In light of the recent vigilante killing of a 26-year-old man at Pearl, East Bank Demerara, General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Clement Rohee has said vigilantism, especially with fatal results, cannot be tolerated.
Last Saturday, Seon Clarke was shot dead after the proprietor of a shop noticed him and another youth, who was badly beaten, acting suspiciously around his business.
At a press conference on Monday and at a protest outside the High Court on Tuesday, Rohee, who is a former Home Affairs Minister, said vigilantes want to contribute to safe neighbourhoods and to give back something to the community in terms of safety and protection.
However, he suggested that they should do so in an organised and disciplined way and work with the Guyana Police Force or with community policing groups, neighbourhood police or neighbourhood watches and to get the support of the community.
According to him, such actions should be avoided since it was not the best way of dealing with matters of public security. He said he did not believe that vigilantism has developed into a pattern.
President David Granger, on Sunday evening, had also warned against the practice of vigilantism. He noted that it is not only unacceptable, but can lead to serious problems in society.
“We can’t tolerate that. We accept that citizens have a right to protect their properties and so on, but we expect people to be organised in Community Policing Groups. But we can’t tolerate vigilantism, especially when it results in the injury or death of anybody; it can get out of hand,” he said.
