Dear Editor,
Red Thread writes to voice our concern with regard to reports in the newspapers of the recent alleged assault on Ms. Kamla Bharrat by Mr. Ossie Rodgers that was captured on CCTV cameras. According to a report in the Stabroek News, the police are saying that the investigation is open and active, but what does that mean, when no statement was taken from the alleged assaulter who has already left the country? We are tired of working class people being treated as though we don’t exist. We are citizens too and form the majority of the population. Assault is a criminal offence and should be treated as one regardless of who the perpetrator is. The law is there to protect citizens from harm, to get to the bottom of the matter, to operate with due process for all parties and to dispense justice fairly, not to protect alleged wrong doers in high places or with “connections” by ensuring an investigation does not even get off the ground. We call on the Guyana police to act in the name of the law and let justice prevail. Ms. Kamla Bharrat’s right to have her allegations of assault dealt with fairly should NOT be denied.
It seems like every day we are waking up to stories of violence against women and children, so much that one does not even know where to begin to respond. And these are just the stories we read about in the media. The Red Thread Centre has always been open to support anyone as best we can, who is experiencing gender based violence. We can be reached at 72 Princes and Adelaide Streets, Charlestown, our telephone number is 223-6254 and our email address is redthreadguyana@gmail.com. We are not running a government institution and we do not have the resources to deal with every situation. No one should expect that of us. We do what we can with what we have. We are a grassroots organisation, independent of government and all political parties. Our members are full time volunteers who only get paid if we are working on particular projects. We are committed to what we do because we care and hold ourselves accountable to the people we organise with and for, and because many of us are ourselves survivors of violence. We call on everyone, organisations (government or non-government) and individuals to take the responsibility to stand up against gender based violence and for justice. Each of us has a voice and in the name of justice let us all sound our voices.
Sincerely,
Susan Collymore
Halima Khan
Joy Marcus
Vanessa Ross
Wintress White
