The creation of the Mahdia-Konwaruk Small Miners Forest and Agricultural Producers Association would appear to be part of the latest trek on what has been an intrepid journey by itinerant men and women whom, for years, have fought with little success to secure land in hinterland regions to ply their respective trades.
The association, its rules say, was formed, “to enable its members to work legally and in accordance with stipulations of the Guyana Forestry Commission and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission. The lack of any real success in realizing what is by far the most important objective has engendered an entirely uncontrived cynicism among small miners. The laws of the interior favour the big operators in the various sectors, they say, but after years of struggle they feel they have no option but to soldier on.
