…Harmon joins in farewell to slain teens
Opposition Leader, Joseph Harmon, at the funeral today of murdered teens Joel and Isaiah Henry, said that the nation expects nothing less than justice and will pursue this until it is achieved.
His statement came following his visit to the funeral home where the teens, 16 and 19, were being held for viewing before the procession to the Parade Ground and then to West Coast Berbice for burial.
“This morning we gather to send to our ancestors two young innocent boys, our sons, whose lives were horrifically ended by evil men consumed by hatred. This agonizing story of hatred perpetrated on our people is too familiar, is too recurring, and is too much. Guyana needs to be finally and fully released from the bondage of hatred and oppression which has fragmented and divided our people for too long. Isaiah and Joel should have lived good lives of prosperity and a better Guyana,” Harmon stated.
He said that the Henry boys were cut down in the prime of their youth, at the cusp of adulthood, when they should have been brimming with hope and optimism about life. He said that the boys should have been in church giving thanks but, instead, their family and friends are attending their homegoing service making an abrupt end to their lives.
In offering his condolences to the bereaved families of Isaiah and Joel Henry, the Opposition Leader encouraged that no person should rest until the perpetrators are brought to justice and the Henry family receives closure of the murder of the teens.
Harmon stated in a message, “Though the pain of their deaths will not easily subside, none of us must rest until justice is delivered for Isaiah and Joel. None of us must rest or relent. We must ensure that those, all of those, responsible for their deaths are brought to justice and met with the full force of the law. This is not about recrimination, it is about justice. We must not tolerate sloppy police work, we must not tolerate partisan policemen protecting the perpetrators, we must not tolerate suspects being sheltered and sent on their way. We demand justice for Isaiah and Joel so that every young child in this nation will know that every single one of their lives matters. And if some of us have to be inconvenienced for justice to be served then so it will have to be my brothers and sisters, so it will have to be.”
Overwhelming support was shown today for the deceased with their bodies being moved by the funeral parlor to the Parade Ground to the West Coast of Berbice for burial proceedings. The Guyana Police Force (GPF) assisted with monitoring the flow of traffic and blocked serval roads to prevent congestion. At the various locations, persons were asked to adhere to the COVID-19 guidelines even as they mourned the lives lost.
“We hold their mothers, father, and siblings up in prayer and ask the good Lord to keep them and to gradually ease their pain and immense suffering from their passing. Our only solace in this moment of torment is that each Henry family now has a new angel to watch over them,” Harmon said.
“The Henry family is heartbroken, the villages of West Coast Berbice are heartbroken, Guyana is heartbroken… we demand justice for Isaiah and Joel. Justice for Isaiah! Justice for Joel! Equal rights and justice, nothing less.”
