Dear Editor,
The matter of Ranvanlee Chan, the 10-year-old boy from Sisters Village, East Bank Berbice, who was alleged to have been brutally beaten by members of the Guyana Police Force on January 1, 2008, is not to be put to rest because the administrators connected to this incident have been contacted by me in the hope that little Ranvanlee would be given a chance to overcome his ordeal. So far nothing has been done. I should mention that it was about two months ago that this boy’s father died, so his situation now is a bit worse that it was immediately after he was released from hospital.
After this atrocious act was made public I was contacted by the corporal who was then in charge of the Sisters police station; the mother and grandparents of Ranvanlee were also contacted by him, all in an effort to show remorse and offer some monetary compensation to this unfortunate child. That has not happened and I have not even been contacted by anyone from the police force to discuss the matter.
I spoke to the Minister of Human Services and a probation officer was sent to interview Ranvanlee, so that report may be somewhere, if in fact a report was filed. Either way, nothing further has been done
I have sought the assistance of a friend who is an attorney, and I was advised that I should proceed to the courts to seek redress and compensation for this deprived kid. As a result I wrote to the Administrator of the New Amsterdam Hospital and requested a medical report, which would or should highlight Ranvanlee’s ailment and the treatment he received. After three weeks went by without any response from the hospital I went to enquire about the report, only to be told by a member of staff that the letter should not have been sent to the administrator it should have been sent to the CEO, who is Dr Mahadeo. One would have expected that the letter would have been channelled to the person responsible. That notwithstanding, I wrote to the CEO and to date I am still awaiting a medical report.
Subsequently the office assistant to Dr Mahadeo called me to tell me that the report was ready for pick-up on a particular day. Before I reached the hospital she called me to tell me that Dr Kalikapersaud had to check the medical report and she would call me when it was available. To date she has not called me.
To assist in the appropriate action being taken against the police I wrote to the Commander of Berbice Division, requesting the names of the officers who were part and parcel of the ordeal that Ranvanlee suffered, and he too has not responded to my request. So, believing in giving people the benefit of the doubt I went to the Commander’s office and there I spoke to Superinten-dent Balram Prasad, who told me that my letter should have been directed to the Commissioner of Police. I sent a letter to the Commissioner and to date have not had a response. The courtesy these people extend to the public leaves a lot to be desired.
I am asking the powers that be to advise these personnel to step up and deliver. The Ranvanlee saga is just about to begin. This little boy deserves better than he is getting at the hands of those who hospitalized him and from the ones who are empowered to make the lives of people like him worth living. Minister Manickchand ought to have had counselling in place for this child and not just send a probation officer to question him and expect that all is or will be well. Her ministry has done nothing and no one has even contacted me to show that there is any concern by asking or suggesting what should be done
And to my friends out there I am asking that you write to the President and the Ministers of Health and Home Affairs and voice your discontent at the attitude of these senior personnel. I need help and that help must be by way of pressuring the Government of Guyana to step into this wicked and cruel arena and stop this type of behaviour, not to adopt a ‘don’t care a damn’ attitude. Ranvanlee may be poor, but he is a human being and a very frail and fragile one at that, and he must be treated and regarded as a human being.
Today (Monday) is Indian Arrival Day, a national holiday in Guyana and it does allow one to wonder and reflect on the treatment our beloved foreparents received at the hands of the white masters during and after the ships, the Hesperus and Whitby, had crossed the ‘Kala Pani.’ I ask, how different is the treatment they received from the treatment Ranvanlee Chan received at the hands of uniformed upholders of the law. By not doing anything to help alleviate his pains the authorities are guilty of continuing his ordeal. It would seem like 1838 is right next door. And we think the ‘massa’ days are over.
Yours faithfully,
Charrandass Persaud
Attorney-at-law
Editor’s note
We are sending a copy of this letter to the Commissioner of Police (ag) Henry Greene, Minister of Human Services Priya Maninckchand and Administrator of the New Amsterdam Hospital, Dr Mahadeo for any comments they may wish to make.
