Concerns mount over Beal deal -PNC, WPA, GHRA urge consultation and transparency By Gitanjali Singh Stabroek News November 26, 1999 The PNC is concerned over the government's intention to sell over 100,000 acres of land to Beal Aerospace Technologies for a satellite space port in Guyana and is asking the government to convene an urgent meeting with political parties and civil society to clear the air. Similar concerns have been voiced by the Working People's Alliance (WPA) and the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA). In a three-page letter to Prime Minister Sam Hinds, copied to foreign missions here, international agencies, and various segments of civil society as well as political parties, the People's National Congress (PNC) said there are significant departures in the concept of the satellite operation as outlined to it by Beal officials and Director of Go-Invest, Deochand Narain. Hinds last night told Stabroek News that he had received the PNC letter and that the government was prepared to meet the party on its concerns. "The government will certainly meet with the PNC in relation to the setting up of the rocket launch site. We will work with the PNC and other people to establish facts and real arguments and (to) set aside fears on the Beal investment", Hinds said. The PNC said that the quantum of land under consideration had escalated considerably from the 20,000 acres told to it by Beal to an area totalling 101,010 acres, which is the approximate size of Barbados. General Secretary of the PNC, Oscar Clarke, told Hinds in the November 24 letter that the method of acquisition was also worrisome as instead of it being a lease, it is an "outright sale". This, he said, will not allow for the protection of Guyana's interests in the event of the project being substantially modified or not being successfully implemented. The letter also pointed out that the area under consideration was along the coast and poses potential problems of access to the hinterland areas since it includes the estuary of the Waini River. "The agreement is on the point of being proceeded with before completion of an Environmental Impact Study that would pronounce on the expected impacts of the project, including on the endangered species of turtle populations that use Shell Beach for spawning," the PNC said. It also said the potential impact of the satellite operation on national security appears considerable and is "clearly ill-considered" as the Guyana Defence Force had not been consulted or involved in the security dimension of the venture. The party also said that it has been unable, despite its best efforts, to ascertain from independent sources, any assessments of Beal's bona fides or its track record in satellite operations. (Beal is a recently formed company which expects to launch its first commercial satellite from Cape Canaveral late next year). The PNC said it is also not sure what are the specific short-, medium- and long-term net benefits Guyana will accrue from the satellite operation with Beal. And Clarke told Hinds that the indications given by President Bharrat Jagdeo are that the government intends to complete and sign an agreement with Beal prior to apprising and consulting interested parties. Given these concerns, Clarke said the PNC was very "alarmed" about the path along which the government was embarking, noting that the PNC had written to Go-Invest to be kept informed about the progress of Beal's discussion with the government. However, to date, all the party has received has been through the newspapers and television reports. Clarke, asking Hinds for an urgent response, asked that a meeting be convened urgently with civil society and political parties to clear the air. He said the letter was also being copied to Mr Jagdeo in his capacity as President. The WPA, in a press release, is calling on Guyanese to stand up for their rights and their place in government. The WPA contends that the area in question contains locations listed internationally as endangered archaeological sites and should not be disturbed. The party charged that there was no consultation with the indigenous people on the proposed launch site. It said the political parties would be expected to "rubber stamp" the deal. The WPA also said that the government was not aware that an Environmental Impact Assessment study was needed before the deal was signed and not after and called on Mr Jagdeo to ascertain the extent to which the GDF was involved in the deal. And the GHRA has also expressed concern about the consultative process, contending that the President's assurances to release whatever terms of the deal can be disclosed reflects a disturbing pattern in the government's commitment to transparency. The association, in a release, noted that the details of the privatisation of the Guyana Electricity Corporation (GEC) were only released after the fact and said that this was at odds with the principles of the draft National Development Strategy. The association said that participation and empowerment were "core concepts of sustainable human development" according to Chapter 17 of that draft strategy. "The fundamental argument [for participation] is that the eradication of poverty entails the active and direct involvement of all sections of the society and the mobilisation of the full gamut of civil society interests regarding decision-making, preparation of project proposals, administration and monitoring of projects and dissemination of information," the association quoted from the draft strategy. The association said it recognised that exhaustive consultation was not practical in all circumstances and that competition to attract foreign investment was "ruthless and difficult". However, it said that these factors could not excuse the conflict between the high aspirations set out in the draft strategy and the consultation on the Beal deal. The GHRA noted that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights sets out the grounds for restriction of freedom of information and expression in cases where it is provided for by law and is necessary, the grounds being "the protection of national security, or of public order, or of public health and morals". "If any of these grounds apply in the case of the Beal deal, the government has an obligation to explain what they are," said the GHRA, holding out the deal with Beal as an occasion for the government to demonstrate its commitment to a more open and transparent approach to civil society's involvement in development. The association also noted that the government was constrained from giving consent to Beal to go ahead with its development without an environmental permit. A © page from: Guyana: Land of Six Peoples