Dear Editor,
The Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID) fully supports the AFC’s complete and unequivocal rejection of the PPP’s second proposed term of reference for the commission of inquiry into the police killings of the three Lindeners.
This additional term proposes to inquire “into the role and involvement” of “other forces” in “organising, mobilising and promoting the protest actions from their commencement and immediately after the shooting on July 18th 2012.”
This is a back-door attempt by the PPP regime to investigate organizers of the protests, who broke no law and committed no crime. The only crimes committed were the killing and unlawful shooting of unarmed, innocent citizens by police officers.
This term is unacceptable as it contemplates the criminalization of legitimate protest and opposition dissent. Organizing, promoting and mobilizing citizens for a protest is not unlawful or criminal. No government has the power to investigate the exercise of a constitutional right.
The PPP’s only intent in investigating citizens exercising their constitutional right to peaceful assembly and free speech is to further its aggression against the citizens of Linden.
The inquiry must be into the unjustifiable shooting to death of the three citizens; the unjustifiable wounding of two dozen others and who issued the orders to shoot, and that only. The people of Guyana are entitled to democracy, human rights and freedoms.
If President Donald Ramotar and the PPP continue to insist of these extreme tactics, then the Parliament should pass a no confidence motion in the government and force new elections.
We therefore urge the APNU and the people of Linden to reject this PPP ruse to extricate those responsible for the unlawful killings.
Yours faithfully,
Rickford Burke
President
Caribbean Guyana Institute
for Democracy (CGID)