First Peoples get 25 acres

THE Santa Rosa First Peoples could not have had a better celebration for International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on Thursday when they received 25 acres of land, promised to them, for the establishment of the First Peoples Heritage and Living Museum.

While the 25 acres is nothing when compared to the 1,320 acres taken from them centuries ago when the Spanish ruled this nation, the First Peoples nevertheless viewed it as a victory when Arima MP Anthony Garcia and Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat handed over the deed to Carib chief Ricardo Bharath-Hernandez.

The handing over took place at Carib headquarters on Paul Mitchell Street, Arima. “A great injustice was done to the First Peoples in that their inalienable property was taken away from them. The community was left shattered and displaced. It was in the 1970s that an infusion of renewed consciousness entered the genes of the descendants of the First Peoples,” Bharath-Hernandez said.

He said the country’s first prime minister Dr Eric Williams approved a grant of $157.50 to register the community as a company, while the National Alliance for Reconstruction government said the community would be recognised as a representative of the Indigenous Amerindians of TT.

Bharath-Hernandez said successive governments since then have played a part in the First Peoples march to recognition which resulted on Thursday in the handing over of the deed. He said that the First Peoples are looking forward to more support from government and the private sector to realise their dream of the the establishment of a village which would be a flagship not only for Arima, but for the nation.

MP Garcia said the First Peoples have finally been given their just due after decades of long and hard struggle for recognition. “When (Christopher) Columbus came here, he did not discover any new world. There were people here already. It is because of your inner strength that you are here today,” Garcia told the gathering.

Rambharat said that while 25 acres did not compensate for what has been lost, he hopes the land would be put to good use. He said there were instances where land was given to people who promise to cultivate it and help feed the nation but years later, the said land remained unused and barren.

Bharath-Hernandez gave the assurance that the 25 acres would be used for the propagation of the heritage of the Santa Rosa First Peoples and continuity of that community.