High volume of spoilt ballots, low turnout in indigenous communities – EAB report

When Guyana’s  indigenous peoples took to the polls last year there was a recorded  high volume of spoilt ballots,  low voter turnout and even evidence of them being misled by at least one major party, says the Electoral Assistance Bureau.

The country’s indigenous people  were at a disadvantage when compared to city voters because of the language barrier given their diverse and sometimes only language, the local election’s watchdog added in its report and recommendations for last year’s elections. “Most indigenous peoples in Guyana encounter English as a second language and are in remote areas where they do not benefit from a free flow of information so that they are properly informed about the pros and cons of different political parties,” the report said.

The EAB also noted that voter education was also limited in the hinterland which resulted in simple errors and could have been avoided. “The highest levels of rejection due to voter action in