Dear Editor,
Not a week passes without a suicide or murder emanating from domestic problems in Guyana, athough we have such a small population. From all indications it looks as if these could be avoided if the police force were more educated in dealing with domestic matters or were more professional in performing their duties. I do hope their superiors or Commander of the division deals with the officers who were there when individuals from both recent incidents went to make a report. This ‘don’t give a damn’ behaviour by some policemen and women only diminishes the good name of the force further, and causes the public to look at it with scorn. How many more embarrassments will they face before they start to do their jobs professionally?
Due to the economic situation in Guyana, people seem to be on the edge, and any small thing bothers them, causing them to explode. From all indications, the religious communities are not playing an active role in society today in guiding people; they are not in touch with people in societies, only those who attend their place of worship.
Editor, I was privileged to attend three workshops through Help & Shelter in collaboration with the Guyana Responsible Parent-hood Association which was sponsored by the UNFPA, with the intention of doing community work in troubled areas. After successfully completing the first course, months later I am waiting for them to say, let’s start doing some work. Two courses after that I am still waiting; when queries are put, I get excuses that lead me to believe some people only pretend that they are serious. I have decided that I have done enough waiting; armed with what I’ve learnt from them I normally try talking to people and giving them advice.
This incident makes me think that it’s time the government began holding workshops for people in society, like the minibus operators, speedboat operators, store clerks, businesses which have their employees interacting with countless people to advise them on suicide, action to be taken if being abused, etc.
Being on the road and communicating with all kinds of people makes me hear some really sad and strange stories. One minibus driver friend who plies route 32, told me one night that a young lady who joined the bus from Georgetown seemed troubled, and didn’t stop at the area where she said she was going. My friend said that when he reached Parika she didn’t exit the bus, so he asked her where she was going, and she said she didn’t know. She then broke down crying, saying she just wanted to kill herself, because she was experiencing problems at home with her parents. To shorten the story, my friend decided not to collect passengers and drove back to the place where she’s from and talked to her all the way. He said that when he parked he continued to talk to her until she felt ok, and then made sure she reached home.
A few days later he saw her again happy. Thursday gone another conductor friend said that a sixteen-year-old girl travelling with him said that she was fed up with her parents interfering with her love life and showed him some tablets saying she was going to kill herself. When I asked him what he did then, he said he only prayed to reach where she was going to drop her off, because he was scared of getting into problems. I was livid with him, but I could not blame him for his ignorance.
Editor, incidents like these make me believe that people should be more educated in dealing with others, not just a few selected ones.
Yours faithfully,
Sahadeo Bates
