This government wants silence in order to continue its oppression and plundering of our resources

Nov 08, 2011 Letters

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Dear Editor,
Prem Misir is reminded his disingenuous cut and paste of comments by noted individuals on the Rwanda genocide fools no one.  Reference is made to his letter “Raising the Guyana Mass Media Bar through the Rwanda Genocide” in response to mine “Free and honest media are imperative to ensure Rwanda does not happen here” (KN 24/10/2011 and 22/10/2011 respectively).
Quoting former United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, in order to blame certain local media, ignores the fact that it was the free and private media that drew the world’s attention to Rwanda which helped secure justice for the oppressed and violated. Misir also ignores it is our state media, the people’s media, which is being abused by the PPP to feed intolerance and hatred for fellow Guyanese that is creating the potential for a Rwanda here, and of which the PPP must be held accountable.
The violations of the people by President Jagdeo and his cohorts cowardly hiding behind their sole access to state media, the proliferation of PPP-controlled media, and the abuse of Article 182 of the Constitution make the case.  Where the PPP is given unfettered access to state media to spread their lies, intolerance, discrimination and hatred without those accused or targeted being given an opportunity to respond, creates an environment similar to Rwanda.
Where men and women, who in upstanding society, would be behind bars or not hold public office, hold the reign of government and flaunt their depravity remind us of the ruthless leaders in Rwanda.
Where a group openly flaunts their hatred for another group and reduces their women to mere sexual objects, openly pumping and grinning/back-balling on them even as they would correctly not so subject their women, are reminders of way some women were treated in Rwanda.
When hundreds of young men were murdered and the leaders refuse to activate the relevant laws symbolize the Rwanda leadership who had no value for human life, rights and the rule of law. When you target for destruction the economy of a group, starve communities of resources because they haven’t given you their political support, walk into villages and towns after demonizing, denying and criminalizing the people in efforts to bring them to their knees, then tell them to forget the past are reminiscence of the depraved men who walked the corridors of power in Rwanda.
Where President Jagdeo flaunts his contempt for an independent judiciary and the rule of law, wherein one is innocent until proven guilty and entitled to have their day in court, by attacking Nigel Hughes for upholding this tenet and threatened that he will never be appointed Senior Counsel under a PPP government speaks to the Rwanda power crazy mindset.
When you withhold state advertising dollars from independent media, threaten businesses not to advertisement with them and attack the owners and workers you display the intolerance of Rwanda leaders, including their fear and cowardice as to the consequences of their mismanagement should same be made public.
Where the PPP leaders plunder the nation’s resources, steal our money and parade their ill gotten gain, their illegal actions equate that of the Rwanda leaders.
When they create racial divisions among the working class and trample the rights of workers, and abuse the workers’ tax dollars to pay a pension to the president that is equivalent to that of 500 pensioners, these are reminders of what led to the state of Rwanda.
Similar, too, when leaders in government associate with drug lords, have their visas revoked and senior officers in the security services are compromised.
When those who see the need for association with this cabal necessitate having to lie, prostrate themselves and sell their souls, resulting in their dehumanization, because fearful to die fighting on their knees they have chosen to live on their knees, replicates what happened in Rwanda.
Rwanda did not happen overnight but took decades of oppressive development and silencing of a people vulnerable to the excesses of government.
And Rwanda can happen here if we do not pay heed and stop the excesses and abuses of the PPP leaders. This government wants silence in order that they can continue their oppression and plundering of our resources, but they are reminded there will never be silence because they are still inhabitants of this country committed to creating a society where good governance becomes priority. The PPP is assured they will not silence this indomitable spirit.
Lincoln Lewis

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