The Guyana Police Force has remained silent on the stripping of striking Berbice sugar workers although the men have reiterated their claims.
Roopnarine Sukhu, 45, of Susannah Village; Fizal Kowlessar, 29, of Cane-field; 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; Denis Kippy, 40, of Stanleytown; Satesh Jagnarine, 50, of Canefield, and Nigel Ghangadin, 27, of Betsy Ground Village, all appeared before Magistrate Renita Singh.
Hours after the court case on Tuesday, Commander Shivpersaud Bacchus released the men’s pictures – eighteen of whom were shirtless in the mugshots. Immediately questioned by Stabroek News as to why the men’s pictures were taken without their shirts, Bacchus said, “It’s called profiling.”
Additionally, the names of the men were inaccurate on some of the pictures released leaving the impression that the matter was being handled haphazardly with a rush to release the images.
Initially, some of the workers were reluctant to go on record however Denis Kippy who has been on the twenty-day protest since day one, in an interview with the Stabroek News, said emphatically, “They strip us to our buckta (underwear) and put us in on the cold, cold ground whole night… Na only without shirt them man strip us to our buckta, who had on underpants had to take it out all.”
Kippy said, that they requested to put on back their shirts for the mug-shots but were denied this adding that they repeatedly questioned why they had to strip and remain in their underwear. Additionally, he said that some ranks at the New Amsterdam Police Station where they were being held also questioned the reasoning behind this as they too could not understand why the men were being held in such a condition.
The men were each placed on a total of $60,000 bail and will return to court on October, 16.
Meanwhile, relatives of the men have also corroborated the removal of their clothing, as some who were present on Monday evening after they were placed on station bail said that the men had to get dressed before exiting the station.
The men were placed on $50,000 station bail on Monday evening after 10.30 pm, however, just a few men could afford to have their relatives pay their bail.
