— President Ali assured relatives of slain teens
— communities urged to shun division, work with police to restore peace

PRESIDENT Irfaan Ali has assured the families of the slain West Coast Berbice (WCB) teens, Isaiah and Joel Henry and Haresh Singh that justice will be served even as he urged residents to work with the security forces to restore order in their communities.

The Head of State made this disclosure, on Friday, after visiting the homes of the teens to personally express his condolences and to assure them of his government’s support in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
He assured the relatives that no stone will be left unturned to ensure that those responsible for the heinous acts are brought to justice and made to answer for their crimes.

“On behalf of the people of Guyana and my own behalf and that of my family and government, I want to again express my condolences to you and your family,” President Ali said.
During his visit with each of the families, the President also pledged to work tirelessly to ensure that the resolution of the investigation is given the highest priority.

“I will work day and night to get to the bottom of what happened to those teens,” President Ali vowed.
He also used the opportunity to urge all residents and community members present to work with the members of the Guyana Police Force and the Guyana Defence Force, who are stationed in the communities, to restore peace and stability.
“Safety and security in all of the communities remain a top priority. As you can see, there is more visibility on the ground, more resources on the ground,” the Head of State said.

The President urged the communities to come together and not to allow themselves to be divided.
He also asked the residents to cooperate with the police, who are working to not only conduct their investigations, but to also bring peace to the communities along the WCB corridor. This, he stressed, can be achieved through cooperation and the sharing of critical information, which can assist the investigators.

NO TOLERANCE FOR CRIMINALITY
The Head of State reiterated that no forms of criminality will be tolerated.
“We cannot tolerate lawlessness and criminality. We have to fix what went wrong and move forward,” President Ali stated.
Meanwhile, the aggrieved relatives all expressed their hope that justice will be served swiftly and that all leads will be pursued. They expressed too, their appreciation for the President’s visit and his commitment to ensuring that all steps are taken towards achieving justice for the boys.

During his visit, President Ali also met with the family of Prittipaul Hargobin from Bath Settlement, who was also killed, to offer his support and condolences.
The West Coast of Berbice (WCB) which for the past four days has seen deaths, violence, arson, robberies and intense protest action, is returning to some semblance of normalcy.

The Joint Service ranks from the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Defence Force and the Guyana Fire Service were able to get protesters off the roads and remove the numerous impediments that kept traffic at a standstill over the past four days.
The situation had left hundreds stranded on both sides of WCB.

The protests started following the discovery of the mutilated bodies of two teen cousins in the Cotton Tree Backdam, last Sunday afternoon.
Initially, protesters blocked the streets and demanded justice for the Henry boys on Sunday night but, by Monday, the protests turned violent, with persons being attacked as they attempted to pass the blockades in Number Five Village and other areas.
By Monday night, several other West Coast villages joined the protest action and things took a turn for the worse.

RAMPAGE
Innocent citizens were beaten and robbed at almost all the locations where the protests were being held, and, on Tuesday, trucks and minibuses were burnt, in addition to a house and barber shop. Things took a turn for the worse on Thursday morning when 17-year-old, Haresh Singh, from Number Three Village, was beaten to death, allegedly at the hands of protesters.

President Irfaan Ali, on Wednesday, announced that he had reached out to the British Government and the Regional Security System (RSS) to visit Guyana and support the Guyana Police Force’s investigative capacity into the recent murders.
The President said he will also explore all systems and protocols available within the United Nations (UN) system to deal with persons who spread hate and racial strife in speech and in action.

“We need to understand who instigated, what was instigated, and, as a result, I am exploring the commissioning of an International Commission of Inquiry (CoI) to look at every aspect of this situation, to look beyond what took place on the ground, to look at the behaviours that came about as a result of statements made. The CoI is important for us to have a comprehensive understanding as to what took place,” the President said, in taking national interventions to address the West Coast Berbice (WCB) murders and the ensuing unrest.