A day after Barticians shut down the community and staged a massive protest, life in the community returned to normalcy yesterday as the residents await word from President Bharrat Jagdeo regarding the implementation of six months notice before mining among other controversial proposals.
Spokesperson for the Committee of Concerned Barticians, Frederick Mc Wilfred told this newspaper that the community felt that Monday’s actions had made a significant impression and that residents are now “waiting on a direct and unambiguous” response from the authorities. He stressed that the committee wanted a response directly from President Jagdeo.
So far, Mc Wilfred said he had noted the response by Prime Minister Sam Hinds which he said completely contradicted what Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud had said to the community on Saturday.
During a meeting with miners, Persaud had said that the contents of a letter sent by the Prime Minister to Commissioner of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commis-sion (GGMC) William Woolford about three proposed initiatives had been withdrawn. Among the proposals in this letter was that: “every miner must give written notice of at least six months via the GGMC to the GFC (Guyana Forestry Com-mission) for any cutting or otherwise destroying, injuring or felling (killing of any tree)…”
But according to Mc Wilfred, attempts made on Monday by Hinds on NCN to explain why six months notice was necessary indicate that the government has not changed its tone. He said the government needed to come out and clearly state its position on the issue and not issue contradictory messages.
When asked if the miners from Bartica will be attending the meeting scheduled for February 11 with President Jagdeo, the spokesman said this had to be discussed with other members of the committee. He, however, repeated the proposal he first made during Monday’s post-march rally where he called for the Land Use Committee–set up to look into the ongoing issues pertaining to mining and forestry-to be expanded to include representatives from communities such as Bartica and Mahdia, which depend almost entirely on gold for their economic existence. He said that based on this recommendation the tenure of this committee may have to be extended. If the tenure of the Land Use Committee is extended, the President’s meeting with miners may have to be pushed back until the committee is finished with its recommendations, Mc Wilfred had said on Monday. He stressed that the recommendations coming out of this committee were important.
Meanwhile quizzed on the support for the protest on Monday, Mc Wilfred said that prior to the initiative “people were quietly very concerned” and that they had the will and motivation to fight. Once the plans for the protest were announced, Mc Wilfred said that the support from residents was immediate. The organizers did not have to beg residents to participate, Mc Wilfred stressed.
Meanwhile, Mc Wilfred said that persons who travelled to Bartica on Monday to partake in the activities said that they were planning a similar exercise in Mahdia. According to him, this was something the Mahdia miners were seriously considering prior to travelling to Bartica but which was definitely decided as a course of action after they would have witnessed the massive support that Monday’s exercise received. Mc Wilfred said that the Committee of Concerned Barticians will be fully supporting the residents of Mahdia in this exercise.
He said he believes that if there were to be a call for all miners to protest, all would respond. Since the Barticians began their fight, Mc Wilfred said, many large mining enterprises from all sections of the country have indicated their support for their actions.
Meanwhile, Mc Wilfred responded to suggestions carried during Monday’s edition of the NCN 6 o’clock news that residents were withdrawing their support for the actions of the group since these were politically motivated.
A clearly upset Mc Wilfred threw out a challenge to all concerned to prove that there was any interaction between them and any political figure or group.
He emphasized that the Committee of Concerned Barticians is determined that it remains “apolitical” since this was not a political issue but rather one that is “a bread and butter issue”. According to him, the persons involved in this action were from “all political shades” who had a common concern. He emphasised that the group will not be encouraging any political element that would seek to destroy the solidarity of its members.
On Monday, thousands of Barticians and residents from neighbouring riverain communities responded positively to a call by the Committee of Concerned Barticians for a shutdown of the community, as they pressed for the administration to review mining proposals which could potentially negatively impact their livelihoods.
