The Justice for Jermaine Committee (JJC) says it is again calling on the PPP/C government to listen to the nation as it cries out for justice.

In a press release, the JJC says it condemns the murders at Lusignan and Bartica and extends sympathies to the grieving families.

It said it had asked government to assist at risk youths to no avail. From 1996-2003, the release said, the JJC had advised the government to provide counselling for youths who had witnesses their loved ones gunned down by law enforcement personnel so that their grief and anger could be addressed. It said its calls had fallen on deaf ears when it urged that particular attention be given to youth between the ages of 12 and 16 so that they could be reoriented after such trauma and not emulate what they had seen.

The JJC said it had written letters asking government to work with community leaders to prevent youths from “taking up arms” but no assistance was given if they didn’t agree to government’s conditions. It said the only way to control crime was to give justice without delay and it remained committed to working towards a crime-free Guyana.