GUYANESE physician Dr. Vishwamintra Persaud is battling to remain in practice following revelations about his conviction in the US for a sexual offence. The offence is said to have taken place in the United States where he was trained and later employed as a medical doctor. He was tried in a court of law convicted and duly punished for his wrongdoing. This doctor has since remigrated to his homeland trying to make a new start in life only to find out that his past has come back to haunt him and the new start he has envisioned seems to be evaporating before his very eyes. The matter is now before the Guyana Medical Council which must decide whether to allow him the privilege of practising medicine here or debar him altogether.
In my view, this gentleman should be allowed to practise because he has done nothing wrong here in Guyana. The crime for which he is accused was committed in the United States where he received just punishment, as the saying goes he did the crime and did the time. I do not see why he should be penalised a second time in another jurisdiction. Should he be sentenced for this crime ad infinitum? The answer is no, the law requires that a person found guilty receive punishment commensurate to the crime, Dr. Persaud has paid the price for his misconduct, has been rehabilitated and is willing to move on with his life.
I must make it abundantly clear that I am not trivializing the offence, far from it. I take crimes of a paedophilic nature very seriously but we must not forget that we have all transgressed in some way or another and should be very cautious in our rush to judgement. He has committed a crime just like any other and in his remorse should be given a second chance.
Finally, I must remind the United States Embassy, the people who I think is behind this, that they continue to harbour criminals who have not received punishment for their crimes such as the Cubana Air Disaster which readily comes to mind. So do not come to us here in Guyana on a high horse with some puritanical doctrine when you are guilty of the same. Dr. Persaud is here to help save lives and he is deserveing of that chance to do it; let’s give him back his as he is already in the process of giving us back ours.