Twenty protesters were placed on $60,000 bail each after they were charged with obstructing the free flow of traffic, damage to property, unlawful assembly, and an act of terrorism when they appeared at the New Amsterdam Magistrate’s Court yesterday morning.
Roopnarine Sukhu, 45, of Susannah Village; Fizal Kowlessar, 29, of Canefield; Satish Sanichar, 43, of Betsy Ground Village; Mohan Premchand, 40, of Betsy Ground Village; Keeron Bissondyal, 35, of Betsy Ground Village; Boojnarine Ramkisson; Doman Jagnarine, 55, of Canefield; Narinedatt Khemraj, 55, of Canefield; Waqueer Baskh, 30, of Reliance Village; Kemraj Balkarran, 27, of Canefield; Shawn Best, 30, of Adelphi Village; Joseph McPherson, 48, Goed Bananen Land; Raton Singh, 24, of Goed Bananen Land; George Southwell, 32, of Betsy Ground; Totaram Sanichar, 47, of Betsy Ground; Lance Boswin, 34, of Betsy Ground; Marlon Durant, 50, of Adelphi Village; Kippie Denis, 40, of Stanleytown; Satesh Jagnarine, 50, of Canefield, and Nigel Ghangadin, 27, of Betsy Ground Village, all appeared before Magistrate Renita Singh.
It was stated that on Monday, September 4 between Cumberland Village, and Number Two Village, East Canje Berbice with the intention to strike terror in persons known and unknown they used wood and other materials to block the public road.
It was further stated that on September 4, at Number Two Village, East Canje Berbice they damaged one wooden stall worth $70,000, also that on September 4 they unlawfully assembled between Number Two Village and Cumberland Village, East Canje Berbice.
While all of the men faced an obstructing of the free flow of traffic charge the charge for each accused was worded differently as some were charged with obstructing the free flow of traffic by placing a GPL pole across the road and others were charged with placing the wooden stall across the road.
The men were only required to plead to the obstructing of traffic charge which they all pleaded not guilty to.
The men were placed on $30,000 bail for the act of terrorism charge, $20,000 bail for damage to property, and $10,000 bail for obstructing the free flow of traffic, while they were placed on self-bail for the unlawful assembly charge.
Eighteen of the men were represented by attorney Khemraj Ramjattan while brothers Damon Jagnarine and Satish Jagnarine were represented by Attorney at Law, Charlyn Artiga.
The twenty persons were arrested after they attempted to block the Canje Turn with wooden poles and structures on Monday to stop the free flow of traffic. On Monday after 10 pm, the men were all placed on $50,000 bail each.
Stabroek News was told, that only a handful of the men were able to pay the bail and return home on Monday evening while the others could not afford to do so. Yesterday, the men who remained in custody were taken to the New Amsterdam Magistrate’s Court with shackles on their legs as well as handcuffs.
One man was heard saying as he entered the court, “them a treat we like criminals, like criminals, and we did just protesting.”
Ramjattan yesterday told Stabroek News that most of the men were unsure how they would gather the sums of money to make bail as the strike and protest action has been ongoing for twenty days.
“I just can’t imagine this government and its police force filing against cane cutters, striking terror charges, they have been placed on $60,000 bail… All of them indicated to me that their wives have been expending a lot of money for the school and at this stage they are literally broken.”
According to Ramjattan, he along with attorneys at law, Roysdale Forde and Darren Wade will be defending the charges on the men’s behalf.
Two of Ramjattan’s clients pointed out in court that they were not a part of the protest – one man said he was the driver of a taxi and the other said he was a passenger passing the location in the car – when they were arrested.
Ramjattan said, “There were about five or six of them that had absolutely nothing to do with this protest but they were just held up as in the clean sweep as the police wanted to impress the power that be at Freedom House and this is what you have…”
Notably, at Monday’s protest the majority of the men were not arrested along the protest line but rather in groups at different locations around the area. After the protest line was broken up and the men were chased home they ran into the main access roads which lead to Canje and into Fort Ordnance Housing Scheme where they were eventually arrested.
The Jagnarine brothers who retained attorney Artiga were arrested in front of the pharmacy located in Cumberland Village, East Canje Berbice while on their way home from the protest on their motorcycle.
