The current situation as far as violent crime in Guyana is concerned may, these days, be less frightening than those dreaded mid-years of the previous decade when the outbreak of the most vicious period of urban violence in the history of the country cast a fear of gloom over the country and put a severe dent in the economy of the entertainment industry. Then, visitors to Guyana confined themselves largely to their hotels while locals who took the risk of venturing out at night did so only occasionally and on those occasions when they did they remained constantly on their guard. By targeting one of the more popular ‘hang out’ joints in the city the criminals may once again have forced many Guyanese and visitors to the country who were beginning to enjoy local nioght life again into a defensive mode.
The Cool Square incident is disturbing for reasons that go beyond the tragic loss of life. It occurred when investment in the entertainment sector was beginning to thrive again after a particularly difficult period. Across the city new entertainment houses have mushroomed over the past three years and crowded bars, Night Clubs and restaurants have once again become commonplace in Georgetown.
Whether or not the claim by the Guyana Police Force that they had succeeded in curbing the incidence of urban criminal activity during the fearsome crime wave of a few years ago, is justified, is arguably still in doubt. Despite the lull of recent years this has not persuaded some entertainment houses to drop their guard and is to be seen in the heightened security presence now in place at some bars, nightclubs and hotels. Just two weeks ago, in seeking to market the Pegasus Hotel as a safe haven for entertainment seekers, Chief Executive Officer Robert Badal made much of the Hotel’s investment in “beefing up” its security apparatus.
Controversies associated with issues of safety and security in the night life industry in Guyana are not confined to incidents like the brutal Cool Square Killing. Equally challenging scenarios have emerged out of the proliferation of other popular forms of public entertainment. Take football, for example. Last year there were at least two incidents of violent eruptions at football games during which some persons were seriously injured. In both instances the scale of the mayhem was blamed on the lack of adequate security which, we are told, was the responsibility of the promoters. At the New Year’s Day finals of the popular Kashif and Shanghai Football Tournament large numbers of people – thousands according to the promoters, stormed the entrance to the Providence Stadium and the relatively few and decidedly ill-equipped police detail on duty were powerless to stop them.
It is in the realm of popular musical entertainment, however, that the greatest danger reposes. On Saturday February 27th angry patrons vented their spleen on millions of dollars of electronic equipment at the National Park after artistes imported for the live performance reportedly refused to perform after local promoters were allegedly unable to meet their financial obligations to the entertainers. The police, it appears had neglected to efficiently undertake what, at these shows, ought to be routine weapons searches and during the ensuing fracas several firearms were discharged into the air.
The February 27th incident was not the first occurrence of deals going sour between local promoters and overseas-based artistes and the frequency with which these developments occur suggests that there are no strong official mechanisms in place to ensure that such occurrences do not materialize.
Two arrests have been made in the Harding slaying but that has done little to quell the resurgent sense of nervousness about the risks associated with urban night life. Just last weekend the explosion of two firecrackers close to a bar on the lower East Coast created visible alarm among patrons and when a third one exploded some minutes later the more faint-hearted of the revelers simply left.
If no one expects the police to ‘pitch camp’ outside every bar and Night Club the feeling remains that not enough is being done to ‘put pressure’ on the urban criminal element. “It’s the guns that worry us,” says a Georgetown businessman who misses taking his family out for a meal. “You never know what can happen and when.”
A senior police officer who accepts that the risks of holdups and robberies are entertainment houses are still relatively high says that the challenges are no less formidable for the police these days than they were during the bad old days of the previous decade. “We may have succeeded in curbing the incidence of violent crime of a few years ago but there are still many guns out there and there are still many desperate young men who are prepared to use them. We cannot secure every entertainment event, every Night Club, every bar.”
