HEAD of the Childcare and Protection Agency (CCPA), Ann Greene, has made it clear that children who participate in street masquerade dancing are being exploited and so she is urging members of the public not to give them money.

Greene, during an interview with this newspaper, pleaded with the general public to play their part in helping to alleviate the situation.

“It’s the same thing that I say about the children begging on the streets; you’re part of the problem when you continue to give money; you become part of the solution if you don’t. Tell them [the adults] ‘I don’t mind you dancing in the sun, but the child should not be out here.’ So say, ‘I wouldn’t be able to give because you have the child there.’ We have to discourage them involving the children,” Greene emphasised.

Among the many Guyanese traditions during the Christmas season, is various groups of masqueraders taking to the streets to perform; they often solicit money from passersby during the activity.
Masquerading is a creative expression that reminds us of our history; it is one of the very few traditions to survive the cultural erasure that occurred during enslavement of our African ancestors.

Greene said while there is nothing against the activity itself, persons need to abstain from involving the children.
“It shouldn’t involve children, it’s for the adults and they do their thing; they shouldn’t have the children. For me, its exposure of the children, it is exploitation of the children and definitely something I would advise against.”
Though the groups are often given permission to perform their activities on the pavements and sidewalks, it has become and increasing custom for them to take the performances to the middle of the roadways, often obstructing traffic as a means of further extorting money out of drivers, at times refusing to let drivers pass unless they make a contribution.

Traffic Chief, Ramesh Ashram, stressed that while the performers are often given permission to carry out the activity due to its cultural nature, they are not allowed to go into the roadways and block the traffic
“They do go to the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, and they would give them permission to masquerade, but the permission does not give them authority to impede the traffic and obstruct the traffic. But they use that as a means of soliciting money, because they block the vehicle to stop and give them money. You would find at traffic lights, they would use the opportunity because they would realise the vehicles have to stop there, so my advice to them is not to do that,” Ashram explained.

The Traffic Chief cautioned that the masqueraders were also endangering themselves.
“Doing that they are endangering their self too. They must do it off the road peacefully, and if persons want to contribute to them, they will do it. My advice to them is even if they get permission, they must not impede the traffic, they must not dance in and out of the traffic. They should not be at any intersection, they should go to parks and market areas and so on to carry out their trade,” Ashram said.

Ashram also urged the masqueraders not to involve children in the activity.
“They should not take underage children with them. It should be responsible persons who could act on their own,” he said.