-urge end to rights violations
Several Guyanese on Thursday protested outside Guyana’s High Commission in Central London, calling for human rights violations here to end and genuine “justice” for Kelvin Fraser, the 16-year-old schoolboy who was fatally shot by a policeman on June 7.
The policeman, Quancy John, appeared in court on Monday charged with Fraser’s murder. According to a statement from the organisers, the protest was to seek justice for Fraser and was also the basis to form an organisation or to join others for a more collective call to the international community to investigate human rights violations in Guyana. “We will seek support from Guyanese across the Diaspora to participate in ongoing, peaceful campaigns that highlight Guyana’s situation to respective international bodies concerned with such instances of Human Rights violations”, the statement said.
The one-hour protest was organised by Norman Browne and Dr. Michelle Asantewa. The chanting, placard bearing protesters were asked to leave the pavement in front of the High Commission after police arrived. They moved across the street and continued protesting, shouting “Stop human rights violations in Guyana” and “Justice for Kelvin,” among other slogans. They also stressed that accountability for the killings of innocent people lies with the PPP. “It is our view that the Head of State is ultimately responsible for such blatant crimes against humanity and should therefore be brought to trial in The Hague under International Human Rights Laws”, the statement said.
In their statement, the organisers recalled Fraser’s shooting, pointing out that it took over three weeks for a charge to be made against John and the charge “came as the result of continued pressure from Guyanese at home and overseas. It is well known that the GPF do not investigate such wanton shootings by its trigger happy members,” they noted. The organisers added, “this shooting was unprovoked, unnecessary and can only be described as murder by which an innocent child lost his life.” According to them, Guyana is now effectively a police state in which the police are empowered by a shoot to kill policy. “It seems clear that a shoot to kill policy exists because the police who shot him did not intend to ‘disarm’ Kelvin Fraser – the boy was unarmed. They meant to shoot him. Several pellets discharged at close range against an unarmed schoolboy is unjustifiable and therefore mindless murder,” they said. “Given this outcome, the Police did not arrive at the Patentia Secondary School to protect and serve the harassed girls, but to enforce its power to shoot and kill. When such enforcements and unwarranted shoot to kill policies are enacted against innocent, unarmed citizens they are callous acts of Human Rights violation.”
The organisers said the issue of Human Rights is more urgent than ever in Guyana, if there is to be any hope of ending the mindless slaughters. “Who is accountable for the countless acts of extrajudicial killings by the GPF that go uninvestigated? We believe it is the Head of our now lawless State. Charges made against police never seem to lead to convictions because corruption in Guyana seeps from the government through the legal system. This is our main concern about the charge against Quancy John, the policeman allegedly responsible for Kelvin’s killing. Such is the level of corruption… we are not confident about due process,” they said. “We want genuine justice for Kelvin. His death must not be in vain. Guyanese live in fear of being shot or otherwise silenced for dissent against the government. But in a democratic society every citizen has the right to challenge the actions of its democratically elected government. However, the operations of the Guyana government, GPF and the GDF (Guyana Defence Force) bear the marks of Apartheid South Africa and must be condemned,” the statement added.