APNU+AFC Shadow Minister of Home Affairs, Geeta Chandan-Edmond has submitted a motion to the National Assembly calling for the Com-missioner of Police to address repeated instances of his ranks abusing their power of arrest and detention.
The motion was submitted to the Clerk of the National Assembly on March 7 and seconded by APNU+AFC MP Shurwayne Holder.
Chandan-Edmond’s motion stated that the Opposition has received numerous complaints from citizens across Guyana about some members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) abusing their power and acting in a discriminatory manner. It further saidthat the alleged misconduct involves ranks maliciously detaining citizens without reasonable cause or suspicion for up to 72 hours along with arresting and releasing persons in a manner that victimizes the poor and the powerless.
The former magistrate, in her motion, stated that the complaints are widespread and involve police officers stationed in Linden, Bartica, the East Coast of Demerara and other locations throughout the country. It added that citizens’ rights to personal liberty, to equality before the law, and to protection from inhuman treatment as guaranteed by the Constitution of Guyana and by the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights are being violated.
“…the continued violation of these rights by some members of the GPF undermines social and political stability in the country and significantly reduces public confidence in, and public support for, the entire Police Force. The recital to the motion said there exists recognized international best practices and codes of conduct (such as the UN International Human Rights Standards for Law Enforcement) that the GPF can use in police training and upgrading.
It called for the Commissioner of Police to take all the necessary steps, inclusive of investigations and retraining to ensure persons’ rights are guaranteed by the officers.
The PNCR, the lead member of the APNU+AFC coalition, said that it has written the Commissioner of Police Nigel Hoppie requesting a meeting to discuss the issue but is still awaiting a response to that request.
“Notwithstanding the commissioner’s silence on this serious matter, our Party will not allow it to slip below the radar…we expect it [the motion] to be urgently tabled for debate and passage in the National Assembly. The issue goes to the heart of a citizen’s basic human rights,” the Party said in a statement.
