THE Government will pay homage next year to Linden martyrs, Ron Sommerset, Shemroy Bouyea and Allan Lewis, who were killed during a fiery protest on July 18, 2012.

This will be done through the construction of a monument to the fallen men in the mining community. Some $5 million is being allocated for the project which will unfold in 2019.
Linden officials, particularly relatives and those who were involved in the protest action have welcomed this development.

Allan Lewis’s son, Rodwell Lewis, said he is happy that the monument is finally coming to reality since there were requests made since 2012 for this to be done.
A street in the Wismar Housing Scheme was named ‘Allan Lewis Avenue’.
The mother of Shemroy Bouyea also welcomed the decision. “I am happy about it and I think it is a very good thing,” she said.

Former Member of Parliament Vanessa Kissoon was at the forefront of the protest and played an integral role in ensuring that the martyrs are remembered yearly.
Kissoon said the decision is sincerely welcomed by the relatives of the men and residents as well. She said it is long overdue and will surely signify the ultimate price paid by the trio.

Member of Parliament Jermaine Figueira described the monument as a fitting representation of the lives lost. He said it will remind Lindeners of the struggles they went through under the previous administration.
It will also be a reminder of how their resilience led them through those depressing years of stigmatisation and marginalisation, he added.

In July 2012, Lindeners took to the streets for 36 days to send a strong message against a proposal, by the previous PPP/C administration, to drastically hike electricity tariffs from $5 per Kilowatt to $65.
Ron Sommerset, Shemroy Bouyea and Allan Lewis were shot dead during the protests.
During the 2012 protests, the entire town was shut down while main roads became impassable. Several government buildings, including a school, were gutted by fire and public roads and bridges were also destroyed.
A Commission of Inquiry (CoI) found that the martyrs were shot by law enforcement officers.

In his budget presentation, Minister of Finance Winston Jordan made a public appeal for the government to do better for the martyrs’ relatives.  “I am asking my section here, to revisit the compensation that was given to those people; they were unarmed people protesting for their rights and they were killed.” (DPI)