The Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) is urging urgent national intervention following two recent tragedies involving 15-year-old mothers in Regions Two and Six, with Member of Parliament Amanza Walton calling for coordinated action to better protect vulnerable adolescents.
Guyana has been shaken by the incidents, which have intensified concern over the safety and wellbeing of teenage
girls. In Region Six, Tiana Chapman remains hospitalised after she was allegedly stabbed multiple times by the father of her child, while in Region Two Aleena Preetam was found unresponsive at her home one month after giving birth, discovered only after her infant’s persistent crying alerted relatives. The back-to-back tragedies have sparked growing calls for stronger protective, medical and social support systems for teenage mothers.
In a statement titled “Protecting Our Girls,” FGM noted that within days the country was confronted with the two incidents — one involving a teen mother in Region Six fighting for her life after a brutal stabbing, and another in Region Two who was found unresponsive one month after giving birth, discovered only after her infant would not stop crying.
The movement said the incidents point to a troubling national pattern. “Two regions, two families, two tragedies, one common thread: our girls are carrying burdens that their bodies, minds, and support systems are not equipped to handle,” the statement said, adding that at 15 a child should be protected and supported, yet many adolescent girls are navigating pregnancy, childbirth and unstable relationships without adequate safeguards.
FGM argued that teenage motherhood combined with domestic instability, limited mental health services and insufficient postpartum follow-up creates conditions of vulnerability that can lead to tragedy if left unaddressed. It stressed that the cases should not be treated as isolated events but as a deeper national issue requiring coordinated intervention across health, education, social protection and law enforcement systems.
The movement is proposing the establishment of a structured National Adolescent Maternal Support Protocol to ensure automatic medical, psychological and social follow-up when a minor gives birth. The statement also emphasised that Guyana’s economic growth must be measured not only in infrastructure but in the level of support available to young mothers and the effectiveness of early intervention systems.
“We must respond with seriousness, compassion, and coordinated policy action. These young girls are not statistics. They are daughters of this soil. We cannot afford another headline before we act,” the movement said.
