Mr. Granger’s motion to investigate torture of citizens is a step in the right direction

May 24, 2014 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,
I want to congratulate Leader of the Parliamentary Opposition, Retired Brigadier David Granger, for successfully piloting through the parliament, a motion to investigate allegations of acts of torture by agents of the Guyana Police Force on citizens. This very significant motion can be seen as one of Mr. Mr. Granger’s major legislative accomplishments.
The motion, which was passed minus the government’s support, seeks to call on the president to establish a Commission of Inquiry into all allegations of torture committed by ranks of the police force on citizens from 2006 to present. It is unfortunate, that an issue which concerns complaints of serious infringement of citizens’ human rights would be simply dismissed by a supposedly democratic government.
However, the government’s position on torture should be no secret to any of us, as the administration’s comments and actions over the years are sufficient to intimate that there may exist a positive relationship between those words and actions and possible acts of torture committed by agents of the state. When one examines the comments of those who spoke on behalf of the PPP/C government on this motion, one will be able to further understand why torture has continued and has, in 2014, reached the extent of “baton sodomy”.
Speaking on behalf of the PPP/C government, these speakers help to explain why the government seems to believe that the issue of torturing Guyanese is a fiction of the victims’ and society’s imagination. Despite a preponderance of evidence, the government tells Guyanese that there is no torture happening under its watch.
According to news reports, Attorney General Anil Nandlall, during his presentation in the National Assembly, called the motion against torture “frivolous and vexatious”. If allegations of police officers forcing a baton in the anus of a young man, in order to gather information, is a frivolous or petty matter the government has gone insane. Some of the comments also suggest that burning of the genital area of Twyon Thomas may also be considered a non-issue.
Presidential Advisor, Gail Teixeira, in an apparent attempt to further outline the PPP/C’s position on torture claimed that reports of torture are isolated and that, in her words, “comments by a few individuals does not give proof that it is a direction of the state….”
What in fact is Ms. Teixeira saying? In plain simple language, it appears that she is intimating that there aren’t enough complaints of torture for the PPP/C to consider the issue of torture serious. Then she contends that the complaints of a few people do not say that the government sanctions torture, because these people have no proof. This is like a spouse who is accused of cheating saying to the other that he/she is not cheating because the other has no proof.
Clearly, this amounts to unknowingly or knowingly accepting that one is in fact guilty of what he/she is accused of, but because in the minds of the accused there might not be any clear and direct evidence to support the allegation, he/she feels that his/her consistent denial might be sufficient to prove innocence. This kind of logic is simple, porous and lacks any credibility, and it is once again an insult to the intelligence of the people to even contemplate that this can be a logical excuse or justification for torture. One complaint or human rights abuse, or cruel or inhuman treatment is sufficient to warrant an investigation.
It seems obvious that for the PPP/C, the entire nation has to be brutalized by agents of the government before a claim of torture can be considered serious. What lunacy!
I believe the actions and comments of senior government functionaries, with respect to the issue of torture, are sufficient to cause police officers and other agents of the state to believe that the PPP/C government either condones, supports or suggests that torture might be sanctioned by the government.
In light of this situation it might be fair to conclude that complaints of obvious bodily injuries and suffering of pain at the hands of the authorities are not considered torture by the PPP/C administration. I have written numerous times on this subject and made the point that it can be argued that the mere actions and words of this government are enough to confirm that its position on torture goes contrary to that established in the definition of torture as outlined in the 1984 United Nations Convention against Torture, a document to which Guyana is a signatory since 1988.
Article 1.1 of the UN Convention defines torture as: “Any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person, information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions.”
As signatory to this declaration, the Guyana government has the responsibility to ensure that any complaint of acts of torture against any one, in its jurisdiction, is investigated. More importantly, the government has the responsibility to ensure that the people are protected against such cruelty.
I believe the Commission of Inquiry is a first step in taking action to ensure that torture is not condoned or sanctioned by those in authority. While it would have been good to have the present executive arm of the state support the motion presented by the Opposition Leader, I believe that as a nation we can still be proud of the fact that the majority of us, as reflected in the fact that we comprise the parliamentary majority, unequivocally denounce torture.
I applaud Mr. Granger’s leadership on this issue and trust that President Ramotar and his government can come around to support the position of the people on this very serious issue. I am also hoping that in the not too distant future we will have a clear and unambiguous statement of the PPP/C’s position on torture. I would also hope that the next step would be to establish a permanent constitutional commission to investigate any and all allegations of torture or cruel and inhuman treatment committed against any person by agents of the state. This would truly be demonstrating, and sending a strong message to all that torture has no place in Guyana.
Lurlene Nestor

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