Race and Ethnic Relations

The non-governmental Guyana Equality Forum (GEF) said Friday’s release of a report titled ‘Hate Crimes Reform’ marked the start of an intensive lobby for legislation to punish persons who perpetrate hatred against others based on their gender, gender identity, sexual orientation and race. “Hate crime legislation should also reflect a sufficiently broad range of protected characteristics to ensure protection for ...

The opposition A Partnership or National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) and the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Saturday night , in the wake of condemnations by the People’s Progressive Party Civic-led administration that it is engaging in widespread discrimination against Afro-Guyanese, denied that it was targeting Indo-Guyanese.  “Let me say to my Indian brothers and sisters…I am saying to you: when ...

Former Finance Minister Winston Jordan on Sunday recommended the creation of an African Development Fund and urged the government-funded  International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly – Guyana (IDPADA-G) to conduct a data-driven scientific study on the social and economic plight of Afro-Guyanese. While IDPADA-G has conducted an analysis of the historical condition of enslaved Africans and their descendants, ...

African Guyanese were Sunday night- Emancipation Day Eve- urged to agitate for a national conversation on the distribution of Guyana’s oil wealth. Attorney-at-Law Nigel Hughes and Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Executive Member David Hinds issued stirring appeals in speeches at the “Buxton Black is Beautiful Emancipation Cultural Programme”. Mr Hughes recommended that an analysis be conducted to ascertain how much ...

An Afro-Guyanese policewoman, who has accused an Indo-Guyanese lawyer of using racial slurs against her while she was on duty at his father’s residence, is seeking GY$150 million in damages for allegedly defaming her. “By reason of the publication of the said  column, the claimant has been severely injured in reputation, credit, subject to ridicule and lowered in the estimation ...

Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), David Granger on Sunday- African Emancipation Day- said race relations was Guyana’s major problem rather than the burgeoning oil sector. “Guyana’s big problem is the problem of social cohesion. You may think that there are other problems- oil and the economy  and so on. The biggest problem we have is the ethnic ...

In the fact of criticisms from several quarters about a section of his remarks in his Arrival Day Message that critics say gave the impression that Africans came to Guyana in the quest for a good life, President Irfaan Ali last night expressed regret  “To my fellow Guyanese, who felt offended by the way in which the language was structured, ...

Attorney General Anil Nandlall has indicated that utterances by opposition lawmaker, Amanza Walton-Desir violate Guyana’s laws. “Racial discrimination is a wrong. It is an illegal act. It is outlawed by the most Supreme Law of our country,” he said. Mr. Nandlall said Guyana’s Constitution protects citizens against racial discrimination. “Racial discrimination is something that the constitution protects Guyanese from as ...

Opposition APNU+AFC parliamentarian Amanza Walton-Desir said she told police that she feared City businessman Roshan Khan’s call for her to be “marked” because she said the support-base of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) was “mentally lazy people.” But Mr. Khan later appeared on YouTube, defending his call for her to be “marked”, saying he was merely urging Indo-Guyanese to ignore ...

The Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) has taken three persons to court for allegedly inciting racial hatred or hostility among Guyanese, and one of them has since pleaded guilty, the commission said Thursday. “Based on the specific nature of their conduct and words, the charges against the defendants included causing ethnic/racial violence or hatred and exciting hostility or ill-will on the ...