| A leading Amerindian rights group says concerns about the country’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) remain,NFL Jerseys Outlet, but it has denied having anything to do with the budget cuts.The Amerindian People’s Association (APA), spurned by the government for its stance on various issues, has complained that it is being blamed for the opposition’s decision to slash the LCDS budget to $1.One month ago, the opposition-controlled legislature voted to cut the 2012 budget by $20 billion, with the bulk of the cuts affecting low carbon projects the government is pursuing, such as a hinterland electrification project and Amerindian land demarcation.APA representatives and supporters in communities have said that the organisation was being constantly maligned and blamed by government representatives during their recent outreach to Amerindian communities for the budget cuts and its future negative impacts on Amerindians.“The APA wishes to clarify that it had no inputs on budgetary allocations or cuts, is a non-governmental organisation which seeks to outreach to all who interact with or have an interest in indigenous peoples’ development and upliftment but is not politically aligned,” the organisation stated.In a statement to the press, the APA repeated its position that the LCDS can offer great benefits to Guyana and to indigenous communities but there are certain rights issues that need to be addressed.“The government has agreed in its negotiations with the Norwegians that it will follow certain guidelines and ensure that certain safeguards are followed and it is these that the APA is urging the government to abide by.“To date we are aware that not all of these have been observed,” the organisation stated.The APA urged the government to follow relevant internationally accepted standards and safeguards especially those that the state has agreed it will abide by.The APA is urging persons who identify themselves as representatives of indigenous peoples to work towards the improvement of the conditions of our people and not to be engaged in spreading fear and mistrust within the communities.“It is worthy to note that persons on the recent visits to the communities have been telling our people that there are no monies for development but still find the funds to travel to different villages to tell them so,” the APA stated.In a rebuke of Yvonne Pearson, the head of the National Toshaos Council, and also the Head of the Indigenous Peoples Commission, the APA said that it holds key positions in representing the indigenous peoples of this country “and this must not be confused with political party representation.”Meanwhile, in relation to the recently held nationwide Toshaos and village councils elections,Jerseys From China, the Committee notes with concern the various anomalies and discrepancies in the conduct of these elections. Reports received by the APA reveal no uniformity of a process in the conduct of elections, no uniformity in the eligibility criteria for persons running for office, and the promotion of and campaigning on behalf of a particular candidate or candidates by the Minister of Amerindian Affairs and regional officers, among others.In Aishalton in Region Nine, the APA said persons were told that if they were nominated as Toshao, they could not be nominated for another position on the council. The Amerindian Act is not clear about this,NFL Jerseys Outlet, the organisation stated.In Parishara, in the same region, the APA claimed that a candidate was deemed ineligible to run because of alleged past wrongdoing yet obvious irregularities have been overlooked again and again during the tenure of various leaders.In other cases the returning officers conducting elections used their own interpretations of the Act and conducted elections by these interpretations, the APA stated.The organisation further claimed that in Wakapoa in Region Two, the returning officer started counting the ballots 30 minutes before the scheduled time and these ballots were not separated according to nominees as stipulated by the Act.In addition, in Paramakatoi, Region Eight,NBA Store, due to confusion of dates and information by the CDO, only under one third of the eligible voters were able to vote, the APA claimed.In some villages in Regions One and Two, Regional officials were openly campaigning for candidates who are also party supporters and in some communities, irrespective of distance, members were told they had no choice but to vote at one polling place while it is clear that there was the choice of having several polling places in a large village as happened in Santa Rosa, the APA stated.The APA said that it is the opinion that Toshaos and village council elections should be carried out free of interference and manipulation by any political party since elected leaders are there to represent the people who have varying concerns.“Likewise, returning officers and regional officials should not impose their own opinions on the elections process.“Such a process should have some amount of uniformity making allowances for geography and other peculiarities.”As part of its meeting the Executive Committee asked for and was granted meetings with a number of missions, agencies, commissions and political parties, among others. These include the Guyana Forestry Commission, the Indigenous Peoples Commission, the Roman Catholic Bishop Francis Alleyne, the Inter-American Development Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, Ambassador Lindsay Jones of the European Union, Canadian High Commissioner David Devine, British High Commissioner Mr. Andrew Eyre, the US Ambassador Mr. D. Brent Hardt, A Partnership for National Unity, and the Alliance for Change.The APA said that its committee could not secure meetings with the Minister of Amerindian Affairs since the APA was told that she would be out of the country and likewise the National Toshaos Council whose head was also going to be out of the country.The APA could also not secure a meeting with the GGMC Commissioner. In an effort to meet with the Peoples Progressive Party and the Office of Climate Change,Wholesale NFL China Jerseys, the APA was directed to the Office of the President but the President was not available at the time.“However President Ramotar did say that his office would contact the APA to set a meeting at a mutually convenient date and a meeting has since been held between President Ramotar and the APA President Sharon Atkinson and Programme Administrator,Dwight Howard Hawks Jersey, Jean La Rose.” |
