FREEDOM of speech does not exist in an absolute, general mode. A speech or statement may be unsavoury and not in consort with acceptable behaviour but if it is not libelous or treasonable, then it is protected by the right to free speech.
Saying someone is fat that has a lot of body weight is not socially acceptable but you cannot stop someone from making such a statement. But you cannot attribute theft or rape to another person if it is a fiction. Free speech does not include the right to call a family man a homosexual when you cannot prove it and you can cause damage to his marriage.
Free speech becomes treasonable when your country is facing invasion and you frame or shape your presentation to tell your fellow citizens that the dictator across the border has a reason for pursuing invasion instincts. At all times it must be remembered that conscience overrides every situation in life. If we do not possess conscience then the human becomes a beast.
It is because of conscience we must speak out against our own army and government when they seek to invade the territory of innocent nations. In the case of Guyana, a dictator who has less than 20 percent of the population wants to invade Guyana when international law recognised the boundary between the two countries. The citizen’s duty in Guyana at this time is to do four things. Firstly, within the context of international relations, assure Guyanese in and out of the land that there will be no invasion, that powerful countries have already told President Maduro they will not accept his action.
Secondly, to assure Guyana that the world will allow Maduro to defy the World Court. The court has ruled that until the court hears and settles the dispute, Guyana’s sovereignty remains intact.
Thirdly, to educate Guyanese about the mind of Maduro. He is fighting a losing election battle. As they say in common parlance, he is trying a thing with the referendum. He hopes it can distract Venezuelans and rally support for him. It will not happen. Maduro will lose the election next year.
Fourthly, to show relentless solidarity with one’s country through any kind of forum that would raise consciousness about safeguarding our homeland.
I did not know that Mr. GHK Lall had wrote a treasonable piece on Venezuela against Guyana until I read it from Mr. Robin Singh in yesterday’s Chronicle. I do not read Mr. GHK Lall. I never liked that gentleman when he suddenly appeared on the scene. It was clear to me that he was an attention-seeker and would do anything to get attention.
It appears that Mr. Lall lived in the US and for some reason had to return. Wanting to be in the news, he began in a direction that he thought would bring him fame – attack prominent names. So, he wrote a letter in the Stabroek News saying that he knows that three businessmen built my home and that I was compromised.
I never saw this guy, never met him. All Lall was doing with his attack on me was to get attention. He has continued in that vein latching on to Mr. Glenn Lall to find space in the Kaieteur News. Mr. GHK Lall’s has survived because libel prevents me from discussing his relationship with the APNU+ AFC regime and his time as chairman of the Gold Board.
What Lall wrote in the Kaieteur News should be investigated with a view of charging him for treason. I support Mr. Singh’s use of the term treason.
Here is what Lall wrote: First, all comparisons favour Venezuela, and unquestionably so. Manpower. Money. Military. Means. All are there to Guyana’s huge disadvantage. It is mouthwatering, the combination of enticements. Second, the international community is sure to be adversarial, but the bell would have already been rung, the deed done. All things considered, it may have been concluded by Maduro that it is better to seize the moment, and deliver what has eluded all other Venezuelan leaders for many lifetimes. In other words, take a chance, and deal with the consequences later. Incidentally, some developments, no matter how condemned by the world, take an eternity to reverse. The genie that is out of the bottle is resistant to returning cooperatively to his cage. Pandora’s box does not close once opened. This is what Guyanese could be probably facing.”
How could someone write these words that could incite the Venezuelan president and cause extensive panic in Guyana? Mr. Lall is telling Guyanese that an invasion is coming. He is telling Maduro he has a reason for invading. I know semantics and I know grammar. This is treason!
