Dear Editor,
Kudos to the writer of the Sunday Stabroek editorial, `Forces of darkness’ (May 30), for capturing in one fell swoop a picture of the Guyanese society as it fades again to the dark side of human depravity, and with no signs of any hope for restoring the light of truth and justice under this government and its law enforcement institution: the police force.
The only other time in recent memory I recall having this feeling of hopelessness about Guyana was in the wake of the Mash Day 2002 jailbreak that saw hitherto unknown acts of wanton criminality in Guyana. People were being brutally attacked and barbarically killed, often times unprovoked or without just cause, and the pain was made more unbearable to absorb when the government and its police force either failed or were unable to comprehensively address the mayhem. Contracting out security to a drug kingpin may have helped saved the government and made a hero of the kingpin to some, but it did irreparable long-term damage to the credibility of the government.
Unlike that period, though, when the most hardened criminals seemed to be operating with their own contrived motive that they painted as a politically-inspired ethnic grievance, today’s criminals seem to be individuals who somehow feel they can literally execute their dastardly deeds and actually get away with it. There is no fear of being caught and punished, and since the depravity does not directly or indirectly threaten the security of the government, then the government does not seem compelled to provide an appropriate response.
In fact, the government’s own behaviour of not forcefully addressing systemic corruption in its corridors and offices, or comprehensively reforming, fully staffing and equipping the judiciary and police to do their jobs effectively, may well have contributed to the creation of an atmosphere throughout Guyana in which ordinary citizens feel comfortable enough to seek to harm people and worse without fear of the law.
Even the police force, maligned and demonized for the longest while as a sometimes renegade group and other times as a political weapon, continues to be accused of corruption and excessive use of force against citizens who pose no threat to the police or other citizens. And one judge stepped out of her comfort zone long enough to boldly say what we all knew: the justice system is so badly broken that it is resulting in suspects and accused persons being on remand for years without trial. It is no longer a case of justice delayed being justice denied, but a case of people actually being in prison for periods of time that are much longer than if they were actually found guilty of a crime and sentenced to prison.
The ‘forces of darkness’, therefore, are not just the people who take the law into their own hands and attack others, as in the case of the executive member of the Guyana Cricket Board or Kaieteur News’ columnist, but they are actually the people responsible for ensuring the entire criminal justice system – from the police to the office of the DPP to the courts – are working effectively in accordance with established operational and legal procedures and not at the political convenience of the government. When justices can publicly reprimand the DPP for discussing a court matter in the press, or the Chief Justice and the Supreme Court Registrar can ‘hang their official linens out to dry’ in the letters column, it is another sign of the broken system.
But what would inspire a man to summon the courage to collect human and animal waste into a container, drive with it in a vehicle while withstanding the stench of its odour, then walk the streets with it just to throw it into the face of another man? This dark side of society defies courage; it borders on insanity! Whether the true motive was political or personal is not as important as the notion that one could actually even conjure up such a plot and execute it without fear of being caught and or punished. And while the throwing of fecal matter in a person’s face is unheard of in Guyana or even the Caribbean, what makes it all the more disturbing is that the target is a staunch critic of the government, thus lending credence to the prevailing perception that the attack was politically motivated.
Because of the nature of the attack and the journalistic credentials of the victim, what the attacker or conspirators may have intended for evil may well work out for the good name of the victim, for his name will be forever written in the annals of international journalistic history as yet another journalist to be attacked. Yes, wherever journalism classes are taught and case studies in the dangers of the profession are discussed, Mr. Kissoon’s name and case will be mentioned. Folks may even continue to make light of the attack, or try to equate the attack with the columnist’s controversial attacks on others in his columns, but as controversial as Mr. Kissoon can be, a true democracy says those who disagree with opinion sharers and shapers should respond in like manner with opinions of their own. This attack, therefore, may adversely impact the image of the government more than it may adversely impact the impact the image of the victim.
In the case of the GCB executive member, Mr. Pretipaul Jaigobin, while it is rare that attackers use acid, this substance is worse than fecal matter, for whereas fecal matter can be washed off while leaving the victim embarrassed, acid physically disfigures and scars for life. Still, the circumstances surrounding this attack beckon us to see its timing and eerie similarity to the Kissoon attack, and so I hasten to ask: are the conspirators or masterminds one and the same and was the aim to use one attack to deflect attention from the other? Mr. Kissoon is known for exposing the wrongs of the government while the GCB official was reportedly asking questions about financial irregularities on the GCB and in both instances the attackers fled and remain at large.
By the way, there was another person who may have been a victim of another type of attack – political sleaze. Mr. Peter Ramsaroop was accused of voyeurism and his computers were seized by the police who were searching his hard drives for criminally incriminating material. After all the embarrassing headline news, what is the latest on the police’s findings? Does the fact that almost three weeks later Mr. Ramsaroop has not been charged mean the police do not have a case or will they now drag it out for as long as it is politically expedient to do so? Mr. Ramsaroop, meanwhile, may have outfoxed the government and police when he hired attorney Mr. Robert Corbin, not so much for Mr. Corbin’s legal prowess as much as for his political clout, which may well mean this case is dead and buried in Guyana’s fast expanding political graveyard, whose caretakers and undertakers are political decision makers.
Yours faithfully,
Emile Mervin
