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URGENT ACTION NEEDED

Jul 28, 2015 Editorial

Commissioner of Police, Seelall Persaud, is faced with the first major public crisis of his tenure since taking over the reins of leadership of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) a little over two years ago. The eyes of the Guyanese citizenry will be fixed on the unfolding events conveyed by a former member of the death squad unit about the alleged shooting death of journalist Ronald Waddell.
He has spoken about a senior member of the GPF doing the shooting and the murder, and wounding of over 450 innocent citizens, mostly youths between 2002 and 2006.
Judging from the statements of the former death squad member, the police at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) were, in part, involved in extra-judicial murders, the Commissioner of Police will have to act in the interest of the country.
The Guyana Police Force has always had a proud record of service to the country, therefore it is hoped that a sober thought will prevail among the populace with respect to the bombshell announcement.
There is neither documented nor undocumented evidence that the murder of innocent civilians on the streets was carried out with assistance from some police officers. However, if this was an exception, as some believe, then the manner in which Commissioner Seelall Persaud, Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, and the APNU+AFC Coalition Government deal with this unfortunate tragedy, and the level of transparency and dissemination of information from an inquiry, will determine whether the public’s faith and trust in the police are maintained.
Undoubtedly, the revelations of the former death squad member Sean Hinds required a full inquiry to determine culpability; to ascertain the role of the police and the involvement of intellectual authors; to discover whether recklessness and/or vengeance was attached to the murders; to decide whether those involved are liable for an indictment of murder or manslaughter; or should be exonerated.
Contrary to what the former administration may want the public to believe, the killing of more than 450 innocent citizens was not a systematic assault on some hard-core criminals who wanted to topple the government. If that was the case, the fight should have not only been by the police but by all Guyanese. The truth is, this was not the case.
Even though this is a highly emotional issue, it must be probed dispassionately and without the slightest suggestion of bias. As such, any member of the public who were witnesses to any aspect of the extrajudicial murders should see it as a civic responsibility to assist the inquiry/investigation and the police.
To do otherwise would be a betrayal. Whatever the findings of the investigation, the public expects that those alleged to be responsible will be afforded due process and be viewed by the general public as innocent of any crime until so determined by a court of law.
The point being made, therefore, is that no one, not the police or the investigation but only a court of law should determine innocence or guilt to bring this sad and barbaric situation to some degree of closure in the interest of transparency and justice. The families of those murdered have been waiting for justice for their loved ones.
It matters much to the nation if the extrajudicial murders were perceived to be orchestrated by those in power and the police whose primary role is the provision of security for the citizens. In Guyana where the murder rate is high and armed robberies are on the increase, the police are a critical buffer between law-abiding citizens and the criminals.  If this is not the case, the criminals would be closer to ascendancy and the nation will be in peril.
In the circumstances, it is important that there be a strong partnership between the police and the citizens against the criminals.
Law abiding citizens, who comprise the vast majority, must not only isolate criminals in their communities, but share with the police any information about their actions. The basis of this kind of relationship is trust, which the police, despite their ongoing efforts, must continue to work hard to gain and deepen.

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