GUYANA has received another favourable political rating, this time from Freedom House, a US state-funded, non-governmental organisation. In its 2018 Freedom in the World Report, Guyana continues to be listed as “free”, and as an “electoral democracy”.
Though this status was restored to Guyana since 1992, its rating was subsequently compromised by the complicity of the previous administration in drug-related corruption.

ANTI-CORRUPTION REFORMS
According to Freedom House, which conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights, “Guyana is a democracy that features regular elections, a lively press, and a robust civil society.” It urges the government to “continue pressing forward with anti-corruption reforms”, since official corruption remains a pressing concern in the wake of the discovery “of rich oil and natural gas reserves”.
It mentions that violent crimes, though reduced from the high levels in 2013 “when the murder rate was the third highest in South America”, remain a significant problem. It also refers to claims of discrimination against Indigenous Peoples and the LGBT community, but falls short of blaming the government.
In 2015, immediately before the change of government, Guyana was listed as a country that was “rife with corruption”. Worst was the 2015 pronouncement by Freedom House that counter-narcotics efforts were undermined “by corruption that reaches high levels of the government”.

DRUGS PROCEEDS
It states in the review for 2014 that “the informal economy is driven primarily by drugs proceeds”, and that the then government was unwilling to implement or enforce anti-corruption laws. Since the crackdown by the current government against illicit drugs, and the presence in Guyana of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), there has been a spike in money-laundering, as operatives are switching from trafficking to washing the dirty proceeds they had accumulated in past years. This fight against money-laundering has not gone unnoticed, as the US State Department, in its update for 2017, highlights the progress made by Guyana, which allowed us to exit all follow-up sanctions to which it had been subjected by the monitoring agencies, FATF/CFATF.
The Regional Anti-money laundering Workshop for judges and prosecutors, which was co-sponsored last week in Guyana by the Commonwealth Secretariat, was a recognition of Guyana’s growing determination to stamp out drugs money.

CATCHING CROOKS
Commonwealth Secretary-General,the Rt. Hon. Baroness Patricia Scotland, who graced the historic event with her presence, nailed the importance of stamping out dirty money when she declared:

“Money laundering is not a victimless crime. Money laundering, fraud and dishonesty have victims, and the victims are the old, the poor, the disadvantaged, and those who are in need of support.”

The Baroness stated that law enforcement has to increase the possibility that the crooks would be caught, and that they would be relieved of the burden of their ill-gotten gains.
And what would be seen as an endorsement of the efforts of the Guyana Government to promote transparency, she was quoted by the media as saying, “Guyana wants to have the most robust system in the world,” and the Commonwealth Secretariat is very determined to be alongside Guyana, and to ensure that Guyana shines.
It was, therefore, disappointing that the Guyana Bar Association would actually question the participation in the workshop of our director of public prosecutions (DPP) and a few judges, on the ground that they would be exposed to adverse influences from the Executive. The Baroness has graciously responded that the workshop could not infringe on the judiciary’s independence and integrity, or that of the prosecutors.
She explained that detailed discussions on the functions of the judiciary and prosecution on money-laundering cases have been held separately, and on how to make the justice system open and fair. I am confident that the explanations and assurance given by the Baroness, herself an eminently learned jurist, would address the reservations of the legal community.

ATTACK ON JUSTICE SYSTEM
I wish I could expect the same from the opposition that has launched an all-out attack on the integrity of the DPP, and spearheaded a campaign to bring our justice system into disrepute in a vicious response to the discontinuation of the vexatious and frivolous prosecutions against three government ministers. The Guyana Bar Association ought to be worried about the involvement of a notoriously known lawyer, a former attorney-general, in the institution of the vexatious matters which might constitute a frontal attack on the justice system, and could amount to professional misconduct. I intend to revisit this issue later.
I have decided to recap Guyana’s international ratings because of the unrelenting crab-barrel, smear campaign by the democratically elected opposition to tarnish our country’s improved image, and to bad-mouth and bring her down.
Predictably, it would come back at me, like a feather in the wind, to deny any and all positive developments in Guyana, and to castigate all and sundry who may have a kind word to say about our country. Let them impugn Freedom House for recognising the holding of free and fair elections in Guyana, and for commending the holding of local government elections as “continued democratic consolidation”, in the face of their laughable contention that the last elections were rigged, and future elections would be rigged.

FREE AGAIN
Recently, Reporters Without Borders has placed Guyana on an improved press freedom chart, showing that we have moved up by five points. The US State Department Report has concurred that our judiciary is independent. It makes no sense, therefore, for anyone to repeat old false allegations, or to concoct new ones about interference with the media or the judiciary, only to spite the government.
Guyanese journalists are free again to practise their profession without being subjected to state-sponsored physical attacks, terror threats to their publishing houses, or being branded “carrion crows” and “vultures”. No journalist has been prosecuted in recent years under any known criminal defamation law, or falsely imprisoned, tortured or killed in the line of duty.

We have much for which our nation should be thankful. And as a wrap to a week of celebrations, I join the chorus of our grateful people in shouting, “Happy Labour Day! Happy Press Freedom Day! Happy Arrival Day!”