—Amerindian Affairs Minister
Micobie residents have complained that despite a cease order being issued to a miner who was working without their permission within titled village land, he has refused to move, but Minister of Amerindian Affairs Pauline Sukhai says that weather has prevented the miner from moving.
She said that the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs usually followed up matters with the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and this was one of the issues that was being tracked. According to the minister the GGMC has said that a cease-work order has been issued to the miner.
Captain of the Region Eight (Potaro/Sipuruni) community, Majuna Edwards, had told this newspaper recently that despite the GGMC issuing a cease-work order to the miner and ordering that the operations be removed, this had not been done. Several persons writing in the letter columns of this newspaper have also raised the issue and questioned the capacity of the mining regulatory body to enforce its orders.
Edwards had told this newspaper that the GGMC had issued a stop order on the miner and ordered him to move but while he had stopped working he had nevertheless remained. One writer in a letter published on July 30 last, said that the miner had resorted to “raiding” the village lands. This was several weeks after the cease-work order had been issued.
Edwards had said that the problem stemmed from some time back. Documents seen by this newspaper indicate that the Micobie Village Council wrote to the GGMC complaining that the named miner was not complying with the regulations. The letter said that last year the miner had allowed a mining company to work within the titled land of the village. The letter, which was signed by Edwards, stated that the council was frustrated because the named miner was not responding to requests for meetings and the council sought the intervention of the GGMC in the matter.
According to the letter, the miner said that the claims within the titled land had been paid for and the GGMC had produced receipts. Copies of the receipts had also been sent to the GGMC.
On June 23, the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs (MOAA) wrote to the GGMC in relation to several issues, including Micobie and Arau. The letter, which was signed by Liaison Officer to the Minister of Amerindian Affairs Norman Whittaker, pointed out that in a conversation with GGMC Commissioner William Woolford, the commissioner had said that the GGMC had instructed an officer to go to Micobie and issue the miner with a cease-work order. In the letter, it was stated that the ministry had received information that the miner was continuing his operations despite the instructions and “with total disregard for the legal authority of the Village Council.”
Two days later, on June 25, the miner wrote to Edwards and the GGMC. In the letter to Edwards, the miner formally asked for permission to conduct mining operations “on those land claims of which I am the licensed holder, that fall within the Titled Lands of the Micobie Village.”
In his letter to the GGMC which dealt with the cease-work order, the miner said that he wished “to advise that I have formally approached the Micobie Village Council with a view to engaging in discussions/negotiations leading to the conclusion of an agreement acceptable to both parties.”
On June 26, the GGMC wrote to the MOAA responding to the complaints made by Micobie. The letter said that on May 25, the District Mines Officer, along with three ranks of the Tactical Services Unit of the Guyana Police Force visited Micobie to investigate the illegal mining complaint. It said that investigations found that a dredge was working within the reservation and a percentage had been paid to the village. A different miner who claimed that another miner was encroaching on his “work ground” was warned about operating an unlicensed dredge and the area was demarcated to separate the work grounds.
The letter also said that on June 22, the Mines Officer visited Micobie to investigate a complaint made by a miner about another miner regarding mining on a claim. The GGMC said that the land in dispute was found to be within the Micobie Amerindian Reservation and a cease-work order had been served on the miner.
On July 3, the Micobie Village Council wrote to the GGMC and said that it had no intention of entering into any agreement with the miner and informed the commission that while the miner had ceased operations, he had not vacated the village lands.
The village had also clarified that “in exercising its right under Sections 48 and 49 of the Amerindian Act 2006,” two persons had been granted permission to work on land that was part of the titled area.
After that, letters published in the press, including in this newspaper, said that the problem persisted.
Yesterday, Sukhai said that while the matter was a “mining issue,” the MOAA had copied letters to and raised the issues with the mining regulatory body. She said that according to information from the GGMC, mining had ceased in that area. She said that no further complaints had been received from the village.
She said that at a meeting last Wednesday with the mining commission, the GGMC had given the assurance that cease-work orders had been issued and “mining has actually stopped.” The minister added that as far as she was aware, the operations had ceased and the miners were waiting on the weather to clear up to remove their equipment.
