As tension mounts on the lower East Coast and other parts of the country in the wake of the gruesome attack at Lusignan, the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) is calling on the administration and the security forces to work out a strategy that will turn things around.
Protesting villagers on the East Coast have lost confidence in the security forces and have been stretched to their limit, ERC Chairman, Bishop Juan Edghill said yesterday, pointing out that a range of issues needs to be addressed in tackling the current problem beginning with the obvious presence of terrorism in the country.
Speaking at a press briefing yesterday, he told reporters that the ERC is prepared to meet anyone out there who feels violence is the answer. He said the time has come for the intellectual authors who support such a position to engage the commission, adding that they have long been encouraging persons to make submissions on any issue affecting them be it crime or unemployment. Edghill said those responsible for the state need to ensure that “we do not slide into anarchy”.
According to the chairman, the people on the East Coast have reached the stage where they cannot sit and take anymore of the killings. He said they are weary noting that their actions since the brutal killings have been reflective of this. This, he said, has been the source of concern for the commission and it is currently grappling with the question of how reason can prevail over emotion.
Edghill said guns, tear gas and cordons will not solve the problem on the East Coast and pointed out that even if the people behind the recent attack are killed many questions will still linger.
“It is time we seek the root causes of our problems and find out why people responsible for such acts chose that path. If we look at is as criminal acts and ignore everything else then we are making a mistake,” he said.
“This not just criminal, this is terrorism and the people behind it have an agenda whether political or otherwise but the aim is to stir up ethnic conflict. These acts are an open invitation for ethnic war, the ERC declines and the nation as a whole needs to decline.”
Yesterday the ERC said it was meeting Region Four officials led by Regional Chairman Clement Corlette to discuss issues affecting the region. The commission also had a scheduled meeting with civil society organizations.
The ERC condemned the unjustifiable murder of 11 men, women and children and called on Guyanese to rally around the Lusignan community, specifically those immediately affected by the tragedy.
ERC said over recent times there has been a pattern of criminal activities particularly multiple murders, which were not seemingly acts of banditry. Among those were the massacre in Agricola on February 26, 2007; the assassination of Agriculture Minister, Satyadeow Sawh, his siblings and security guard on April 26, 2007; the execution of the Kaietuer News pressmen and the reign of terror in Bagotstown on August 8, 2006 — all of which the commission said seemed to be targeted at heightening ethnic insecurity in the country.
“A commitment to seeing criminals and hate mongers being rid from our society is paramount to our survival as a nation. We simply cannot stand idly by and watch as a few mindless individuals throw our nation into turmoil,” the body added.
The commission said what was needed was a multi-ethnic, multi-stakeholder, bi-partisan approach to taking back the nation from the hands of criminals. ERC said the country needed a way to conqueror the violence and come through this period stronger.
