Dear Editor,
I totally disagree with the eminent names who wrote the letter captioned, ‘The Linden Commission of Inquiry (COI) cannot be seen making a case for the authorities‘ (SN, Nov 1). This missive, it seems to me, is an unfair scathing attack on the integrity of the commission. The COI is not taking sides or defending the authorities. It is neutral. The COI is comprised of some of the most respected and reputable individuals; some are distinguished legal authorities in the region. They are people of uncompromising integrity.
The COI swore to conduct an impartial inquiry and it has been doing exactly that. Its performance so far has been outstanding and the behaviour of the commissioners has been exemplary. It seems that the authors of the missive (primarily WPA and PNC activists – opponents of the government) don’t like the findings being unearthed in the inquiry and so they are moving very early to discredit the COI and the commissioners. They want the opposition to escape blame for the killings and injuries in Linden and that is wrong.
All of us must be mature enough to accept the findings regardless of who is to found to be blamed for what happened at Linden. Three lives were lost and twenty injured needlessly. Political parties and their supporters may not like what is being revealed by the various witnesses appearing before the commission. So far, there have not been any smoking guns indicting the police, Minister Rohee or the government.
Witnesses testified they were instructed to block the bridge. The organizers of the protest also testified they instructed the protesters to block the bridge – a breach of the law. The real issue will come down to whether the use of force was justified and who did the shooting. The police admitted they used weapons firing a few shots into the ground to scare the protesters. They were adamant in saying they did not shoot anyone and their story seems to be holding out. The story from the opposition is not holding up to scrutiny as they had suggested there was evidence that the police shot the victims after being directed to do so by the line Minister. There has not been any evidence so far stating that Minister Rohee ordered the use of force. The bullets recovered from the victims did not match those normally used by the police. So individual(s) other than the police shot the victims. The victims’ families and the public at large need to know who these individuals were and what their connections with the protest were.
Unlike what the authors of the above-mentioned missive feel, the COI is not a criminal trial in a court of law. It is an investigation. The role of the commission is to determine the truth and then we can know who is to be blamed for the shooting. The commission will also make recommendations to avoid a repeat of Linden.
The critics of the COI don’t have to accept or reject the findings. But the public wants the truth about what exactly happened – who did what, when, where, how, why, etc, regarding the protest and its aftermath – all the violence, burning, looting, etc. Let the commission continue to do its impartial investigation and allow us to hear from the witnesses via the media.
The public is smart enough too know if the commission is making a case towards any side.
While the missive focused attention on the commissioners, not one criticism has been directed at the lawyers of the two opposition parties. And there has not been one criticism of the opposition politicians who egged on the protesters to break the law. No one has criticized the parties or their leadership for refusing to accept responsibility for their failures in controlling their supporters who broke the law. The attacks and criticisms of the commission cause one to come to the inescapable conclusion that the opposition appears to be preparing its base to reject the findings.
Yours faithfully,
Vishnu Bisram
