…due to exposure to mercury-contaminated water

By Shirley Thomas
SOLDIERS’ exposure to mercury-contaminated water while working in the interior can lead to blindness, impotence and other diseases, former Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force, Major-General Ret’d Joseph Singh last week told a commission inquiring into veterans’ affairs. The Commission of Inquiry was tasked by President David Granger to examine the conditions and circumstances facing veterans of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), the Guyana People’s Militia and the Guyana National Service (GNS) and to look into the living conditions of veterans and make recommendations for improvements.
The first two days of testimonies last week saw chilling revelations, which point to a frightening scenario in relation to the health status of both veterans and serving soldiers of the Guyana Defence Force. “I would say over the last 10 years, the proliferation of mining activities or at least small mining has encompassed areas where the military tend to patrol or actually reside. And if they are downstream and have to use river water, there are a lot of risks,” Singh told the inquiry. He said the danger lies in the fact that, indeed if there is heavy metal contamination, when fish such as the hymara, which is a bottom-feeder and well loved by soldiers, ingest the heavy metal; it is transferred through the food chain and shows up in the human system. “This manifests itself in low sperm counts and diseases that cause blindness. It is also said that prolonged contact with mercury can cause impotence,” the retired army general said.
He sounded a word of caution, stressing: “Soldiers at Ankoko, Makouria, Eteringbang, the Cuyuni and at the Venezuelan borders, those soldiers in particular will be susceptible to the impact of heavy metal contamination, in terms of use of water and fish, as well as ranks having worked in the Mazaruni, Cuyuni and Essequibo between Kaow Island and Makouria.
In response to a question by the commission about his position on reports of illnesses contracted by soldiers in the interior and places where there was mining taking place, on account of the presence of mercury in the water, and their diet generally, it was at this point that Singh, who is also President of the Guyana Diabetic Association, touched briefly on ‘diet’ and the consequences of unhealthy eating and how this can result in various illnesses, particularly chronic, non-communicable diseases. Singling out two of the more dangerous ones that have a direct impact on kidney function, he mentioned diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure).One or both of these conditions, uncontrolled, can eventually lead to kidney failure, thus necessitating dialysis.
Soldiers need dialysis
Singh said that “quite a number of our soldiers need dialysis and cannot afford it.” Kidney dialysis is a life-support treatment that uses a special machine to filter harmful wastes, salt, and excess fluid from one’s blood. Dialysis is a procedure employed when one’s kidneys fail. It involves pumping all the blood out of your body and filtering it through artificial means, before returning the cleansed blood to your body. Dialysis is used in the short term, pending a kidney transplant, but will have to be done systematically.
Singh explained that it is not a one-off: “The kidney having failed, you will be required to be on a dialysis machine, three times a week for three to four hours a day for the rest of your life.“ Quoting costs, Singh cited one facility which charges about $300,000 per month, stating: “If you don’t have that you die.” But more recently, other facilities are being equipped with dialysis machines. At a private facility at Annandale on the East Coast of Demerara, there are 20 machines, while the Georgetown Public Hospital has about four.
The cost of dialysis
“The patient can get referrals from the Georgetown Hospital; you can get referrals from the Georgetown Public Hospital and pay $9,000 per treatment at Annandale, which is $27,000 per week, or $108,000 per month. NIS will carry you for 30 or 40 sessions, he outlined. After that, you basically are on your own.” Additionally, dialysis can be accessed only in Region Four. Singh disclosed also that there are many teenagers who, having been diagnosed with kidney failure, are now subjecting themselves to dialysis treatment. “It is a widespread problem. The highest concentration of which is at Linden and then the Rupununi. It has to do with diet.” “So soldiers, if you know soldiers who have high blood pressure and diabetes, but are not yet candidates for End Stage Renal Failure (ESRF), they should go and get themselves checked in order to see what help could be had. Those who are serving, keen attention need to be paid to their diets, and check the EGFR tests so see whether you are a candidate.”
Other illnesses he touched on, prevalent among veterans are: loss of sight and hearing and dental problems. He recalled the days when the army’s (GDF) cooked on half drums, sometimes way into the wee hours (3:00 o’clock) in the morning, admitting, “And many of them became absolutely blind.” He gave names to substantiate the claim. Additionally, ranks who were in the artillery section and lacked proper hearing aids started suffering from hearing impediments, the former army chief said. He also cited malaria and ‘bush yaws’ at the time.
Singh told the commission that soldiers who have a legacy of injuries or illnesses that occurred within the military need to be taken care of. “Wherever I worked since retiring in 2000, whether it’s the Elections Commission, Conservation International, GT&T or the Geology and Mines Commission, soldiers, would come, former comrades in arms would come with a lot of welfare problems: illnesses, people would come, they don’t have wheelchairs, they don’t have enough money to bury their families…”he told the commission.
Singh also touched on the difficulties former soldiers encounter in securing civilian jobs after retirement. He cited that a majority of ex-soldiers are absorbed into security services. “While working as Chairman of Geology and Mines, there were 17,000 small miners working in the gold- mining interior, and I could guarantee that at least two or 3000 were former soldiers. Many were driving minibuses, a significant number were in the security services, but there were some common issues which they raised,” Singh told the commission. He noted that when it comes to the National Insurance Scheme and their benefits. “It’s only when they are about to go to the NIS that they recognise that many of their contributions would not have been paid in, and they have to go through all that.”
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Commission, Desmond Roberts, told Singh that there was a long list of concerns raised by veterans and said that many people would want to know why soldiers should be given special treatment. In response, Singh observed that soldiers give the best years of their lives and service to the country. Secondly, he said the army tends to cocoon persons from the reality of the outside world and because the army tends to provide all their basic needs – barracks, meals, camaraderie, logistics — etc it is only when you’re out there, on a ‘cold pavement’ that you realise all the things that you were receiving in the military–the military looked after you. But once you are outside, you are on your own; and if you didn’t have that transitional period to re-orient you to civilian life, you have a problem.” As such, Singh recommended that the State should ensure that those persons who have served the best years of their lives are accorded the dignity of their transition, which does not deprive them of healthy living, peace of mind, and not having to worry about a job, and more particularly those who are family-oriented, can take care of their families without having to sponge or get involved in underhand activities.