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Layou
people picket parliament
Layou
residents staged another demonstration outside Parliament last
Thursday - their third this month - protesting against the bottling
of Big Gut's natural spring water for export to the United States.
The
placard-bearing demonstrators gathered outside Parliament before
the 10.00 am sitting of the Assembly and chanted slogans such
as 'Leave our water alone', 'We want jobs but not at the expense
of our water', and 'We want our clean and original water', as
Cabinet Ministers drove into Parliament Building's yard for the
meeting of the House.
The
demonstrators became even more vociferous on the arrival of Prime
Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who pleaded with the Layou folks
for a hearing and told them the proposed EC$15 million water project
was still at the discussion stage.
'We
cannot operate like this among yourselves' the Prime Minister
cautioned. 'Form a delegation and come and see me. Let us have
a dialogue on the issues concerned' he urged.
However,
while the majority of the protestors agreed with the Prime Minister
that a dialogue was the right way to proceed, the demonstrators
continued until Parliament adjourned at 3 pm.
Layou
residents have been protesting against the proposed water project
, which their M.P. Louis Straker, Minister of Foreign Affairs
and Trade, described as important in his constituency and the
country's economy.
The
Vincentian, 6 June 2003
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