Hana Mohamed, Office Manager in the Office of the Leader of the Opposition and sister of Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed, was treated at a hospital and sent home after sustaining injuries during her second arrest by police on Thursday.
The incident has fuelled outrage over police conduct, with video footage showing officers confronting protesters and grabbing at individuals during demonstrations against what opposition supporters and civil society activists describe as injustices, including the “unjustified” detention of the Opposition Leader.
Speaking with Village Voice News, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) Member of Parliament Natasha Singh condemned the officers’ behaviour, describing the encounter as traumatic and their conduct as uncalled for.
Singh expressed concern about Mohamed’s injuries, hoping they would not become infected or lead to further complications. She called on women’s organisations, human rights advocates and all right-thinking Guyanese to condemn the police’s conduct.
Singh described Guyana as a dictatorship operating as a police state, warning that the incident raises troubling questions about citizens’ rights and the treatment of those who challenge the authorities.
Video footage raises questions
The footage of officers confronting protesters and grabbing at individuals has intensified calls for accountability. The circumstances surrounding the encounters, including whether the force used was necessary and proportionate, demand scrutiny.
Police have a duty to maintain public order, but that responsibility does not place their actions beyond accountability. Citizens have a constitutional right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, including the right to protest against government actions.
The circumstances of Mohamed’s second arrest, the extent of her injuries and the police’s justification for the encounter remain unclear. An official account is needed to establish what transpired.
Thursday’s protests centred on opposition and civil society objections to Azruddin Mohamed’s detention and what demonstrators regard as a wider pattern of injustice.
With Hana Mohamed treated and sent home, attention now turns to whether the authorities will explain the circumstances of her arrest and investigate the conduct captured in the footage.
The incident has sharpened concerns over police accountability and whether Guyanese can exercise their democratic rights without fear of intimidation or excessive force.
This is a developing story.
