With agreement reached on several key issues, a solution to the Linden unrest could be hammered out by this weekend despite the slow progress on the pivotal Commission of Inquiry to probe the events that led to the killing of three protestors.
“What I can happily report is that we are now closer to a resolution of this crisis than we have ever been. It is our own view at APNU that it should not go beyond this week,” Chairman of APNU, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine told reporters at a press conference yesterday. He did not go into details, saying that all parties have agreed that the ongoing discussions between government, the opposition and other stakeholders to resolve the crisis are kept confidential. Roopnaraine stressed that APNU is committed to an early resolution.
Lindeners have been protesting a proposed hike in electricity tariffs since July 18 and have virtually shut-off traffic to the gold-mining interior by maintaining roadblocks. The protest escalated after three protestors were fatally shot by police and with the economic toll rising, the government has put the tariff increase on hold and is engaging stakeholders in an attempt to find solutions. It has also agreed to set up a Commission of Inquiry to probe the events that led up to the shootings.
Yesterday, Roopnaraine expressed optimism that a solution is in sight. “We are in the process of a compromise right now,” he said. Roopnaraine said that at Monday’s meeting, the two teams- one comprising of the president, his ministers and advisors; and the other, opposition members and Region Ten chairman, Sharma Solomon -“narrowed down a number of the differences in relation to the terms of reference and the technical team. That is what occupied a majority of the meeting and there is very little left to resolve,” he said.
One of the subjects of the negotiations is a complete withdrawal of the tariff increase and Roopnaraine said that the position agreed to, is that there would be a suspension of the rate hike which took effect on July 1, pending the outcome of the deliberations of a technical team which will be set up to examine this issue. The composition of this team, which will consist of members from both sides, is still to be decided.
Meantime, evidence including statements and spent shells is being collected and stored by a team in Linden headed by Solomon. This evidence will be presented at the appropriate time to the Commission of Inquiry. Roopnaraine said that the compilation of the Terms of Reference (TOR) for the Inquiry has reached a stage where all the stakeholders will be on board. There was some disagreement with the AFC in relation to the composition of the commission as well as the TOR, he said but added that that party’s proposals have been taken into account and “we are hoping to arrive at some consensus with the support of all the parties in parliament in addition to the approval of the Linden community.”
Further, Roopnaraine said that it is only after the completion of the TOR that the issue of the composition of the commission will be addressed. While noting that decisions have already been made in relation to some issues including where the Inquiry would be held, Roopnaraine said that “the preparations that are required to establish a proper formal commission of inquiry are considerable and we feel that we are moving as quickly as we possibly can.”
Preserving evidence
Opposition leader David Granger, in responding to questions said that since the night of the shooting he had asked the regional chairman to ensure that statements are taken from all eyewitnesses even if they had to resort to using “our lawyers” to start recording evidence. He said that he visited two of the injured in hospital last Saturday and they were asked to provide statements on what occurred that night.
“We know that some of the brass capped warheads were actually removed from the bodies. At the hospital I saw them myself and I recognized them from own experiences as being made of lead and bronze and the hospital authorities had those preserved. I just hope that they haven’t been lost,” he said. Granger added that other items such as empty casings, shells and canisters which were found at the scene are being preserved. “We have asked our people up to keep those things for the commission of inquiry. Record the evidence, preserve any fragments or empty casing as well as any other physical remains of the incident,” he stressed.
Granger later said that he supported the call for charges to be laid against those policemen responsible for the shootings. “You don’t have to wait until the Inquiry,” he said adding that he agreed that there is enough evidence to lay charges as three are dead and at least 20 suffered gunshot wounds.
Nevertheless, he said, the Commission of Inquiry must take place because there are other factors involved in the shooting. “There may be factors affecting the police’s ability to disperse crowds, resources, who gave instructions. There are lots of issues that will be revealed we expect through a Commission of Inquiry,” Granger declared. He added the evidence from the persons who were hospitalized after the incident pointed out “quite clearly that it was policemen who did the shooting.”
The opposition leader added that it is not surprising that the Inquiry is yet to start, three weeks after the shooting. The retired Brigadier said that he once served on a Commission of Inquiry and it took over a year to get the findings “so it is not something that is going happen very swiftly.” He added that APNU is presently focusing on ensuring that the TOR are not only agreed to at the political level but that the Lindeners and the stakeholders in Linden are satisfied that they are going to produce the type of outcome that “will not only bring to justice the
criminals who did the shooting but would also prevent a reoccurrence.”
Unacceptable
Meantime, the AFC yesterday blasted the “prolonged” negotiations and warned that this now threatens “to plunge the entire country once again into an era of darkness.” In a statement, the party said that it views with increasing alarm the “further rapid escalation of the crisis” in Linden.
“The AFC’s previously expressed fears about slippage in the conduct of an independent forensic investigation by international experts, the urgent convening of a properly constituted independent international Commission of Inquiry and prolonged discussions about how, when and where such a Commission of Inquiry will operate, have now materialized,” the statement said.
The party urged that the negotiations be concluded with the “utmost dispatch and urgency” and “the clear and apparent sloth on the part of the police in the conduct of the murder investigations together with the belated appeal for witnesses, the delay in the processing of the work permit of the independent ballistic expert and their curious public statements suggesting that the shooting might have been conducted by unknown persons have confirmed our worse fears about the integrity of any investigation conducted by the police.”
The statement added that several communities have now been placed in severe jeopardy while commerce has been adversely impacted and as such further protraction of the negotiations between the community and the Government is unacceptable.
“The Alliance for Change considers the ultimate responsibility for the crisis and its subsequent prolongation lies with the Office of the President. It is of critical importance that any resolution of this crisis does not sacrifice the requirements of equal rights and justice,” the statement said.
