As the nation observes the 67th anniversary of the Enmore Martyrs, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo reaffirmed the government’s intention to provide subventions to the country’s trade unions. He made the recommitment at the commemorative ceremony in Enmore, East Coast of Demerara yesterday afternoon.The Enmore Martyrs’ Monument adorned with commemorative wreaths yesterday.The Prime Minister said that the new administration will extend these subventions to the Critchlow Labour College.“The government will give trade unions a subvention to help them carry out their work, to better represent their workers. In order to educate the children of the working people, this government will restore subventions to the Critchlow Labour College,Cheap NFL Jerseys China,” the Prime Minister stated.Despite cloudy skies and intermittent rains,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys Outlet, a number of government ministers, trade unionists, workers and descendants of the martyrs came out to join in remembering the five sugar workers who were fatally shot by colonialists in 1948.The monument has special significance to Guyanese as the actions of five workers greatly influenced the country’s Trade Union and Independence Movement.The workers – Rambarran, Pooran, Lallabagee, Pooran, Harry and Surujballi – are remembered for demanding the better working conditions in the sugar industry and the recognition of trade unions of the workers ‘choice.The Prime Minister reflected on the important role the martyrs played in his early political career, as he participated in regular marches which commemorated their action.? He noted how hard the struggle was for Guyana’s trade unions to finally gain recognition in 1976.“I was here at Enmore in 1976, standing almost between the two legendary leaders of Guyana; Cheddi Jagan and Forbes Burnham…right here in Enmore, on the eve of the recognition of GAWU (Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union),” Nagamootoo recounted.He said that the plight of Guyana’s trade union movement was one which stretched as far back as slavery,Jerseys Cheap, since the movement sought to recognise the rights of all workers. As an extensive writer on the country’s historic struggles, the Prime Minister said that the martyrs’ actions were a continuation of revolution, like the 1763 Slave Rebellion.“The Enmore Martyrs decided that free labour was unacceptable and also struggled like those before them for a better system of work,” said the Prime Minister.To that end,Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping, as someone who has roots in Enmore, Nagamootoo expressed his shock at the recent revelation that the sugar industry was “poised on bankruptcy”.“We were informed that GuySuCo (Guyana Sugar Corporation) only had one week’s pay remaining for sugar workers. I could not believe that our (former) leaders hid the fact that they had bankrupted the sugar industry,”Workers in the audience could be heard in agreement with the Prime Minister, as he conveyed his outrage at recent cases of GuySuCo failing to pay for employees’ National Insurance Scheme (NIS) contributions and credit union benefits.He noted that President David Granger’s absence at yesterday’s proceedings were due to his administration’s commitment towards meeting an agreement to bailout the sugar industry.Prime Minister Nagamootoo said that moving forward; a Commission of Inquiry will be employed in all sugar estates in Guyana, so as to find a solution to the problems that face the sugar industry. “Sugar workers must be part of the solution and not the problem,” said the government official.Meanwhile, General Secretary of Guyana Trade Union Congress (GTUC), Lincoln Lewis, also addressed the audience. He urged citizens to remember the sacrifice of the Enmore Martyrs, and that the struggle of the sugar workers in 1948 was the formation of a just society.Lewis urged the Government to not only “talk the talk but to also walk the walk”. He added that the opportunity to govern a country is a privilege and not a right.He stated that the rights the sugar workers fought for were vested in the citizens.The Enmore Sugar Estate,Cheap Jerseys Supply, from whence the martyrs came, has had an impact on every community.Lewis also explained that the GTUC cannot continue along a path of an unbalanced system and is ready to move forward for a better GuyanaThe trade unionist said that the Union will continue to work with the citizens to advocate and optimize the performance of their businesses and the protection of their fundamental rights.

PAT?DIALJust about two weeks ago, there was a very disturbing media report coming from Charity Village in Esseqibo:? Scores of violent squatters had suddenly started to squat on State property at Charity New Housing Scheme and the Dredge Creek area.? These squatters in their land grab greed invaded privately-owned farms as well, destroying farmers’ cultivation and staking out these privately-owned lands.The Police seemed to have been inactive. The Chairman of the NDC declared that the situation was out of control and necessitated Central Government intervention.This squatting lawlessness bears much similarity to the large-scale invasion of State land which occurred in Region Four shortly after the new APNU/AFC Government?had been installed in office.? Several of these?squatters were caught on videotape by the newspaper reporters falsely and brazenly declaring that the Parties in the new Government had told them to invade State land!Fortunately, the Police were able to clear the squatters off the land in a few days.? No report of similar success by the Police has come from Essequibo.This squatting lawlessness is an organized activity.? Whole families are always involved and their object is to seize as much land as they could with the intention of profiteering on it.Squatting is in effect theft and must be eradicated from Guyanese Society as quickly as possible.? It erodes the authority of the Government and State and the public will eventually come to regard such lawlessness as a norm.? Government should be resolute in stamping out squatting and the Police should be ordered to nip squatting in the bud.In Guyana the State has always been generous and liberal in granting agricultural and housing leases and there is no example of a genuine lease application for agricultural and housing land being turned down.? Those who indulge in squatting are persons and groups with criminal intent.? If individuals and groups require land they could easily apply to the Authorities and there is no cost for doing this.? The overwhelming majority of squatters are perfectly aware of this.In the case of Charity, the legitimate farmers whose land had been invaded all had leases.? The squatters could equally have applied for leases as the farmers had done.? The Governmental Authorities must immediately eject the squatters, assert their authority,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, uphold Law and Order and merit the respect of the citizenry.The Laws affecting squatting must be quickly strengthened:? The Laws affecting State land have already been strengthened and it is now impossible to claim ownership of State land by prescription.Unfortunately,Jerseys Cheap, when the Law was being amended,Wholesale Baseball Jerseys 2018, no equal protection was given to private land and this was an omission which should now be rectified.The Laws affecting squatting on private land were fairly adequate?up to the late 1960’s and early 1970’s at the time?Sir Joseph Luckhoo was Chief Justice.? At this time, the establishing of the 12-year rule was uncritically adopted from the current British Legislation.Britain is a highly urban society and the 12-year?rule was established there because such a society needed such a rule.? Guyana was, and still is a rural society and had no need of?the 12-year rule;?indeed, the 12-year rule was at variance with the needs of Guyanese Society and this was further emphasized by the heavy emigration which has affected the country.? Many a squatter has made questionable claims of being on an expatriate Guyanese’s land for 12 years but since there was no one to oppose such claims, the Courts have had to accede.? The Laws affecting?squatting on private land must again be brought into consonance with the amended Laws relating to public land.The 12-year rule should be abolished,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, reverting to the 33-year rule.? The Guyana Consumers Association expects to write the relevant Authorities asking them to strengthen the Laws protecting private land against?squatting greed.The Ministry of Public Security is importuned to instruct the Police to respond to valid complaints of squatting on both public and private land.? The Police, in many cases,Wholesale Jerseys Authentic, avoid their responsibility of responding by saying nonchalantly that squatting is a private matter though it results in the authority of the Government and the State being eroded. A culture of lawlessness being spread and often resulting in present and future chaos and violence.

– full-page advertisement flays Norway dealAs government contemplates a proposal of six months’ notice of intention by miners to commence operations,Cheap Jerseys USA, the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) has called a Special Members Meeting,Jerseys From China, today, to “determine the future of the mining sector”.High on the agenda of the meeting at the entity’s North Road, Bourda office, also, is whether the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) should have veto powers for mining in timber concessions.The mining body will use the opportunity to peruse proposals by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) to increase monitoring and readily detecting and disciplining infractions of mining laws and regulations.GGMC Commissioner (ag), William Woolford, will also be present for the meeting, GGDMA said in its notice.With Guyana’s government pledging to the world to maintain its forests in a pristine condition in return for cash, miners have expressed concern about their existence, as local authorities announced that a stricter eye will be paid to the mining industry to ensure that it is in keeping with regulations. A recent historic agreement with Norway to release US$250M to Guyana to keep its forests intact has also come under fire from the mining industry, with questions being asked whether the moves will compensate the thousands of persons who are dependent on the industry for a living.A mining member of the GGDMA,Cheap Jerseys, Patrick Pereira, in an extensive five-page advertisement in one of the daily newspapers this week, opined that the current Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Guyana and Norway is an insult to President Bharrat Jagdeo and the country.The statement accused the conditions laid out in the MOU as being a “clever weapon” of which the main purpose is to dispossess miners of hundreds of thousands of especially rich mineral lands.Pereira argued that it is hard to understand why an important industry which only harvests 0.0294 of “uneconomic forested area yearly”, employing over 100,000 persons and producing US$400M, could be targeted for miniaturization.Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture, Robert Persaud, whose portfolio includes forestry,Cheap Jerseys 2018, in a letter published in the January 7, 2010 edition of the Kaieteur News, was pellucid that the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) will not lead to job loss.He explained in detail that nowhere in the Norway/Guyana MOU does it say that forestry and mining activities will cease.“In actual fact,NFL Jerseys Wholesale, page three of the “Frequently Asked Questions” supplement to the Draft LCDS document (June 2009) clearly states, “Mining and forestry activities will not be required to stop.However,Cheap Hockey Jerseys, they will be required to strictly comply with standards set by our Mining, Forestry and Environmental Laws and the Low Carbon Development Strategy”.According to the Minister, “the same document also states that mining and forestry will not be required to reduce their activities, but be allowed to continue in accordance with more stringent monitoring and enforcement of compliance”.Persaud pointed out that the revenues from Norway and other potential partners are really additional to what the forestry and mining sectors will bring in.