NGO Co-Sponsors: Women’s Institute for Alternative Development (Trinidad & Tobago)
Project Ploughshares (Canadian Council of Churches Ecumenical Peace Centre)
Funding: The Canadian Department of Defense & the Government of Trinidad & Tobago.
Participants
The approximately 24 participants were from Antigua, Barbados, Brazil, Canada, Guyana, Haiti, Kenya, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago (T&T) included:-
Trinidadian Justice Jean Permanand, Chairperson T&T Law Reform Commission;
T&T Magistrate Lucina Cardenas-Ragoonannan;
T&T Deputy Commissioner of Police, Attorney James Philbert;
Kenya Ambassador Ochieng Adela;
Former Brazilian Professor/Political Scientist, Antonio Rangel Brandeira; CARICOM/IMPACS Rep., and
UWI Post Graduate Student researcher, Keron King of the Department of Criminology; Haitian Government Senator, Cemephise Gilles and
Guyana Opposition parliamentarian, AFC Vice-Chair, Sheila Holder.
Objectives
To review the impacts and response to small arms diffusion & violence in the Caribbean.
To learn from good practices in other affected regions that have developed regional approaches to gun violence.
To explore the development of a CARICOM instrument to support implementation of the UN Programme of Action on small arms. And
To develop a Caribbean research agenda.
Country Specific Presentations
Country specific papers on small arms and light weapons diffusion and the violence they wrought were presented by delegates from Guyana (Roxanne Myers); Haiti (Senator Gilles) and youth advocate voices from Caribbean Communities with a history of violence as a result of notable occupation by gun toting gangs, etc.
Review of relevant multilateral agreements, experiences and good practices
This took a two-prong approach – a civil society analysis of model regulation and experience of hemispheric agreements with Mercosur countries in taking a regional approach to containing the proliferation of small arms and light weapons e.g. (AK47, M 16 weapons) in their region. These presentations were done by Canadian NGO Ploughshares representative, Ken Epps and Brazilian NGO Director Rangel Banderas of Viva Rio. The international perspective was presented by Ambassador Adala of the NGO, African Peace Forum.
Please see the attached agreed Conference statement.
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Armed Violence in Guyana Presentation-Women’s Conversation 4th March 2008 at the Lion’s Club, Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago
Introduction
Armed violence in Guyana is usually related to illicit trafficking in narcotic when deals go wrong. These are more prevalent among men than among women. The Ministry of Human Services & Social Security published during the latter part of 2007 a well received paper entitled, “Stamp It Out” which deals extensively with strengthening the legal framework for the protection against sexual violence that has also seen an escalation over the last few years.
However, of greater concern in Guyana is the escalation of the use of the AK 47, the weapon of choice among violent criminal/terrorists.
The Escalation of Armed Violence – Recent Events
Since the brutal slaughter of 11 men, women and children in the predominantly East Indian populated rural village of Lusignan on the January 26, 2008, followed three weeks later by another brutal attack and murder that claimed the lives of 12 more people in the once peaceful hinterland town of Bartica, a mixed community situated on the Essequibo River, the Guyanese nation has been gripped by fear driven by unprecedented levels of insecurity. But even before these horrific events, there was the slaughter in the suburban area of Agricola, the onus being placed at the time on a drug deal gone wrong. In light of what has since occurred, this view is being looked at with some degree of skepticism. The reason for the slaughter, particularly of innocent children, in these situations is unknown; the reason for the extreme brutality is puzzling; what is known is that the victims are, in many cases, extremely poor so robbery doesn’t appear to be the objective. The thefts that occur when wealthy businesses and the homes of wealthy business people are attacked, appear to be opportunistic. The real intent, therefore, appears to be to terrorize the populace. This has succeeded in view of the Police Force’s consistent failure to apprehend, charge and convict the perpetrators of most crimes, but particularly these most heinous ones.
The Effects of Armed Violence
Since the Lusignan slaughter 4 weeks ago, the whole village is traumatized as well as the surrounding villages where many poor people are too afraid to sleep in their own homes. Some have opted to relocate elsewhere or seek accommodation with relatives. Since the Bartica slaughter the eco tourism resorts on the Essequibo River have all experienced reservation cancellations virtually en block. The East Coast corridor of the country from as far as the village of Enmore has become deserted once darkness falls. Furthermore, business activity in the capital city of Georgetown has reduced considerably with the corresponding negative effects on Guyana’s economy. Basically, fear stalks the land.
In this regard it must be noted that the mainly Afro-Guyanese populated village of Buxton, situated in the centre of the aforementioned East Coast corridor, has been the bane of contention between the government and the main opposition party because it has been accused of being a safe haven for criminals. According to the government, the farmers’ crops in the Buxton backlands are currently being bulldozed to deter criminals & terrorists from hiding out in the backlands of the village. There have been regular complaints by the villagers of raids, arrests, invasion of property and brutality by members of the disciplined services. Accusations of economic marginalization have been made against the government.
The International Perspective
The 2008/9 Economic Intelligence Report on Guyana states that
“One of the Guyana government’s greatest challenges will be to address the high rate of
violent crime. The threat of political violence has receded, but organised crime and drug-trafficking will continue, and will be difficult to control. Security forces are under-resourced and lack the ability to monitor the thinly populated interior. Police and security reform is a priority of the government, the defence force command is now in general aligned with the political directorate, and extensive international funding has been secured. However, relations between the traditionally Afro-Guyanese police and the government are problematic.”
It is now generally agreed that Guyana faces a national security crisis, which we believe transcends the normal boundaries of traditional crime and which is definitely intended to change the political landscape of Guyana. As such, the normal palliatives and prescriptions are not working. The Human Security Standard as embraced by the United Nations – freedom from fear, freedom from want and the right to live in dignity – has been under threat for several decades because of ethnic and political insecurities that have created economic stagnation. Such interventions of the Caribbean Community Heads of Governments following post electoral violence have achieved agreements for constitutional reform, many of which are yet to be implemented.
National Security Concerns
The government has been at a loss to field a response to the escalation of armed violence in Guyana having not addressed the needs of the security forces over the 15 years of having held the reins of state. They have made much about the current “Security Sector Reform Plan”, which one of my more knowledgeable colleagues has deduced is not a National Security Strategy and should not be confused as one. With due respect to the authors and to the Government, he is firmly of the view that this plan does not in its present context address a much deeper problem that goes to the governance of the State of Guyana. The government’s own National Security Plan states that its success is conditional on the following not occurring but which have occurred.
A Selective approach to reform and reluctance to pursue reforms beyond policing
Pursuing operational issues without concomitant governance (or justice) reforms.
An overly controlled process and lack of inclusiveness, bolstered by Government’s recent election victory.
Lack of required human resources and/or weak implementation capacity or relapse into a tradition of non-implementation.
Challenges in locating local partners outside of Government (given the weakness and politicization of Parliament and civil society)
Lack of political will to break the perceived linkages between crime and politics (there is a belief on both sides that certain political interests are manipulating the violence for their own purposes).
Disruptions arising out of politicized racial/ethnic cleavages (a particularly sensitive issue in the security sector) and the possibility that militant wings of the opposition will reject collaboration with the government.
The report went on to state the short term indicators for the security sector and Guyana to be as follows:
“In spite of encouraging developments and given these risks Guyana remains dangerously close to tipping point. The consequences of failure of the various stake-holders to seize the moment, to engage and initiate decisive action-may well be the transformation of Guyana into a failed state and/or haven for international criminality, with all the regional and international implications that this may entail. This is a development that should be avoided at all costs, and will entail some give and take and flexibility on all sides in the interest of the long suffering people of Guyana…Our own conclusion is that there is less clarity and consensus over the scope and duration of the reform programme, as well as uncertain commitment to a governance dimension.”
Another quote from the Government’s own report is worthy of mention. It states:
“Despite the high premium the Government of Guyana is laying on security sector reform to fight crime and violence, there appears to be no comprehensive and strategic coordinating body, formal or informal, at the level of the Office of the President to take the lead in the reform process. Approaches so far seem piecemeal; the methodology for the security sector planning processes is also unclear. The lack of such an overarching national body to drive and direct the process may be also one of the reasons for the relatively low impact for the reform process.”
In Summary
Studies place crime and violence as the greatest threat to democracy which Guyana faces since the country is positioned just above Haiti in the world’s per capita data for political instability and violence. Comparative data indicators (DataGob) between countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, shows Guyana falling below these regions in several areas such as for:
‘Registered voters as a % of the voting age population’;
‘Political stability and the absence of violence’;
‘Freedom of the press’;
‘impact of legal contributions to political parties on policy’,
‘Favoritism in decisions of Government officials’, as well as for
‘Judicial independence’.
The economic intelligence forecast on Guyana for 2008 states:
that talented Guyanese will continue to leave;
that because our political system is driven by race it will continue to retard governance;
that the Guyanese public has no confidence in the institutions of State, and
that the absence of checks and balances in our political system has led to the unbridled use of executive power.
It is apposite to note that during the 28 years of the Burnham & Hoyte administrations, the present government of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) complained bitterly about the excessive misuse of the powers of the presidency; yet 15 years later, with the ship of state firmly in their hands, successive PPP Governments have done nothing to curtail such excesses. Indeed, it is the opinion of many that they have exceeded such abuse. Furthermore, when in opposition the PPP complained for 28 years about their predecessor’s, the People’s National Congress (PNC) Government’s, unfair control of the state’s print & electronic media. However, 15 years later they have scrupulously maintained such control. The same goes for the removal of political influence in the operation of the Guyana Elections Commission (GEOM).
It is against this background that Guyana is witnessing unprecedented levels of violence.
Sheila Holder, MP
Vice-chairperson
Alliance For Change
GUYANA
3rd March 2008
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