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VOLUME III NUMBER 4 DECEMBER 1979 Political Tension High in Guyana Though the horror of the startling mass suicide at Jonestown is slowly receding, the problems for Guyana's 850,000 people are far from over. In the thirteen months since Rev. Jim Jones died with his 900 Ameri-+ can followers, the ruling People's National Congress (PNC) government has initiated a campaign of repres- sion against workers and political opponents, bringing political ten- sions to a new high. Late in August, 5,000 workers in the nationalized bauxite industry called off a six-week strike, re- portedly as a result of government threats against strike leaders and their families. The strike had the backing of sugar workers and civil servants who went out to support the bauxite workers and to pressure the government to remove a wage freeze in the public sector. At the height of the strike, close to one- quarter of the country's work force was off the job. The government now has banned all public meetings in an attempt to defuse the tension. At the August party convention, Prime Minister Forbes Burnham declared war on the opposition, vowing to use "every weapon at our disposal" to "crush" what he called "counter revolution- ary" activities. He warned that strikes of a "political" nature would be dealt with forcefully with "no holds barred." An atmosphere of fear now hangs over Guyana, according to Olivia Remington of Barbados Caribbean Contact."The mere suspicion of one's being a member of an opposit- ion party...leaves one open to all kinds of harrassment, ranging from loss of one's job, unconscionable transfers in government employment, to the now famous death threat and violence." The harsh measures indicate the government of Forbes Burnham con- siders the opposition a serious challenge to its fifteen year rule. It cannot ignore the growing num- bers who say the government's brand of socialism produces nothing but food shortages, inflation and increasingly difficult economic conditions for most of the popula- tion. The postponement of the plan to increase the national minimum wage from $11 to $14 a day and cuts in government spending dictated by a new IMF loan have heightened pop- ular resentment against the gov- ernment. The newly formed Working People's Alliance (WPA) is calling for Burnham's resignation and proposes the formation of a government of national unity made up of all pol- itical parties except the ruling PNC. The WPA, a socialist alliance of four small political groups, has managed to attract a wide following from Guyanese of both black and East Indian origins, who tradition- ally in politics have had opposing party affiliations. For this reason, it could replace Cheddi Jagan's largely East Indian People's Pro- gressive Party as Burnham's main opposition. The government obviously is trying to contain its activities. It rounded up a half dozen WPA lead- ers, including the well-known in- tellectual Walter Rodney, and char- ged them with arson. The action backfired though. It sparked a mas- sive protest and confrontation with government forces where a well- known Jesuit priest was killed. His death shocked many people and promp- ted 46 business and professional leaders to call for Burnham's resig- nation in favour of an interim government until supervised elec- tions can be held. They say that Burnham rigged last summer's refer- endum allowing him to put off elec- tions until 1983. Despite growing opposition and pol- itical upheaval 'in the country, it is expected that Burnham's govern- ment will try and hold on until then. He has made it clear he is willing to pull out all stops to keep an iron grip on the nation's political life. Forbes Burnham