Police Reminded: Citizens Have a Constitutional Right to Protest

GEORGETOWN – Members of the Guyana Police Force are being reminded that peaceful protest is a constitutional right and that officers must desist from using intimidation, unnecessary force or unlawful detention against citizens exercising that right.

Article 147 of the Constitution of Guyana expressly protects the freedom to assemble, associate and demonstrate peacefully. While police have a lawful responsibility to preserve order and prevent violence, that responsibility does not give officers unlimited authority to silence peaceful dissent or treat placard-bearing citizens as criminals.

Police ranks must also remember that they remain personally responsible for their conduct. An instruction from a superior does not automatically make an unlawful act lawful. Officers who assault, unlawfully arrest or deliberately violate the rights of citizens may ultimately be required to answer for their individual actions.

The enduring lesson of the Nuremberg trials is that “I was only following orders” cannot excuse wrongdoing where a person had a moral choice and an opportunity to refuse. That principle should weigh heavily on every public officer asked to carry out an instruction that is plainly unlawful or abusive.

Governments change, but official records, photographs and video evidence remain. When accountability comes, each officer may have to answer independently for the decisions he or she made.

Police officers are servants of the Constitution and the people of Guyana. Their uniform should represent lawful authority, discipline and protection, never political intimidation.

**Village Voice News**