ground, together with all of our other brothers and sisters in Guyana and that is a great achievement for our people.”