Lusignan massacre survivors urge forgiveness, reconciliation

SEVEN years ago, eleven innocent Guyanese – five children and six adults, were slaughtered without mercy during the massacre at approximately 01:30 hrs on the morning of January 26, 2008, some while still in their beds by bestial gunmen armed with shotguns and AK-47s.The cold-hearted gunmen invaded the homes of five Lusignan families and slaughtered at will, in a hail of bullets, Clarence Thomas, 48; Vanessa Thomas, 12; Ron Thomas, 11; Mohan Goordat, 32; Seegopaul Harilall, 10; Seegobin Harilall, 4; Dhanwajie Ramsingh, 52; Seecharran Rooplall, 56; Raywattie Ramsingh, 11; Shazam Mohammed, 22; and Shaleem Baksh, 52.

Many others were injured but the pain and trauma have left ineradicable scars and fear in that community and indeed, the entire Guyana, because of periodic violence intermittently erupting, especially immediately preceding and subsequent to elections in this country.

Despite their anguish at inestimable losses of loved ones; despite their recurring nightmares and ineradicable traumas and fears; despite their endless paean of grief; despite their silent shedding of rivulets of tears, the survivors of the massacre – and indeed all the residents of Lusignan…all urged forgiveness and reconciliation.

It is as if this is part of a predestined formula for the political fray and the plots and sub-plots to wrest the government from PPP anytime they win elections (which that party always does), despite being cheated time and again at the polls – to the detriment of the country’s developmental paradigm.

The victims are what the power-hungry political Opposition calls “collateral damage”; so relegated to the total mass of “collateral damage” were Clarence Thomas, Vanessa Thomas, Ron Thomas, Mohan Goordat, Seegopaul Harilall, Seegobin Harilall, Dhanwajie Ramsingh, Seecharran Rooplall, Raywattie Ramsingh, Shazam Mohammed, and Shaleem Baksh, as well as all victims of politically-orchestrated and driven violence in the country.

Despite their anguish at inestimable losses of loved ones; despite their recurring nightmares and ineradicable traumas and fears; despite their endless paean of grief; despite their silent shedding of rivulets of tears, the survivors of the massacre – and indeed all the residents of Lusignan are survivors because the traumas and fears pervade the entire village – have from the inception, subsequent to the funerals when their loved ones were laid to eternal rest, all urged forgiveness and reconciliation.

The President has proclaimed May 11 as the 2015 elections date, having been forced to truncate another PPP/C administration through Opposition gimmickry.
And one could only hope that good sense and the spirit of Lusignan residents will prevail and that in the foreseeable future, all violent transgressions against humanity will cease and forgiveness and reconciliation be the theme for the survival of Guyana.

 

 

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