Ours is a culture that believes no parent should have to bury a child. The hate crimes that resulted in the gruesome murders of teenagers Joel and Isaiah Henry remain agonising for parents, who not only had to bury their children but know they probably died begging for mercy from the cruel hands that decapitated, chopped them up and marked their scalp with a X. Their pains and anguish are not theirs alone but every decent citizen wants those mad men, who committed these heinous crimes and are walking free in broad daylight, caught. Parents want justice for their children and they deserve our support. Haresh Singh, whose murdered body was found days later, his family too deserve justice as his killer(s) is/are walking free.
No parent or society would expect a government, having promised to leave no stone unturned, would find excuses not to fund a reputable investigative team from Argentina, who the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) recommended. That team was responsible for finding the body of Che Guevara in Bolivia years after his death. That is a team any government would want to have if indeed it wants justice. The GHRA and the Hughes, Fields & Stoby law firm whose Counsel, Nigel Hughes, is representing the interest of the Henrys, asked the government to pay 50 percent of the US$40,000 to host the team, and they along with others will fund the remaining US$20,000. The government balked and offered excuses that they prefer investigators from the United States and United Kingdom. Unbelievable.
None who seek justice would find worthwhile the visit by the team from the CARICOM Regional Security System. They were supposed to advise the Guyana Police Force in solving the crimes. Instead, they concluded their work with an assessment that the Force is competent to solve the crimes. How much was this team paid to travel and spend time in Guyana to tell Guyanese about the Force’s competency when Guyanese, so far, are being given reasons to believe otherwise?
It is a shame it is the GHRA, Henrys’ attorney, the main Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) and sections of society that seem more interested in solving the crimes than the Government. Any who sits in the seat of power holds the office on behalf of all the people regardless of who elected the group or party.
It is a shame the government seems to be sending the message it would spend US$40,000 on this worthy endeavour. It is a shame Guyanese are being made to feel the government thinks US$20,000 is too much or not worthy to be spent on these crimes. Citizens know the government would spend more than that on frivolous items and inconsequential events. Those murderers walking freely among us would not ignore the killings have racial and political undertones. It is open secret some political forces rely on divisions such as these to play us against each other as they feather their political nest.
It is a shame the APNU+AFC Opposition is being made to feel they must bring a Motion to the National Assembly to force the Government to pursue justice for these youth. However, given the preference for bawdy behaviour in those hallowed halls much hope is not held the debates will not descend to another brawl. The seriousness of the issue will be lost, registering another sad day in Guyana’s politics and the welfare of Guyanese in the hands of those elected to serve.
Earlier, responding to public pressure, the Police announced a G$3 million reward for information that could aid its investigation. There was a flurry of activities by the Criminal Investigations Department about possible new leads based on information provided as a result of posting the reward. Scepticism exists anything useful will come from the new round of investigation. It is not scepticism without merit, given the police’s past performance and numerous unsolved murders such as, Ronald Waddell, Courtney Crum Ewing, Monica Reece. Those were murders that gained widest national attention and promises by Government and law enforcement to find the killers. They remain unsolved.
There is no way the Police or Government will emerge smelling like roses if there is no justice for Isaiah, Joel and Haresh. Society will not believe they are not sending a message to the criminals that there will be a safe haven for them under the Irfaan Ali government. Government will not be able to make people shed the cloak of unease that terror is once again stalking the land.
18-year-old Joel, 16-year-old Isiah and 17-year old Haresh, all of neighbouring villages in West Coast Berbice, deserve justice. They deserve no stone left unturned, no lead ignored, no reputable and willing investigation (Argentina) team denied the opportunity to aid the process. The families deserve closure and peace. West Coast Berbice deserves peace. Guyana deserves peace. Justice is vital to peace.
