Guyana and TT Indians to strengthen ties

The Indian communities in Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana will strengthen ties when a delegation from the Guyana Indian Heritage Association (GIHA) visits the twin-island state at the invitation of GOPIO (Trinidad). GOPIO will be hosting GIHA from January 1 to January 4, 2004. The two organisations have been in close contact over recent months and share common and grave concerns over the ethnic violence and discrimination faced by the Indian communities in both countries. The GIHA delegation will be led by its President, Ms Ryhana Shah, and GIHA member, Mr Narvan Singh. GIHA was formed five years ago and was formalised as an NGO in 2002.

GOPIO (Trinidad) and GIHA will discuss ways to strengthen and widen the current relationship between these two Indian Caribbean communities especially to supporting each other’s concerns at regional and international fora. GOPIO (Trinidad) meeting with GIHA expect to be the first of a series of meetings that will forge a bilateral alliance to protect and defend the just interests of the Indian Caribbean community in the political, social and cultural arenas.  The organisations also plan to work together to develop the region’s Indian community in areas such as culture and the arts, religion and education. Both groups have already expressed their deepest concern about the gravity of the ethnic violence directed at Indians in their respective countries, through wanton crime in Guyana and a series of kidnappings in Trinidad.

GIHA has produced a Crime Report, entitled “Indians Betrayed,” which documents and analyses the 2002-2003 violence against Guyanese Indian. The report has been widely circulated to the Guyanese media, politicians and diplomatic missions as well as to such international leaders as the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Other issues which shall be explored include Trinidad’s political Caribbean Union with Barbados and St Vincent to include Guyana so as not to marginalise Indo-Trinidadians politically and the demographics of armed forces and public services and its resultant effects on society. During their visit, the GIHA delegation will be interviewed by the media. They will also meet with members of the Chamber of Commerce of Tunapuna and San Juan, and the Opposition party.