Guyana at the precipice

Jul 22, 2012 AFC Column, Features / Columnists

First They Came for the Jews

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.
Pastor Martin Niemöller

This week, once again, Guyana has found itself in the throes of mourning: mourning not only lost lives but the death of justice and liberty.
On July 18, 2012, armed ranks of the Guyana Police Force used shotguns against unarmed citizens of our country. When the hail of gunfire stopped three persons lay dead, many others injured, many more were traumatized.
The residents, under the assumption that they were living in a free and democratic society, where their rights to life and freedom of assembly were guaranteed, on that fateful evening were protesting against the actions of a government. Their only failure was to assume their rights were guaranteed.
It is abhorrent that 46 years after independence Guyana would find itself in a position where the rights of its citizens to protest against injustices and oppression could result in those citizens being gunned down by law enforcement agencies.
In 1924, when urban black dock workers were on strike, East Indian workers marched from plantation Ruimveldt to Georgetown in support of the striking British Guiana Labour Union dock workers led by Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow. On their way to Georgetown, the colonial British Guiana police force opened fire at Ruimveldt Police Station killing 13 and wounding 24.
In June 1948, East Indian sugar workers at Enmore were protesting for better pay along with working and living conditions when five were shot and killed.
In July 2012, a black community comes to protest for jobs and better economic conditions and they were shot and killed.
It is not about race. It is the system.
In 1924 and 1948, the police, preferred instrument of the ruling class, were used as the instrument of oppression. In 1966, we changed the colour of the oppressor and the police force, but the system remained. Today, the police force continues to support the ruling class under the same structure.
If we read the biography of Dr. Cheddi Jagan, it is not an issue of race, but of system. It is as ironic as it is tragic that Dr. Jagan’s working class party, the PPP, now champions the cause of the oppressor.
What we saw unfold in Linden on July 18, while being reminiscent of a dark past, also signals a dismal future. As recent as the immediate post-2011 polls, we witnessed the police using uncalled for violence against a group of protesters on Hadfield Street. Some of those protesters were shot in the back with rubber pellets even as they attempted to calmly remove themselves from the area. There was no condemnation from the government, there was no proper investigation, that act of oppression was excused away by those in authority. A few short months after, we see live rounds replacing rubber pellets.
As a people, we now need to ask ourselves how far we will allow this degeneration into oppression to go. If we stand by and say nothing on the aggression against our brothers and sisters at Linden we can be assured that one day our turn will come!
The tragic events in Linden have accelerated our journey to the precipice. Even before the dust settles there are a few basic minimum demands which must be immediately met.

1.   The appointment of an Independent Commission of Inquiry with international agency representation and involvement and a “Good Officer” to manage the process.
2.   The immediate removal of the commanding officer and ranks involved in the incident.
3.   The resignation of the Minster of Home Affairs.
4.   A moratorium on the imposition of the rate hike pending a review by a panel of experts. This review should include an assessment of the operational costs of BOSAI as well as the impact these rate hikes on the poorest by way of a means test. The panel’s report should be presented to all stakeholders within 6-8 weeks.
In the words of our poet laureate Martin Carter:
This is a dark time my love
It is the season of oppression, dark metal, and tears.
It is the festival of guns, the carnival of misery.
Everywhere the faces of men are strained and anxious.

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