The recent dossier is nothing more than a publicity blitz

Nov 21, 2009 Letters

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Dear Editor,
The recent dossier released by the Alliance For Change (AFC), Guyana Action Party (GAP), National Front Alliance (NFA), People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) and the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) that sought to give support and justify an International Inquiry is nothing more than a publicity blitz.
The great hype and acclaim given to it by the authors is a mere sham. The authors (the Joint Opposition Political Parties) of the dossier failed to provide, especially after all the promises of being in possession of tangible evidence to support allegations of human rights abuses against the list of persons it compiled.
The authors, in their bid to insult the intelligence and sentiments of Guyanese and in particular, the families of the victims that were slaughtered at the hands of the criminals, present a report that paints a picture that all deaths and murders, whether natural or homicide, were acts of the security forces or were sanctioned by the government.
This dossier is nothing more than a collection of names of persons whom have died and some unsolved deaths during the course of 1993-2009.
There are names of persons that seem to have been extracted from death announcement scripts, newspaper articles, and deliberate insertions of persons that died of natural causes. The dossier provided neither credible sources nor references to the causes of death of the listed persons.
This campaign follows on the heels of the recent street protests where claims were made of human rights violations and extra judicial killings of ‘200 persons by Roger Khan’ to ‘the killing of 200 Black men’ and now ‘449 killings between 1993 to 2009’.
The recent “hot air” campaign by the opposition saw Guyanese being promised the much anticipated information, intelligence, evidence and eyewitnesses that the PNCR had in their possession.
This information was to have been made available to the public and police. It is important to note that to date, only a list of names of persons that had died over the last few years was presented the police, no intelligence, no evidence, nor eyewitnesses were ever produced.
In the compilation of the dossier, the anti-government and tabloid-style newspapers were used excessively in referencing the names of persons who had died.
The Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) has been quoted as an authority on pronouncing on the listed perceived violations. One needs to realise that the GHRA is heavily polarised and politicised as it was manifested in the many instances where they have publicly defended the rights of killers and chastised those members of the law enforcement agencies when they execute their lawful duties.
The document made reference to alleged cases of torture. The Government, from the President to the Minister of Home Affairs, has made it clear that it does not or will never condone nor support torture.
A massive inquiry has been launched into the malpractices of the police ranks. A detailed report is due to be released as I pen this letter.
There were other cases involving ranks from Prison Service, these officers were tried, found guilty and sentenced. All allegations of breaches of operational procedures are taking seriously by the joint services. Officers and Ranks are made accountable for any wrong doings they may commit.
In the Dossier appendix one gives a list of citizens “allegedly” shot to death and otherwise unlawfully killed by the “Black Clothes Squad” and some other rogue elements in the Police Force. Details were not mentioned surrounding the circumstances of the deaths.
What was not mentioned or noted in the Dossier was that the list of names dated during the period 1993 and 1997 comprises persons whose deaths were subjected to coroners’ inquests. Among those are Kwame George, Shawn Reynolds, Raymond Tute, Jermaine Wilkinson Shawn Hodge, Winston Hescott, Adam Hescott, Tommy Rodrigues, Eustace James, Allan Clarke, Kwesi Odinga Haynes, Eric Layne, Junior Holder, Linden ‘Blackie’ London and Victor Bourne Jr.
Additionally mention was made of an affidavit sworn to by self confessed death squad informant, George Bacchus who was deemed a non-credible witness by the Commission of Inquiry tasked with investigating allegations about the alleged involvement of former Home Affairs Minister Ronald Gajraj with a death squad.
If one takes thirty minutes to research the four hundred odd names in the dossier, it is easy to see that the majority of persons listed were killed by criminals, while the others were the criminals that were killed while they engaged the security forces to avoid apprehension, criminals that the PNC has openly chosen to glorify.
How more sensational can the Joint Opposition Parliamentary Parties get? Are they trying to tell us and the international community that the criminals have more rights than us law abiding citizens? Are they trying to use the demise of hardened criminals to say that we have grave human rights issues? These are just a few questions one would ask after reading the JOPP dossier.
If not enough, it is incredible and unbelievable that the same authors and activists were mum during the reign of terror of the 2001 “freedom fighters”, the “Fine man” rampage and the continued politically motivated terrorist attacks.
I would hope that if a pre-1992 dossier is compiled, it makes mention of the hundreds that were killed during that period because of their political alignment.
Ronald Harsawack

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