By Shabna Ullah
Sugar workers yesterday continued to protest the cost of living, converging in front of PPP headquarters in New Amsterdam while police fired a round in the air at Canje as several persons were marching to the Rose Hall Estate.
Students who were on their way to school panicked upon hearing the shot fired and many of them were forced to return home because the police had set up roadblocks.
The protest against the rise in food prices started on Tuesday with sugar workers of the Rose Hall and Providence estates marching through the streets of New Amsterdam before picketing the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) office and the Guyana Power & Light Incorporated (GPL).
The protestors assembled at Tacama turn, East Berbice at around 7 am, bearing placards with the words “starvation in Berbice,” “high cost of living” and “reduce the bills” and proceeded along Main Street.
The police finally allowed them to continue, following pleading by some of the workers who insisted that it was a “peaceful protest” and it was for a just cause.
They then made their way along Strand, NA, stopping briefly at the GPL office, shouting “GPL has to go.” They also demanded a reduction in “tariffs and units” and argued that the charges were hiked “for no reason.”
However, no official was around to address their concerns. They then assembled at the NIS office where they aired their grievances loudly about a proposal to raise the pensionable age from 60 to 65.
The workers also shouted that they are dissatisfied with the way the NIS has been handling their claims. Some pointed out that they worked for a number of years and that even though their NIS dues are deducted promptly every month, their contributions do not reflect that.
Yesterday some of the workers said they were marching from their homes at Betsy Gound, Goed Bananen Land and Adelphi to stage a protest in front of the Rose Hall Estate when police blocked the bridge at Adelphi and prevented them from going further.
One woman who insisted on getting past the barricade after she learnt that the police had placed her husband in the lock-ups also suffered the same fate when the police “hold she shirt and put she in the police van.”
The workers also complained that the police beat a young worker, Shazad Ali around 6 am. His father, Mohamed Ali told this newspaper that even though his son was writhing in pain the boy was not taken to the doctor.
He said he contacted regional officials who promised to intervene on the young man’s behalf but “they come halfway and turn back.” Around midday, he said he consulted a lawyer [on the spot] and was waiting on the police to release his son.
Ali, who is also a sugar worker said, “You stand up for your own right and police catch you and beat you.” The man said that even if they [workers] had planned to end the strike “it would continue because of the police action.”
Meanwhile a woman said her son tried to reason with the police to stop beating Shazad and they locked him up as well while another man who had his “toothbrush in his hand on the road” was also arrested.
The protestors said too that after the shot was fired in the air a worker ran into a yard and the police ran after him and locked him up. A vehicle owner said he was on his way to transact his business and the police allowed other cars to pass but he was prevented from doing so.
In response to the action taken by the police, a senior rank told SN that the demonstration was illegal and the persons did not disperse when they were asked to do so.
And in a press release, police said nine persons were arrested “during an unlawful procession conducted by about 150 residents mainly from Canje, Berbice.”
The release said no permission was given for the march which commenced at around 5:30 am from Betsy Ground, Canje along the main public road. The protesters were subsequently stopped at Adelphi by the police who informed them that the procession was unlawful and that they should desist and disperse.
However, they refused and proceeded to block the roadway, preventing vehicles from passing, and began to make abusive remarks to the police ranks.
According to the release, “at this stage nine persons were arrested and the others dispersed. However, while doing so, they threw a number of obstacles including parts of derelict vehicles along the road.”
Jagpal Seelall said, “This struggle is to get the food price and light bill down and the VAT removed; we had enough.” He said too that “it hard to provide fuh we family with a better living.”
The protestors who were in front of Freedom House said they chose to go there “because we want them [government officials] to come here and answer some of we questions.”
They said the officials had planned to speak to them at the Overwinning Primary School yesterday afternoon but they refused to go there.
“We want them to come here and address the issue of price control, GPL and NIS. We won’t get a chance to talk at the school. We want to talk to them in the public; we would return in the morning,” they said.
Another worker, Leon Downer told this newspaper that “I working hard and yet I can’t afford to buy bicycles for my two children and they are going to high school.
Transportation and cost of living too high and some days I cannot afford to send them to school.”
Colline Linden, a weeder said she is a single mother of eight and “the money is too small to maintain my children [four]. Transportation to send two of them to school is $2,500 per week and I am working for $8,000 per week…”
Sixty-one-year-old Carlton Sampson, a former BERMINE worker who was out to give support to the workers said his “contribution is wrong and NIS said they are working on my appeal.” He said he has been paying NIS since 1969 but “NIS is faulty; they have not done a proper job where record keeping is concerned.”
Meanwhile workers of Blairmont joined their colleagues in the strike yesterday but they did not take to the streets.
This is not the first time the sugar workers have protested over the high cost of living. On December 5 last, they staged a picketing exercise in front of Freedom House, NA over VAT and other taxes they have to pay at the estate, saying “it is too much.”
