Water cannon lands in Guyana

Nov 09, 2011 News

…Rohee says expected in a few weeks

When the 2011 Capital and Current Expenditures were unveiled during the budget

The water cannon on the GNIC wharf yesterday

presentation it had outlined a $37M allocation for the procurement of a water cannon.
Yesterday Home Affairs Minister told media operatives that the piece of crime-fighting equipment will arrive in Guyana within a few weeks.
However the piece of equipment in fact arrived in the country yesterday and is being housed at the Guyana National Industrial Corporation under heavy security.
From the time it was pointed out that the Home Affairs Ministry was looking to purchase a water cannon some had suggested that it was earmarked to be used for the 2011 election should the need arise.
When asked why the Home Affairs Ministry was purchasing such a piece of equipment and for what purpose it would be used, Rohee told the then Shadow Minister that it will be used to “manage public order and will be used against large demonstrations”.
A water cannon is a device that shoots a high-pressure stream of water. Typically, water cannons can deliver a large volume of water, often over dozens of metres/hundreds of feet. They are used in firefighting and riot control.
Sources among the opposition have welcomed the move by the Home Affairs Ministry to employ the use of non-lethal force against demonstrators.