Dear Editor,
Mr Ronald Harsawack in his letter captioned ‘CJIA squatter structures hazardous to both their occupants and the airport operations’ asserts, “It is known that these structures serve as a haven for criminal elements, safe houses for narcotics movement and also promote gambling.” Reading that statement I experienced an eerie déjà vu feeling that I was in New York and listening to a right-wing talk-show host justify police actions in areas of Harlem or the Bronx. More and more these kinds of stereotyped codes are being used to excuse or justify police actions in certain communities.
Where is the evidence that these places are a known haven for criminals and narcotics traffickers? The biggest narcotics traffickers in Guyana lived in posh surroundings in the city and elsewhere. Look, if the conditions where the squatters are living are hazardous and counter-productive to the environment required for an international airport, by all means say so and move them. But this confounded pattern of using these stereotypical descriptions to label people because they happen to belong to some economic grouping needs to be exposed for what it is. Crime and corruption seep through every social crevice at every status level in our society.
Yours faithfully,
Robin Williams
