Dear Editor,
Please permit me to salute the protestors of the East Coast as well as in Bath Settlement, Berbice, who have been protesting. Guyana needs this; more so, the East Indian community needs this kind of energy and protest.
We have waited a long time. This is the silver lining in this dark cloud today that has been left behind by the murders of Corporal Willliams and the 11 civilians. From here on, the old relationship between East Indians and the PPP will never be the same.
Your work and effort have been well noticed worldwide wherever Guyanese live and I know for sure that you are changing our history. Your protest may seem about crime, but it is more. It is standing up against the barbarians outside of Guyanese society, as well as the barbarians inside of Guyanese society.
All is not lost. Indeed, I believe much has been found. You may not think or see the progress you folks have made in a few days, but you have shifted the very foundation on which the history of this country, and certainly the East Indian community stands.
We know that more threats have been made. But whatever it is, your protest itself is now a threat to those who have successfully attacked our country, and those who have failed to defend our country.
It is unfortunate that the police have seen it proper to use police brutality as a means of crowd control. They have used teargas against children, and found it necessary to beat women and young boys, and drag men off to stations for beatings and stripping. They have even found time to jail a mother who is currently breast-feeding.
Some say you are now experiencing police brutality, which is what the Blacks have been feeling all these years. It is true that Blacks have been the ones generally brutalized by police in street protests. But you have always had to deal with police brutality, only in different ways.
In any event, this experience will hopefully teach East Indians to appreciate the fight that Blacks have with the police, and make Blacks understand the fight that East Indians have with criminals. One way or another, it is the same fight. So, continue your marches and speaking out. Just remember to do it in as orderly a way as is possible, because there are thousands and thousands of others marching beside you.
Yours faithfully,
Rakesh Rampertab
