Our History: Nothing That A Coat Of Paint Won't Fix.

Amerindian etching defaced.
Trinidad Express Newspapers | Aug 30, 2012 at 12:53 AM ECT

"When Cristo Adonis, the Pyai of the Santa Rosa Carib Community, took a small tour group to the site of the petroglyphs at Caurita, he certainly was not prepared for the sight that awaited them atop the hill. The surface of the stone that bore the Amerindian etchings had been freshly dressed with oil paint.

Adonis had taken a group that included a teacher and an MPhil student of the University of the West Indies into the hills of Caurita to visit the famous site. According to Adonis, from the start of the trek, he noticed that the previously overgrown trail to the site had been cleared. This told him that people were in the area recently.

As they climbed their way up the hill, Adonis shared his intimate knowledge of the area to the group, describing the healing powers of certain plants, the significance of resident flora and fauna to indigenous cultures and climaxing it all with a dispensation on the Caurita Petroglyph.

When the group reached the site, shock registered on all their faces as they saw the desecration wrought on the surface of the stone. Some one or some people had painted the etchings in stark white oil paint.

According to Adonis, the indigenous community regards this petroglyph as having special spiritual significance and it is a large part of ancestral life that we are now beginning to understand.

"I felt my whole spirit gone!"

Usually when people visit the site they find that the etchings are slightly covered by mosses. This is always cleared away easily so that the figures could be discernible. For photographic purposes, chalk is used to highlight the depictions as this quickly and easily disappears soon after. The oil paint however has permanence.

Adonis had just recently deciphered an important part of the etchings that had previously gone unnoticed. Adonis recognised the hawk. The hawk is of spiritual significance to the Amerindian peoples, so too does the deer.

The more prominent depictions such as the deer, fish, portraits with ceremonial head dress, the waterfall and other figures have all been acknowledged by the indigenous community of present day Amerindian descendants. Etchings of the hawk however went unnoticed until the Pyai discovered it.

This discovery of the hawk by Adonis goes one step further in interpreting the petroglyph as a whole.

"This hawk was not oil painted over because whoever did this did not make it out. Thank God for that!"

The petroglyph at Caurita stands as a monument of special significance to descendants of Amerindian ancestry. The community is at present lobbying for this site to be declared a National Heritage Site.

Adonis has promised to make another trip up to the site to try to clean the oil paint off the stone."

Cristo Adonis, Pyai of the Santa Rosa Carib Community.

Photo - Trinidad Express Newspaper

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A Note From The Gull

When I read the story above about the defacing of the Caurita petroglyphs*, I was dismayed and hastily jumped to one conclusion about the perps. My apologies to CEPEP if I am wrong, but I assumed that that band or some equally energetic administrative sibling, when confronted with the mother of all stones, had proceeded undaunted to whitewash.

I appreciate that the fervour with which the task must have been approached could have been inspired in no small way by preparations for the Jubilee and I'd like to think that the deed was done out of a sincere though misguided wish to "beautify" and highlight a unique and for many of us still mysterious but persistent aboriginal thread in our nation's rich history.

I have seen no follow up story to explain who did this so I remain caught between condemnation and commiseration. While I wait for answers that may never come, I can rant that this is the sort of ignorance/carelessness that should have been eradicated after 50 years!!! but I remember that there are many octogenarians among us who may or may not admit to the fact that they have had an even longer lifetime to fail at eradicating their own flaws.

And then I find myself going completely silent when I look around and ask myself why should I protest the desecration of my ancestors' surviving sacred places as if they are somehow of more importance than any other abused thing - living or inanimate - of great beauty and significance in this place - this place itself that has been consistently whitewashed since its "discovery".

Who can deny that there has been an ongoing project of cultural, social, environmental defacement in the service of alien visions of "beautification", "improvement", "development", "progress", "modernization"? And haven't we observed the subversion of many things that do not bend to these notions and often their eventual incorporation as tools to be used towards the general blanchiment or soul death that is increasingly evident.

One line from our Prime Minister's Independence Address comes back to me:

"What is the purpose of a society in which the landscape appears to be more modern but there is an absence of values?"

AHAKUTUWATIWA, ALËLEKATIWA, AKUYAWATIWA!
We awake, we laugh, we return!

So I will take a deep breath and rewind as I do prefer to hope with our PM that her vision for a transformation of this society becomes a reality. I trust that this "transformation" will be more about allowing our diversity and all that is already true and beautiful and perfect to prosper and increase than about erecting a stifling and one dimensional facade of order via policing and paint.

Thank you, Cristo Adonis, for continuing to care and to share and teach. I know that you will do your best to undo the damage that has been done to this site. To the experts on cultural matters - Do we have something like an Antiquities Act that protects sites like the one at Caurita?

*When I created the banner above I used part of a photo of the Caurita petroglyphs. I choose this banner whenever I am publishing posts which I consider to be hopeful and positive. In this way I continue to pay tribute to the endurance of my Amerindian ancestors and to their living legacy.

Update: 12:03:2013

Heritage sites slip into further disrepair - ‘Trinis too indifferent’. By Zahra Gordon | Trinidad and Tobago Guardian Online | Monday, March 11, 2013.

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

Santa Rosa Carib Community of Arima, Trinidad and Tobago [Video]

Created and uploaded by Maximilian Forte
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A Note From The Gull

"They are homeless in a land that was theirs." --Chief Ricardo Bharath Hernandez

Oh, I LOVE this video! I hope there is much more on this to come. There are so many facets to our amazing country that are often overlooked and I rejoiced to see highlighted in this video so much that is familiar to me.

Although I have never heard it suggested, I think that Maximilian Forte is among the best friends of the First Nations peoples of Trinidad and Tobago. Although I have seldom heard his work being credited in Trinidad and Tobago, he has spent many years distilling and generously sharing his research findings via many publications in traditional formats and on the Internet. Although Maximilian Forte is not a national of Trinidad and Tobago, I consider him a Trinbagonian because he quietly persists, like many unsung Trinbagonians, to hold up his end for this country.

I believe that he was was the first to brush aside the extinction myth and the tendency to talk about First Nations peoples as artifacts and to document in the present, the resurgence of the Carib Community, to attempt to clarify land rights issues, to explore the relations of that community with the Catholic Church, the state [as coloured by various political parties], the media and the growing interaction between our indigenous peoples with an international network of indigenous groups and movements.

Maximilian Forte, thanks for the love!

American Indian Prayer
[As recited by Chief Ricardo Bharath Hernandez - Video position 20:15]

Oh, Great Spirit
Whose voice I hear in the winds,
And whose breath gives life to all the world,
hear me, I am small and weak,
I need your strength and wisdom.
Let me walk in beauty and make my eyes ever behold
the red and purple sunset.
Make my hands respect the things you have
made and my ears sharp to hear your voice.
Make me wise so that I may understand the things
you have taught my people.
Let me learn the lessons you have
hidden in every leaf and rock.

I seek strength, not to be greater than my brother,
but to fight my greatest enemy - myself.
Make me always ready to come to you
with clean hands and straight eyes.
So when life fades, as the fading sunset,
my Spirit may come to you without shame.

(translated by Lakota Sioux Chief Yellow Lark in 1887)
published in Native American Prayers - by the Episcopal Church. Source

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

Santa Rosa [Song]

Republished with the kind permission of Maximilian Forte, Review of the Indigenous Caribbean

SANTA ROSA, by Melan Garcia from Maximilian Forte on Vimeo.
SANTA ROSA
Composed and performed by Melan Garcia
Transcribed by Maximilian Forte

The Caribs are a peaceful people
This is what we know.

And Arima is the home of Caribs
From many years ago
Long ago.

So look way back and I am sure that you will agree with me
That somewhere in your family you have Carib ancestry
Sing me with, now...

Santa Rosa
The feast that holds us all together.
Santa Rosa
Come sing you people from Arima.

Had it not been for the older folks
Then none of us would know
We won't know...

Santa Rosa was found by three men
In that village called Pinto
In Pinto.

The three men were Raimundo, Punyan, and Puyon.
So now you see, my people, this is history put in song.
Sing along, with:

Santa Rosa
The feast that holds us all together.
Santa Rosa
Come sing you people from Arima.

Yes, we learned too that the hunter went back
To where the Saint was found
And on that very spot they found her necklace and her crown
And her crown...

The crown was made with roses of colours real distinct
That is why we use the colours of red, yellow, white, and pink.

What you think was...

Santa Rosa
The feast that holds us all together.
Santa Rosa
Come sing you people of Arima.

***** ***** ***** *****

Filmed by Maximilian Forte in September, 2006, at the cannon on Calvary Hill in Arima. The filming was done in late afternoon just as the sun was setting, and the camera faces south, overlooking the centre of Arima.

Melan Garcia, a well known parrandero from Calvary Hill in Arima, Trinidad and Tobago, in the past played with Los Tocadores and Rebuscar.

For many years he served as an Arima Borough Councillor, representing Calvary Hill, for the People's National Movement. He is also tied to the Carib Community and has Indigenous ancestry.
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"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

The Preserved Historical Traditions of Santa Rosa de Arima ...

The Preserved Historical Traditions of Santa Rosa de Arima as practiced by The Carib Community.
Prepared by Richardo Hernandez Barath (President), Jacqueline Khan (Secretary) and Elma Reyes (Research Officer)

These are the traditions enshrined in the Santa Rosa de Arima celebration as practised by the Carib Community of Arima and handed down from the years when Arima was a Mission headed by Padre Jose Reyes Bravo a native of Venezuela:

(1) These traditions have been retained through succeeding generations through the involvement of the elders, although some have not been practised for various reasons within recent years. We hope however to restore them and to retain those we have kept, hopefully with the lull support of the church.

(2) The Festival period begins with firing of the 6:00 a.m. rocket on August 1 of each year. The right to fire the 6:00 a.m. rocket is regarded as the voice of their noble Chief Hyarima by the Caribs of Arima. It notifies the community to start to prepare for the celebrations. This work it must be emphasised is “GAYAP.” This communal system was met by the early missionaries and encouraged by them in the establishing and operation of the “Cabildo” introduced to every New World Mission town.

(3) The women would meet at the home of the Titular Queen to discuss what was to be done and when: This work schedule was based on their traditional tasks such as making fabric and paper flowers for the dressing of the canopy and church; sewing flags pennants and banners for decoration of the church and Lord Harris Square (opposite the church) and cleaning of the interior and surroundings. The latter mentioned has been reduced due to the modern operation of the church. In similar fashion men would meet to assign work teams for specific tasks. These were (a) Gathering firewood for the women assigned to prepare meals. (b) Cutlassing the cemetery which was part of their devotions, an original assignment sanctioned by all early church administrators. (c) Cleaning and cutlassing of Lord

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Harris Square in preparation for the Santa Rosa Festival. (d) Cutting of bamboo for utilising as containers of votive lights after being planted around the park; as flagpoles also planted around Lord Harris Square; and flower holders in­side of the church.

(4) From the earliest years the statue was taken from its storage in the Church to the home of the Titular Queen for cleaning and dressing by the women of the community. It was taken back before the start of the Novena, nine days before the Feast.

(5) This statue, once held in storage, is now on the side of the altar, as was requested by us. We however would like it to be publicly known that this particular statue is the property of the Santa Rosa Carib Community and held in trust, and for its safe keeping by the Church.

For us it is both a work of art and a meaningful traditional artifact.

Also the statue of the Infant Jesus that is placed on the hands of Santa Rosa de Arima is also the property of the Santa Rosa Carib Community, and this statue was al­ways kept by the community up uh4il the time when the present Queen (Justa Werges) was elected. The daughter of the late Queen Edith Martinez refused to give it to the community because of her disappointment in not being elected Queen.

The diplomatic tact of Father Malcolm Galt enabled it to be handed over1 not to us, but to the church. Although we have no quarrel with its safekeeping within the Church, we also want it known by the public and Church Authorities that it is the property of the Santa Rosa Carib Community. As in the case with the statue of Santa Rosa de Arima, we regard it as both a work of art and a sacred artifact, which is part of the festival, and is to be handed over to us during the period of preparation for the Santa Rosa de Arima Festival.

(6) The particular incident with the statue of the Infant Jesus happened because the community never had written laws, and continued to us those handed down orally. Some people misconstrued and reinterpreted laws to suit their own ambitions and goals. We are now in the process of documenting these laws to be presented for and retained by future generations.

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(7) The lighting of the Lord Harris Square from dusk on Santa Rosa Eve was practised from early years, that is from the 18th century. All historical records including Father Harricharan’s “History of the Catholic Church in Trinidad” and relevant work of Father Anthony de Verteuil mentions the importance of all these traditions. Recognition and re­spect given by the (Protestant) British Governors as far back as Sir Ralph Woodford, inclusive of a gift for the young persons selected King and Queen for the Festival period by succeeding Governors has also been part of several historical works.

(8) The use of Lord Harris Square for the non-secular activities such as dancing; exhibition of archery etc. was also docu­mented and it was only in recent years such activity was divided between the square and the Queen’s house. It must also be emphasised that when early mention is made of the “Casa Real” it was when the Titular Queen and other persons of the Santa Rosa Carib Community lived in houses around the north, south and west sides of Lord Harris Square.

(9) The “Feast. Day” changed from the 30th of August to the 23rd of August has been accepted by the community, and when it falls on a week day we would like to have a small procession around Lord Harris Square and the following Sunday (which in 1993 is the 29th of August) be the day for the ceremonial High Mass main procession through the streets of Arima, followed by the activities as described above.

(10) It is also a tradition that after the procession and bene­diction, the King, Queens and members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community be guests at a small reception hosted by the Parish Priest.

(11) The order of the Procession (which we would like to maintain) according;to historical tradition is as follows: (i) Cross bearer and Acolytes (ii) Parish Priest and other Priests (visiting or assigned) (iii) Carib Queen (iv) Queen of the Festival and banner bearing King (v) Statue of Santa Rosa de Arima with members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community in distinctive apparel

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(vi) All other groups (Religious organizations, Boy Scouts etc.) and members of the public.

(12) The Festival period ends the day of the undressing of the church which is usually eight (8) days after its dressing but dependant on how the days run it can be carried for a slightly longer period. After the undressing it is traditional that members with the banner would be formally blessed by the Parish Priest or his assistant. This officially brings the Santa Rosa de Arima Festival to an end each year.

(13) When the Santa Rosa Carib Community requested that the statue no longer be locked away during the rest of the year but be placed in a prominent place during the rest of the year, the purpose was to stimulate greater devotion to Santa Rosa de Arima, who is not only Patroness of the Carib Community but of the entire area now known as “Greater Arima”. There are people who would like to make donations during the year which we believe will be of great assistance to us during the festival period. We would like some mechanism to be put in place to allow receipt of such donations. We believe that during the Novena period that people should be free to make offerings in the form of flowers, lights, oil or other related requirements. We wish to point out that ours is not a singular tradition, and that parallel celebrations, maintained as described above are held in various former Mission towns of the Western Hemisphere or where devout immigrants i.e. Little Italy in New York city have settled.

Prepared by: Richardo Hernandez Barath (President) Jacqueline Khan (Secretary) Elma Reyes (Research Officer) Publication date: not recorded.

end of page 4
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"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

The Carib Queens of Arima, Trinidad

The Carib Queens of Arima, Trinidad
By Maximilian C. Forte, 1999, 2001, 2006

THE CARIB QUEENS OF ARIMA, STARTING FROM THE PRESENT:

Valentina 'Mavis' Medina
Justa Werges
Edith Martinez
Maria Werges
Ma Gopaul
Dolores Medrano
Francis Sorzano (?)
WHO ARE THE QUEENS OF THE CARIBS AND HOW DID THEY COME TO BE?

Contemporary spokespersons of the Santa Rosa Carib Community, such as Ricardo Bharath (the President) and the late Elma Reyes (the former Public Relations and Research Officer of the Carib Community), say that the position of "Queen of the Caribs" was an imposition of the Church and colonial state. Reyes once advanced the argument that a female was chosen to lead the Caribs since women were the first to convert to Catholicism, but this is an argument that lacks credibility and historical evidence. Indeed, there is little to suggest that the Queen of the Caribs had any authority over the Caribs outside of the Santa Rosa Festival, which was her main focus of activity as the Queen.

Needless to say, there is more speculation and interpretation over the origins of the position of the Carib Queen than there is indisputable evidence. What I have gleaned from my own research, and summarize here, differs somewhat from previous and other contemporary accounts (see related links below).

First, I doubt that the institution of Queen predates the late 1700s or early 1800s, at the earliest, given the relatively short list of Queens and the fact that they would only have served as Queen in the sunset years of their lives, usually serving for about twenty years on average. The last Queen, Justa Werges, served for only twelve years.

Second, there is no evidence that the position was imposed or who was responsible for imposing it.

Third, there is no evidence that the Queen "ruled" in the place of a Chief. At its earliest, the position of Queen dates from the period when Arima was an Indian Mission (circa 1786-1849), during which caciques were part of the Mission hierarchy, subordinate to the priests and above their peers.

Fourth, there is little or no evidence to suggest that the office of the Queen emerged as the position of King declined, given that it was customary to refer to the husband of the Queen as King, in other words, the two went hand in hand.

Fifth, there is nothing to discount the possibility that the Queen was, more accurately, the Queen of the Santa Rosa Festival and not necessarily a Carib Queen.

In addition to these points, my impression is that the contemporary Queen of the Caribs represents a convergence of cultural influences and traditions of various sorts, fossilized elements of practices pertaining to different moments in the history of Arima's Amerindians, from various declines and revivals, obtaining from periods of neglect and interest, and shaped by in-migrations of diverse peoples into Arima, and all shrouded by collective forgetfulness and incomplete historical research based on fragments of knowledge and passing mentions in old texts.

For example, in the mid-1800s local historical writings make reference to a King and Queen of the Santa Rosa Festival, selected from the Amerindian population of the Arima Mission. As de Verteuil wrote:

"The village of Arima was formerly, and for a long time, celebrated for its festival of Santa Rosa, the patron saint of the mission. On that day the Indians elected their king and queen--in general, a young man and young girl--and all appeared in their best apparel and most gawdy ornaments" (1858:301).

There is no indication whether these figures carried any responsibilities of any kind. De Verteuil further explained: "Once every year, they elected, with the sanction of the corregidor [the secular colonial authority of the Mission], a king and queen to preside over their festivities, and to act as their principals on solemn occasions" (1858: 300). For this period, early- to mid-1800s, there is no mention of either a paramount King or Queen ruling over the young king and queen of the festival day. Indeed, the institution of an elderly lady as Queen, who remained in place for years, may well have started in the late 1800s, and may have emerged out of this previous and temporary institution. Today's Santa Rosa Carib Community has combined both: it has maintained an elderly Queen who traditionally oversaw all preparations for the Santa Rosa Festival, and, it has a system for electing a "King and Queen of the Festival Day", under the authority of the Queen, and the younger king and queen are charged with the responsibility for directing select men's and women's work tasks for the Festival. However, from my elderly informants, it is not clear that this was always the case: some explained that the elder Queen and her husband, the King, oversaw all tasks for the Festival and each directed women's and men's work tasks respectively. To make matters more complicated, in the 1980s the Santa Rosa Carib Community instituted the position of "Fiesta Queen" comprising the winner of a beauty pageant held for the Santa Rosa Festival and then selected to act as the Youth Representative. Moreover, by the time Ricardo Bharath instituted the position of President, in the 1970s, the limited authority and representational responsibilities of the Queen were supplanted by the President, thus reducing her to a figurehead whose office was retitled "Titular Queen".

As I mentioned, the office of Queen did not necessarily result from a decline in the office of King, and there is no evidence that the Queen supplanted the King. Writing in the late 1800s, the Belgian priest, Father de Cothonay, who visited Arima, observed:

"Up to our time, these poor people have conserved a simulacrum of a king. The last, called Lopez, died this year [1888]....As he had no one to inherit from him, all the Indians gathered together and chose as king the relative nearest to the deceased. I have no details about him, but I know that he is a poor Indian who lives in a hut and has nothing royal to him except the title" (Cothonay 1893: 98-99).

Here Cothonay is indicating that the institution of King did in fact continue, and, he further indicates that the position was hereditary. The position of Queen, since the 1980s, ceased to be hereditary, and contemporary leaders of the Carib Community claim that it was always an elected position, even though Queen Maria Werges passed her position on to her daughter, Queen Edith Martinez (sister in-law of the late Queen Justa Werges).

It is possible that a more formalized position of overall Queen emerged in the late 1800s also as a result of Spanish-Amerindian immigrants from Venezuela moving into Arima. One of their most popular religious rituals was, and in some cases still is, the Velorio de la Cruz (the Cross Wake) and La Cruz de Mayo. The Cross Wake, often held in honour of a patron saint, one of the most popular having been Saint Raphael, involved a ritual that structurally is very similar to today's Santa Rosa Festival, though the latter occurs in public and on a larger scale (see Moodie 1993 for detail on the Cross Wake). The person in charge of the Wake, is the Ama de la Cruz, the family matriarch who is in charge of the ritual preparations and who literally "owns" and "keeps" the cross. The ritual also involves the decoration of the Cross, much like the decoration of the statue of Saint Rose for the Festival, and a procession around the exterior of the house (much like the Santa Rosa procession around the streets of Arima). The "madrina" and "padrino" of the household ritual are structurally equivalent and functionally similar to the King and Queen of the Santa Rosa Festival. As I suggested, it is possible that this core of the domestic rituals of the Venezuelan immigrants who came to dominate the cocoa-growing regions of Trinidad during the Cocoa Boom of 1870-1920, may have impacted on and shaped the Santa Rosa Festival, or may have perhaps reinvigorated it.

Also in structural and symbolic terms, the Queen may be seen as the earthly representative of the Madonna-like Saint Rose (who carries the Infant Jesus during the Santa Rosa Festival procession), Saint Rose being the patron saint in whose memory the Queens of the Caribs organized the annual Santa Rosa Festival. Likewise, her ecclesiastical counterpart, the parish priest, might be seen as Christ's earthly ambassador. In that case, the Queen's husband, the King, may possibly be interpreted to fill the role of Joseph.

Lastly, there is some suggestion, but no clear evidence, that the Queen of the Caribs did not necessarily have to be a Carib herself. Certainly, the name "Werges" is not that of a family that belonged to the Amerindian population of Arima, most of whose surnames were limited to a particular range, and most of those surnames being Spanish. In addition, one researcher has found reference to a Francis Sorzano as the first Queen in Arima, dating to the early 1800s (see Douglas 1999: 20). A somewhat more pointed remark on Queen Maria Werges was made in a public lecture in 1938 by John Bullbrook, then a local specialist in the Amerindian history of Trinidad, who made the comment that: "To this day we speak of the Queen if the Caribs at Arima, yet I doubt if there is much--if any--Carib blood in her race" (Bullbrook 1940: 4).

WHAT AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITIES DO THE QUEENS OF THE CARIBS HAVE?
This is actually a contentious issue, and one whose answers will vary depending on the time period one is considering when answering this question. Today, the Queen is little more than a titular figure, appearing for public occasions of the Santa Rosa Carib Community, and having little or no say in the running of the Carib Community. The President is the prime decision-maker, controls funds, and has the greatest input in selecting the Queen though she is ostensibly elected by members of the Carib Community.

Previously, as in the period dominated by Maria Werges and Edith Martinez (1930s-1970s), the Queen was the sole authority figure, with authority limited to preparations for the Festival period. She was responsible for all cleaning and decorations of the Church for the Festival, as well as cooking and providing food for those who worked for the Festival, and in leading prayers and the procession on the Festival Day. The Queen also received and controlled whatever funds or donations were forthcoming for the preparations for the Festival.

In the contemporary Carib Community, I was told by key spokespersons that the Queen was elected for her knowledge of Carib traditions, her ability to pass on that knowledge and offer training in weaving skills amongst other things, and for her ability to deal with the public, receive visitors, and maintain a high standard of protocol on public occasions.

Queen Edith Martinez

A photo in the Santa Rosa Carib Community Centre of Queen Edith Martinez, circa early 1980s, teaching children to weave using the terite reed to form the cassava strainer (the sebucán, also known as the matapí) as seen at the bottom of the picture.


Obituary: Justa Werges, Queen of the Caribs of Arima, Trinidad: n. 01 May 1915 - d. 16 January 2000

As some already know, Justa Werges, the Queen of the Caribs, passed away on Sunday, January 16, 2000, at her home in Mundo Nuevo, south of Arima, in Trinidad and Tobago. I received the news of her passing here in Australia on the day of her funeral, held on Wednesday, 19 January, 2000, at the Santa Rosa Roman Catholic Church in Arima. I deeply mourn the loss of this stately and gracious lady who became a key contributor to research for my doctorate in Anthropology and featured in a recent article of mine in Cultural Survival Quarterly. In this spirit, I wish to dedicate my dissertation in honour of the memory of this great lady.

Justa Werges was born on May 1st, 1915, in the Month of Mary, as she was proud to emphasize. She saw herself as Saint Rose’s special earthly ambassador, charged with preparing the annual Feast in honour of the Saint. I was extremely fortunate, not to mention honoured and privileged, to have had the opportunity to film interviews with her and take photographs. I saw her last in late November of 1999 and found her on her deathbed suffering from cancer, candles lit on her special altar in the corner of her bedroom. Her life was a constant prayer. Despite her condition, as she was wont to do she summoned up the energies to say numerous prayers and give blessings to both my wife and myself. We simply cannot express how great was our respect for this institution that was Justa Werges.

It is unfortunate that the wider community in Trinidad was not familiar with Justa Werges as she was perhaps the leading and most accomplished expert on Amerindian weaving techniques and a wonderful source of historical information on Arima’s Santa Rosa Festival. As such, she was elected Queen by the Carib Community for her wealth of knowledge of traditions and her piety. A special mass was said for her on the occasion of her assuming the role of Queen and was recorded by the Vatican. She provided a number of the main ornaments carried in procession today for the Santa Rosa Festival. She embodied a rich set of traditions that have been waning in Trinidad for quite some time: the cassava culture of Trinidad’s Spanish-Amerindians and Venezuelan immigrants, private religious rituals, knowledge and use of oraciones (or “special prayers” as referred to by some in Trinidad), herbal knowledge, and could even talk about how to properly construct a tapia ajoupa and earthen ovens.

She spoke with expertise and clearly revealed her abilities to communicate with diverse audiences. In her time she hosted many visitors, both foreign and local, including Caribbean Amerindians, archaeologists, film makers, prelates, mayors, and even a Prime Minister. The Queen, though absent due to illness, was honoured last November 24 by the visiting delegation of Canadian Aboriginal Chiefs, who presented gifts for her that I am sure she was happy to receive.

She struck myself and others as an extremely devout lady who would never let you leave her home without first loading your arms with bags of cassava, oranges, plantains, and virtually everything she had in the simple kitchen of her rustic tapia home (recently replaced), ending with blessings in Spanish and the sign of the cross. She was a person of unparalleled generosity, one of those "country people" that urban Trinidadians nostalgically speak about as the people who valued courtesy, respect and reciprocity. She had a wonderful sense of humour and remained lucid and alert right to the end. Nothing got past the Queen. As a researcher, I was humbled by her stature. Almost like the archetypal monarch, one did not speak to the Queen, rather one was spoken to by the Queen. The passing of Queen Justa Werges, sadly, reflects the passing of an era in Trinidad.

I am terribly saddened by this loss, a loss not just for Trinidad but also for Arima and especially the Carib Community. I know that it will be impossible to find a replacement for Justa, and she will be remembered as the last of the great Carib Queens. Confined to her bed, she spoke to us at our last meeting in November: her face lit up as she described the beautiful faces of her people who were awaiting her in heaven, her tribe. I wish to express my very sincere condolences to the family of Justa Werges, equally generous and hospitable as their matriarch.

Eternal rest grant unto her. Long live the Queen!

MAXIMILIAN C. FORTE
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA.

References:

Bullbrook, J. A. 1940. The Ierian Race. (A lecture delivered at the meeting of the Historical Society of Trinidad and Tobago held in the hall of the Victoria Institute on Friday Evening 8:30 o’clock 3rd March, 1939). Port of Spain, Trinidad: Historical Society of Trinidad and Tobago.

Cothonay, R. P. Marie-Bertrand O.P. 1893. Trinidad: Journal d’un Missionaire Dominicain des Antilles Anglaises. Preface by R.P. Ch.–Anatole Joyau, O.P., Editor. Paris: Victor Retaux et Fils, Libraires-Éditeurs.

De Verteuil, L. A. A. 1858. Trinidad: Its Geography, Natural Resources, Administration, Present Condition, and Prospects. London: Ward & Lock.

Douglas, Tricia N. F. 1999. Gens d’Arime: The Original French Settlers of Arima. Unpublished Caribbean Studies thesis. St. Augustine, Trinidad: University of the West Indies, West Indian Collection.

Moodie, Sylvia Maria. 1983. “Survival of Hispanic Religious Songs in Trinidad Folklore.” Caribbean Quarterly 29 (1): 1-31.
Related Links:

“Carib Queen dies at 84”, By Trevor Burnett, Trinidad Express, Wednesday, January 19, 2000.

MEDINA IS NEW CARIB QUEEN, By Marlise Andrews, Trinidad Guardian,March 28, 2000, Page 6 —“Valentina Medina, of Mausica Lands, Arima, has been named Carib Queen for life, at an election held on Sunday at the Santa Rosa Carib Community Centre. Medina, 66, was among three others who were nominated as successors after Justa Werges, queen for the past 11 years, passed away in January. She was named after nominees, Julie Calderon, Mary Hernandez and Norma Stephens, withdrew their names for "various reasons."

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"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

"Carib Blood May Run In Your Veins"

Carib blood may run in your veins.
By Elma Reyes
Trinidad Guardian, Wednesday, May 31, 1995

"THE EDITOR: I have been motivat­ed to forward this letter by a number of recently published letters and articles in the Trinidad Guardian.

Among these are the letter from Sara-Rachel Walters who identified herself as “member-in-good-standing” of the Association of American Indian Affairs, New York City; Selwyn Cudjoe’s “Message From Tacarigua”; Bob­by Thomas’ cry from the heart regard­ing the continued destruction of Trinidad and Tobago’s natural assets and Heather Dawn Herrera’s series “On Nature’s Trail.”

For approximately two decades I have been privileged to be associated (at their request) with the representive body of Arima’s Santa Rosa Caribs, the only retained community of descen­dants of the First Nations of Trinidad and Tobago.

During this time they have made considerable effort to acquire from the relevant state authorities land suitable for the establishment of a traditional Amerindian settlement, which would serve as an educational tourism facility for nationals and foreigners. For reasons best known to themselves the “power holders” have never responded positively.

In 1991, after the president and youth representative of the Santa Rosa Caribs returned from the Conference of Indigenous Nations of the Americas held during November 10-14 they met with elders and other key members to report on their experiences.

They then decided to host during 1993 a “gathering” to which they invited delegates (at least two but no more than four persons) to participate by demonstrating the skills retained from their ancestors which allowed them to provide adequate food, shelter medicine and other survival needs utilising available natural assets without destroying them.

Had this been done all interested nationals and visitors would have been educated about systems which are at present respected and held as worthy of emulation by such esteemed authorities as the Smithsonian Institute; the World Wildlife Fund; Greenpeace; Cultural Survival; Survival Interna­tional and the National Geographic So­ciety of the USA.

Certainly the people now voicing concern about the presence of the shacks around the Queen’s Park Savannah might have recognised that groups of a Amerindian styled buildings with suitable landscaping, would allow the ven­dors to provide their needed custom in environmentally friendly and aesthet­ically enhancing structures.

Individuals who now go into the for­est and remove the vegetation for var­ious reasons, all linked with making money, would have learned to harvest its assets without destruction as part of the process. Again, for reasons best known to themselves, the contingent of public servants who met the three representatives of the community in­formed without explanation that this their presented plan was to be replaced.

What happened in August-September 1993, was the imposition of a series of “Best Village” type performances which had minimal input from the Santa Rosa Community, and a semi­nar coordinated by Pearl Entou ­Springer which was no more than another “talkathon” because although contributions were to have been pub­lished there was no money for this to be done. Or so I was told.

Fortunately, through the interest and involvement of BWIA, Unit Trust and the OAS, arrangements to have Von Martin and Tony Leflwich document the planned (original) gathering, did allow the relevant aspects and person­alities at what eventually took place to be recorded.

I want to publicly inform that I have never promoted myself as a member of the Santa Rosa Caribs although I do have some Amerindian branches on my family tree. I became involved with their representative body AT THEIR REQUEST due to the fact that I am related directly or indirectly to several of the families of the community, and was at that time a member of the work­ing press.

My role has been that of research and public relations representative, and it is an insult to the intelligence and retained knowledge of the Santa Ross Caribs and other indigenous people of the region for anyone to insinuate that the information I have been able to share did not emerge from them.

Their ancestors called themselves ARIMAGOTOES and CARINE­POGOTOES and they were identified as Caribs by the state and church au­thorities who were responsible for the location of the Santa Rosa Mission ad­jacent to their village in 1749.

They accepted the designation for the same reason descendants of en­slaved Africans accepted (until re­cently) being called “negroes” and “coloureds.”

All officials of the representative body have been elected by the most open and democratic process, show of hands. For some reason, certain media persons have described Ricardo Hernandez-Bharath as “the self-styled President”, an insultive term not ac­corded to any member of the highly publicised “created” groups with eth­nic (and religious) persuasion.

For the benefit of the general public, and media persons who regard the com­munity as objects for the butt of their bigoted remarks, the Santa Rosa Caribs are part of the Caribbean Organisation of Indigenous People (COIP) which has membership in Dominica, St Vincent (West Indies), Guyana (South Ameri­ca), Belize (Central America), and is in constant contact with representative organisations of the First Nations of the Western Hemisphere, and the World Council of Indigenous People.

The original inhabitants did not disappear without a trace, nor were they “wiped out” by the superior fighting skills of Spanish colonists. What real­ly happened is that succeeding groups of arrived people interbred with them so that if all persons with Amerindian ancestry within our nation were to raise a hand to be counted, the number would not only be formidable, but would be inclusive of people who “look” white, African, Chinese, East Indian, and “ethnically mixed.”

ELMA REYES, Research Officer, Santa Rosa Carib Community"

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A Note From The Gull

Thank you, Elma Reyes.

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare

AN AMERINDIAN HERITAGE COMPLEX

AN AMERINDIAN HERITAGE COMPLEX: A Project Proposal by The Santa Rosa Carib Community, 1998

PREAMBLE

This proposal is designed to cover a number of issues of vital concern to the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community, each one advanced with the expressed intent of furthering the preservation and development of the Amerindian cultural heritage of Trinidad and Tobago and, in turn, making for an important contribution to the cultural and economic development efforts of Trinidad and Tobago. The primary elements of this proposal are: 1) An introduction to the plan and its rationale; 2) A History of the issues of outstanding concern to the Carib Community; and, 3) Ways Forward: detailed discussion of elements of the plan. We sincerely desire the response of the Prime Minister on this project proposal, along with the responses of relevant Members of Cabinet.

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The wider global society in which we live has made salient a number of issues pertaining to Indigenous Peoples and to the developmental opportunities facing small states such as Trinidad and Tobago. With respect to the former, we witness the historic granting of lands and even autonomy to different Indigenous groups in diverse parts of the globe, whether we speak of the Mabo and Wik decisions of the Federal courts of Australia granting Native Title, or the creation of Nunavut, an autonomous zone for Canada's Inuit and Dene in what has been called the Northwest Territory, or other land-based autonomy schemes instituted in nearby countries such as Nicaragua and Colombia. Here in the Commonwealth Caribbean, our Amerindian brothers and sisters in Dominica and Guyana have long had possession of lands and are an established and recognised part of their respective societies. Through the vehicle of international bodies and agencies of the United Nations it has become an established principle that Indigenous Peoples must have a land base. Also advanced through fora such as the International Working Group on Indigenous Peoples, is the principle that Indigenous Peoples need no longer be physically distinctive (or "pure" as we say in Trinidad given our colonial past), to be recognised as having a special attachment to the land, one that precedes the arrival of either colonisers or immigrant groups, and one that is distinctive for professing loyalty and love to a local territory rather than harking back to a distant shore.

1.2 Another important current in our global society is increased concern with the welfare of the environment and with the protection of the ecological patrimony of humanity. The environment has become a subject for grave concern here in Trinidad especially, as we face floods, water shortages, forest fires, untreated sewerage, contaminated beaches, endangered species of all sorts, and improperly disposed waste, all of which threaten to make Trinidad a gigantic cesspit.

1.3 On the other hand, developing countries have been faced with certain opportunities for advancement. Eco-tourism and Cultural Tourism are two of the most promising. Our Caribbean neighbour, the Commonwealth of Dominica, is making impressive advances in marketing its natural beauty and its Carib Territory. Many visitors flock to the island to see such sights as Morne Trois Pitons, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and tour the Carib Territory, where a Carib Indian Model Village is currently under construction and is partly financed by the Caribbean Development Bank. St. Vincent is likewise on the same track, and there are also plans for a Carib Indian Model Village to be built there. Given that Trinidad and Tobago has also expressed great interest in developing its considerable tourist potential as a new source of income and employment, it is hoped that the government and planners of the day not lose sight of these developments. In addition, eco-tourism and Amerindian Cultural Tourism are precisely the kinds of activities that promise to earn foreign exchange while, hopefully, eliminating any outflow of foreign exchange since the attraction is that which is locally offered.

1.4 Here in Trinidad and Tobago, we the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community are not asking for autonomy, nor do we wish to segregate ourselves, nor do we demand all of Trinidad as rightfully ours, and we do not engage in any recriminations or accusations of displacement or marginalization against our fellow Trinidadians and Tobagonians. We also acknowledge that we have intermarried with other ethnic groups in Trinidad and we do not claim to be "racially pure," nor do we even feel any great sympathy for such discussions. That being laid to rest right here and now, what do we say we are, and what do we wish for ourselves and the society we live in?

We say we are Indigenous, that we are Amerindians. On the one hand, we simply feel "indigenous": we love this land, we wish to safeguard and preserve it, we wish to learn from it and live from it, we feel and respect this earth as our Mother, we love no other place and feel at home nowhere else except here. On the other hand, we know from our family histories that we are of Carib descent, with ancestral roots in Calvary Hill, Arima, and wider Trinidad. We do not invent fictive genealogies and we do not also call ourselves Carib because we think that this makes us superior to our fellow citizens in any way -- indeed, many shed this identity thinking that it rendered them inferior in the public eye, and given the dearth of resources that Caribs have been allowed to have, and the lack of respectful recognition, we are not surprised. Our Amerindian ancestry has bestowed to us a number of family traditions, traditions we know are Indigenous and which we have moved from the private to the public realm. These traditions include: a rich Cassava Culture -- growing cassava, making cassava bread, cassava farine and cassareep; knowledge of medicinal plants and herbs; knowledge of the forests and rivers, their qualities both physical and spiritual, and how they can provide a sane and sustainable living without harming them; knowledge of Indigenous house building, using tapia and timite; knowledge of weaving a wide variety of items, using terite especially; and important religious rituals that have either become ours or were ours as Amerindians -- the Santa Rosa Festival and the Smoke Ceremony, thus juxtaposing both Roman Catholic and shamanic Carib traditions. We strongly feel that it is time that Trinidad and Tobago both acknowledge and support this retained heritage.

1.5 What do we wish for ourselves? Greater recognition; communally owned land; financial assistance in developing Caribbean Amerindian networks with our kin. What do we wish for our society, for Trinidad and Tobago? Respect for the environment; cultural pluralism, of diversity with harmony, with differences that distinguish without dividing; encouragement and adoption of supplementary and "alter-native" development efforts in line with the growing popularity of eco-tourism and cultural tourism. Our goals meet the highest standards of community development and self-reliance.


2. A HISTORY OF THE ISSSUES OF OUTSTANDING CONCERN TO THE CARIB COMMUNITY

2.1 Recognition:

On May the 8th, 1990, Cabinet formally recognised the Santa Rosa Carib Community, a registered limited liability company, as the only legitimate representative of Trinidad and Tobago's sole retained community of Indigenous People. Also in that month, a formal annual subvention of $30,000 from the Ministry of Culture was established in order to assist the Carib Community with the maintenance of the Santa Rosa Festival, Trinidad and Tobago's oldest festival. In 1990 the Government also formed a Joint Committee with the Carib Community -- however, this Committee never effectively functioned and thus bore no results. In 1992 especially, and again in 1995, the Santa Rosa Carib Community played a central role in CARIFESTA and was prominently featured in conjunction with our Amerindian kin from Guyana, Dominica, St. Vincent, Suriname, Belize, and other places. In 1993, the United Nations' International Year for the World's Indigenous People, the then Director of Culture praised, in an award, the Santa Rosa Carib Community, for our demonstrated commitment to support Indigenous Peoples worldwide. On August the 31st, 1993, the Carib Community received the National Award of the Chaconia Silver Medal for our work in Culture and Community Service. August of 1993 was also the month in which we hosted the Second Gathering of Indigenous Peoples with representatives from the Amerindian communities of the Caribbean basin. Lastly, numerous media reports, especially in recent times, have featured our struggles to preserve and maintain the Amerindian heritage of Trinidad and Tobago.

2.2 Communally-Owned Lands:

The Santa Rosa Carib Community was reorganised into the form of a limited liability company, with the assistance of the Ministry of Culture, precisely in order to receive lands. We have never received any lands that we applied for. Applications have been lodged over the past 22 years to the ministries and divisions responsible, at various times, for forestry and agriculture, to no avail.

This is an exceptionally painful issue of outstanding concern since the lack of land strictly prohibits us from fruitfully practicing Indigenous life-ways. The lack of communal lands also prohibits us from growing and developing as a community. The lack of land allows us no independent access to resources that could help us take care of our young, offer a home for our elderly, of offer any kind of future to our youths. The lack of lands to be shared communally also keeps potential new members from joining as meaningful participants. Indeed, we have been waiting for lands for approximately 213 years, ever since we were moved from our traditional lands in order to make room for the influx of French Caribbean planters and slaves who came to turn Trinidad's economy into one based on sugar exports, a development that ensued from the 1783 Cedula de población. It was customary for Amerindians to have their own lands in order to grow food for their sustenance, yet, not having proper title we have lost all of our lands over the intervening generations.

We feel that Amerindians in Trinidad not having land is an unfortunate and woeful state of affairs that must be remedied at all costs as soon as possible.


2.3 Financial Assistance:

Anyone who knows this Carib Community knows that its membership is uniformly poor, some being retired, and others dependent on temporary work. We would not like to be dependent on annual payments of government funds, yet, some measure of start-up funding is necessary to build the micro-enterprises that could support our members based on our traditional production processes: i.e., making cassava bread and related products for sale; making local wines; making Amerindian handicrafts. The running of an Amerindian Resource Centre, serving a wide public of schoolchildren, journalists, local and foreign university researchers, and interested visitors is something we cannot do, beyond the rudimentary, without financial assistance.

2.4 Caribbean Amerindian Cultural Interchange:

In the 1990s, and especially since the Carib Community became an official member of the Caribbean Organization of Indigenous People (COIP) we have hosted numerous cultural exchange visits from Guyana and Dominica, as well as St. Vincent, Suriname, Belize, and from the Taïnos of Puerto Rico. The mutual teaching, learning and sharing of Amerindian traditions that are currently unevenly maintained across the Caribbean has been a major source of support for our Community and its heritage development efforts.

However, we have never been able to reciprocate these visits for lack of funds. Indeed, we have also been told not to expect future visits from the Caribs of Dominica, for example, until we first make a journey to Dominica.

Such travel requires considerable funding, beyond what we can ordinarily make from sales and fundraisers given that we must also maintain the Santa Rosa Festival since government funds are not totally adequate, and provide visiting schoolchildren with our time and instruction.

Much more serious even is that while Amerindians have been the traditional practitioners of regional integration long before the phrase became popular with technocrats and policy-makers, we are now hampered in our cultural interchange efforts by the intrusive measures of relatively new states, however much they pledge support to the concept of "regional integration." In other words, if we wish to host visitors from the Carib Territory of Dominica for an indefinite period of time, visitors who can aid us with their technical assistance, we simply are not allowed given work permit and visa restrictions. Ordinarily, a visitor, as you know, is given a three-month tourist visa and must have a return ticket. Any extension must be with proof of supporting funds and employment is not permitted. These laws are a grievous intrusion into the affairs of Amerindian Peoples of the Caribbean and are opposed by the latter in each of their respective territories.

2.5 Inadequate Administrative and Support Infrastructure:

In actual fact, the Santa Rosa Carib Community has no office, no permanent files, no full-time secretary and no means of its own for producing printed information or engaging in effective communication. We have no computer, no Community telephone, no e-mail, no fax, no websites, no office furniture or supplies, no photocopier, no permanent staff and no adequately supported Resource Centre. This state of affairs renders us permanently dependent on outside agents for even the simple typing of reports. Moreover, we are sometimes at the mercy of those who produce information about us, sometimes producing an inadequate representation of who we are or what we do. Ideally, we would have our own infrastructure that could effectively cover all major areas of storing, transmitting and producing all information pertaining to us, whether for administrative or educational purposes. The lack of this infrastructure, now a necessity for any organization seeking to survive and thrive in a modern world, represents a permanent leakage of funds from our community chest.


3. WAYS FORWARD: AN AMERINDIAN HERITAGE DEVELOPMENT COMPLEX.

3.1 Trying to remedy all of the problems outlined in Section 2 would seem a daunting task that would make little sense in the absence of a long-term plan. In actual fact, we have developed a rationale, a plan for a complex of events and activities, with short- to long-term financial and cultural benefits that would thus make assistance more useful and meaningful than simple individual gifts to the Carib Community. Also, such remedies would not all be of maximum benefit were it not for a rational project that could integrate all elements into a coherent plan where every one element supports and reinforces every other element. We would thus like to outline those elements below and how they interrelate.

3.2 Recognition: Amerindian Heritage Day.

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community call upon the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to formally recognize the presence, the efforts, the inputs, and the historical contribution of the Caribs to the national foundation of Trinidad and Tobago. We do not ask for a public holiday. Instead, we would prefer a special day to be declared, one that is to be observed each year, provisionally titled, "Amerindian Heritage Day." The purpose of such a day would be to help instill pride in Trinidad's numerous descendants of the various Amerindian tribes that occupied this land, not just the Caribs of Arima. Secondly, such a day would provide an educational opportunity for schools to focus on special activities geared to Amerindian Heritage Day. Thirdly, the day could help in sensitizing corporate citizens and other communities in the nation about the history, presence, and struggles of Amerindians and their descendants in Trinidad and Tobago. We also feel that August 9th, of each year, should receive some special mention in state information media as it is the United Nations' International Day for the World's Indigenous People. Granting us a special day would also be a positive gesture on the part of the Government in light of the fact that we are mid-way through the United Nations' International Decade for the World's Indigenous People.

The symbolic significance generated in and through a special day would also facilitate in the sensitizing of the national community to the needs the Carib Community has outlined in this proposal and the benefits of the plan we are putting forth.

3.3 Lands: The Amerindian Heritage Complex.

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community respectfully ask the Government of Trinidad and Tobago to grant us 400 acres of forested land in the Northern Range. Such land would ideally possess frontage in or near Arima, with a clean river running through the land. We would hope that there be put in place a formal option for future expansion should the Carib Community grow in size.

Our proposed use of this land can be described as follows:

Ø The farming of cassava, corn and cane on approximately 100 acres, in order to provide our own supplies of agricultural produce needed for processing and producing traditional Amerindian food and drink for mass marketing in Trinidad and Tobago

Ø An Indigenous Cassava Processing Plant, housing graters and wood stoves for producing and packaging cassava bread and other cassava products for sale in Trinidad and Tobago's groceries and perhaps abroad as well -- frontage in or near Arima would thus allow easy access to transport and markets

Ø A Guest House, featuring the regular modern amenities, would also be constructed in order to host local and foreign guests who would be interested in an eco-tourist and/or Amerindian cultural tourist holiday package

Ø A Communal Building where administrative work is done, meetings held, and other activities pertaining to the Carib Community -- this would be a multi-purpose centre with an in-house auditorium arrangement along with office space and spare rooms

Ø A Handicraft Centre where members gather to produce in quantity our own Amerindian handicrafts: baskets, carry cases, mats, lamp shades and a whole host of other household adornments woven from terite; wooden sculptures; and, souvenir items

Ø The preservation and rearing of indigenous animals -- i.e., agouti, manicou, lappe, amongst others

Ø Animal husbandry focused on indigenous wild game, producing both the popular meat of agouti, manicou and lappe, inter alia, for sale and possibly also selling live animals should there be a public demand -- we would hope this would help curtail the drive amongst our fellow Trinidadians to hunt these animals to the point of near extinction

Ø Most of the land would be preserved in its indigenous state and form the heart of our own eco-tourist venture

Ø Reafforestation of the forested area, re-introducing plants indigenous to Trinidad and Tobago

Ø An Amerindian Model Village comprising actual homes for the members and visitors, constructed from indigenous materials using Indigenous techniques, while providing a limited range of modern amenities -- this would form the heart of the cultural tourism experience

Hence this plan addresses a number of developmental needs on several fronts:

(a) The need for lands for the Amerindian community to survive and thrive, to maintain Indigenous lifeways;

(b) The provision of new services and attractions in the areas of Eco-Tourism and Cultural Tourism, thus aiding the drive to create a competitive tourist infrastructure in Trinidad;

(c) Local, indigenous agriculture that could help, in some small measure, to reduce the nation's tremendous dependence on imported foods

(d) Preservation and maintenance of indigenous eco-systems, indigenous flora and fauna;

And,

(e) An overall contribution to reduction of the nation's expenditure of foreign exchange, whilst helping to generate new foreign exchange earnings, at the same time as our Community is uplifted socially and economically, thus promising even further inputs in the local economy on our part.

3.4 An Amerindian Cultural Interchange and Technical Assistance Network:

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community respectfully request that the Government of Trinidad and Tobago come to our assistance in building a durable inter-Amerindian network that permits regular communication and the sharing of expertise. We would like, on a selective basis, to be able to host Amerindian visitors that could assist us with their technical expertise in building up our own complex in Trinidad. We would thus need to fund their travel and their stay in Trinidad. In addition, we would like to host such visitors for extended periods of time, from one to two years at a time, at a minimum. In addition, and once more on a selective basis, we would like to be able to travel to the other territories to facilitate communication and exchange, especially where our Amerindian brothers and sisters might not be able to leave their homes for any significant stretches of time. We have been very happy to host such delegations in the past and they proved to be of essential value in the maintenance and development of our indigenous traditions. Such assistance would be an invaluable component of our plans to build the above-outlined complex and bring our efforts to fruition. There is also the opportunity, discussed among the Amerindian communities of St. Vincent and Dominica, to form an integrated travel package for foreign visitors in order for them to visit the model villages of our three territories combined.

We would thus like to maintain communication and cultural interchange with a number of Amerindian communities, which in the past have proven to be important partners. In the present, they continue to maintain an active interest in the affairs and daily struggles of our Carib Community and are acutely attentive to all developments. The groups with which we wish to maintain and develop such a network include those of: Belize, Brazil, Cuba, Dominica, Guyana, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent, Suriname, Venezuela, and even the United States of America and Canada.

3.5 Administrative and Support Infrastructure for Communication and Education.

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community also humbly ask the Government of Trinidad and Tobago for its assistance in helping us to obtain the necessary computer, communications and multimedia technology and software in order to successfully manage and develop our business and continue to provide educational resources for the wider national community. In this respect, we specifically ask for a computer, with built-in data/fax modem and multimedia capabilities, with current software for word processing, publishing, graphics design, photo editing and video capture and editing, internet and e-mail, amongst others; a colour flat-bed scanner; a colour laser printer; and, our own video and photographic cameras for publishing on the internet, for producing instructional materials for schools, and for advertising and marketing purposes.

These items would thus assist us in better managing our commercial and productive endeavours while also feeding in to our efforts to maintain communication with our Amerindian kin in the wider Caribbean. In addition, the production of newsletters and information kits for schools and visitors would be an added benefit that could be derived from such a facility.

3.6 Organized Financial Assistance.

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community respectfully propose that a functioning Government-Carib Joint Committee be established to oversee, negotiate and administer the above project elements. Financial assistance will be necessary. Detailed cost analysis would have to be performed, needless to say, prior to the initiation of each element of this overall plan.


4. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION.

We the members of the Santa Rosa Carib Community sincerely believe this project proposal ought to be received by the Government and national community as the ambitious and exciting plan that it is. Much has been advanced here and represents not only the depth of our commitment but also a yawning gap between our previous applications and the continuing neglect of our needs and special position in this society. We know that a progressive and dynamic government would recognise this.

We also wish to allay any fears that we are somehow not "up to" our goals or overextending ourselves in some manner. First, we have experience in administration and management. We have a member with years of experience in local government, responsible for planning, organizing and funding cultural events and activities for the entire Borough of Arima. Members of our Community have had training in business, commerce and marketing, both through personal experience and advanced educational training. Within our Community we have those trained in the administration and management of Amerindian communities. We also have members that have worked in the employ of the government's forestry and agriculture divisions and have experience in reafforestation. Key members also have worked in important positions in the Paria Springs/Brasso Seco Eco-Tourist project. Members have ongoing experience in the rearing of animals, weaving, and cassava production. Others have both training and experience in food preparation, preservation and agro-processing. As an organized limited liability company and as a cultural group we have experience in sales, marketing and networking with a very wide matrix of local and foreign institutions, corporations, schools, religious bodies, local and national government, private citizens' bodies and many more. We even have a member in the media. Every year we produce a number of organized cultural events, some of national significance, such as the Santa Rosa Festival. A member also received a scholarship to study at a First Nations college at the in Canada. We have played host to large and diverse delegations of Amerindians -- and we have considerable experience across the entire array of activities and endeavours we have outlined in this plan. One might be surprised to learn that a Community so small, and relatively poor, could have built up such capital and could be so dynamic. When we say that we meet the highest standards of community development and self-reliance, for which we have been officially recognized by governments of different parties in the past, we know that we are not merely boasting.

We thus humbly and sincerely wish that the Government of Trinidad and Tobago favourably receive and assist in implementing this project proposal, the main parts consisting of a call for greater recognition, the granting of lands and financial assistance, and the provision of technical support. We bring this plan to the attention of Government due to its command over resources and legislation and because elements of this plan have, in the past, been beyond the interest, commitment and vision of many of our corporate citizens. We are not looking for handouts, or to be dependent on state charity. We wish to uplift ourselves and our neighbours, but we cannot do so without considerable start-up aid.

We thus hope that you will agree with us that this is an investment in a community, with returns for a nation.

PREPARED BY: Ricardo Bharath and Cristo Adonis with the assistance of Maximilian Forte, in September and October of 1998. This is a preliminary draft.

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"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.Blessed is all of creation

Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare