Chairman Gerry Gouveia yesterday contended that the public would have little confidence in the capacity of the police force to conduct a full and impartial investigation of the allegations and he said President Jagdeo should handpick the members of the independent panel. Gouveia added that he felt outside help was not necessary, since he had the confidence that the president would make good choices. “We have not gotten to the point that we have no confidence in the president’s judgement,” he said, insisting, “We believe we possess the capacity right here to do this.”
The police force is currently investigating what it has dubbed “the alleged use of excessive force” on three prisoners, including a 15-year-old whose genitals were burnt while in custody at the Leonora Police Station.
Gouveia, reading a prepared statement, said the PSC was appalled at the deliberate and barbaric act and observed that that these and other acts by the security forces which remain unsatisfactorily investigated are a reflection of the “lawlessness which is progressively overtaking our society.” Admitting to its silence on previous allegations, Gouveia said the PSC has been committed to working with the security forces and has also been in support of efforts and so trusted the institutions. “We trusted the leadership in the security force that they would take action to stop the lawlessness of their ranks,” he said.
The PSC is to officially submit its concerns in writing to the president. It has also sought an urgent meeting with Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee to discuss the issue and plans to meet with the teen and his parents as well. Gouveia warned that acts of torture could contribute to tarnishing the country’s image and hampering the investment climate. Gouveia stated that with all the good work done to attract tourists such incidents could hurt the country’s image and ultimately affect business.
According to Gouveia, such incidents, which are now widely reported internationally, have brought shame and immeasurable harm to the nation and are now rapidly coming to define the country, the government and all Guyanese for failing to effectively confront them. Further, he said the PSC acknowledges the reaction by Rohee and Police Commissioner Henry Greene but wishes to remind both officials that the recent case was not an isolated one and that the public is justified in fast coming to the conclusion that these acts are being condoned by elements in the hierarchy of the security forces.
He said that the PSC believes that in this specific case there was a deliberate and calculated attempt by the officers in charge at the Leonora Police Station and probably all the senior ranks in command of those officers to conceal the act.
Gouveia said the body endorses the public statement of condemnation by the legal fraternity, religious organisations and all other members of civil society and their calls for resolute action on the part of the government to investigate this and other incidents for the use of torture by the security forces when conducting their investigations.
Meanwhile, the media’s handling of the matter came in for commendation and while Gouveia said he was not in support of aggressive reporting with graphic pictures, he noted that the image of the bodily injuries carried on the front page of the Kaieteur News was more than justified.
Meanwhile, when questioned on its take on the decision by the UK to squash its security sector reform project with the government, Gouveia stated that had a stakeholder’s forum existed in this regard, the PSC would have added its voice and made its inputs, especially when the troubled areas came along.
The UK has said that the last proposal from the government suggested a focus on police modernisation, rather than on holistic security sector reform, which led to the decision to withdraw its offer of assistance. However, Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon has criticised the UK’s proposal, saying it deviated from the basic architecture of management agreed to by both countries last December. He said the management proposed by the UK is inconsistent with other UK Department for International Development (DfID) projects.
