Date: 03 Oct 91 08:47 PDT From: newsdesk@igc.org Subject: GUYANA: AMERINDIANS TO COMMEMORATE Message-ID: <1563600039@igc.org> /* Written 1:56 pm Oct 1, 1991 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */ /* ---------- "GUYANA: AMERINDIANS TO COMMEMORATE " ---------- */ Copyright Inter Press Service 1991, all rights reserved. Permission to re- print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'. Area: Caribbean Reference: Asia, southern Title: GUYANA: AMERINDIANS TO COMMEMORATE QUINCENTENARY BUT NOT COLUMBUS an inter press service feature by bert wilkinson georgetown, sep 28 (ips) -- guyana's amerindians are preparing to mark the arrival of christopher columbus to the region despite the fact that world opposition to celebrating the event is based largely on the consequences that that voyage had for the indigeno guyana: amerindians to commemorate quincentenary but not columbus an inter press service feature by bert wilkinson georgetown ,,,, guyana: amerindians to commemorate quincentenary but not columbus an inter press service feature by bert wilkinson georgetown, sep 28 (ips) -- guyana's amerindians are preparing to mark the arrival of christopher columbus to the region despite the fact that world opposition to celebrating the event is based largely on the consequences that that voyage had for the indigenous peoples of the americas. but, according to desyree fox, herself an amerindian and head of the university of guyana's amerindian research unit (aru), the observance will not focus on the exploits of columbus, but on the work and life of the indigenous amerindians. a national observance committee has been formed, she said, to sensitise guyana's 755,000 people to the history of the amerindians. ''we will deal with things such as the history of the amerindian peoples and will distribute educational packages ... we are currently working on plans'', said fox. the observance will not be celebratory, fox told ips. ''we are looking at the whole thing not as a celebration of what has happened in the last 500 years, but as a contact between the two worlds''. a number of activities have been planned to mark the occasion, fox said. these include symposia and public lectures, television programmes and an international conference which will be held in guyana. the university of guyana's institute of adult and continuing education (iace) is co-ordinating the project and schools will be involved in the activities, the aru head explained. guyana's 40,000 surviving amerindians make up less than four percent of this country's population. they are found mostly in the border regions, near suriname, brazil and venezuela. many continue to live a nomadic life. the name guyana (originally guiana) is an amerindian word meaning 'land of many waters'. the timehri international airport is also named from the indigenous dictionary and so is mashramani, guyana's equivalent of carneval, celebrated around independence day, feb. 26.