PARAMARIBO, Suriname – President Chandrikapersad Santokhi says the issue of land rights remains a top priority for his administration even as indigenous people say they have been waiting for a very long time for recognition and intend to increase the pressure on the government to do so.
Osip Leider Lloyd Read addressing the conference on SundayThe “Day of the Natives,” will be observed here on Tuesday and President Santokhi, who was the guest of honor at the opening of the Indigenous festival in Wit Santi village over the last weekend, acknowledged the role played by indigenous people in the socio-economic development the country.
“The indigenous people or the original inhabitants of Suriname are the first to have lived and worked in this country,” he told the ceremony, adding that the issue of land rights is still high on the government’s agenda.
The Suriname Communications Service (SCS) in a report on the visit, said that Village head, Patrick Mandé, took the opportunity of raising the land rights of indigenous and other tribal peoples.
But one-day after Santokhi’s visit, indigenous peoples from different parts of the country said they intend to pressure the government in the coming month, saying they are tired of waiting for recognition of their land rights.
At a meeting of the Organization of Cooperating Indigenous Villages and Commewijne (Osip) on Sunday, the groups said they intend to adopt a different strategy to get the government to act.
“We are going to take a different approach from today. If the government does not want to recognize us, we will recognize ourselves,” Osip’s leader, Captain Lloyd Read told the meeting.
“We are not going to apply for land in our villages and we are not going to register for it either. We’re not crazy. It’s already ours and we don’t ask anyone’s permission for it. I’m never going to accept that and I assume other natives won’t either,” Read said.
“We owe it to our children and children’s children. We have been fooled all the time by the various governments. If we don’t fight now, our children will never forgive us,” the Osip’s leader said.
Read said that the indigenous people have shown more than enough patience in recent years, displaying documents and letters and petitions that have been submitted to the government.
“So we haven’t been sitting still. We have sought our rights nationally and internationally. But even the judgment handed down by the International Court of Human Rights has so far not been implemented by the government,” said Read.
The ruling in 2016 was to be fully implemented within three years. However, this has failed to materialize so far.
Osip said that in an effort to force the government to carry out the ICJ ruling, it will soon embark upon a number of initiatives, including holding consultations with various groups such as the trade union movement, women’s organizations and churches to raise awareness among the entire community. “People need to know that there is a group here in Suriname that is being wronged and threatened. And we are going to ask them to support us.
“We are increasingly oppressed. We have allowed and allowed too much. That’s giving us problems at the moment. So we want to straighten that out once and for all. We are ready for anything. We are willing to accept anything that comes our way. If we don’t, we as an indigenous people are doomed to perish. We are prepared to fight to the bitter end,” Read added.
