Criminality should not be associated with seeking justice – President Ali

Berbice teens’ brutal murders

…commits to swift justice

As the country continues to mourn the gruesome deaths of 16-year-old Isaiah Henry and 19-year-old Joel Henry and demand justice, President Dr Irfaan Ali has said that seeking justice should not be associated with criminality.
He was, at the time responding to the reports of protesters destroying property, assaulting and robbing persons who were traversing along the West Coast Berbice Public Road.

The President said that the destruction of property and robbery is the type of behaviour that does an injustice to the case of Joel and Isaiah Henry.
He indicated that the Police Force has briefed him on the severity of attacks, damage to property, robberies and brutality associated with a number of the protest action in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice). He added that those individuals who continue to cause public harm and mischief cannot pretend to be doing so in the name of justice for the teens.

No stone unturned
“The police has also updated me on the progress of their investigation and they have assured that they will leave no stone unturned in ensuring justice for Joel and Isaiah is achieved, professionally. They have also assured me that the individuals who have caused harm to members of the public and private property will be identified and processed in accordance with the laws,” the President said.

Ali called on all Guyanese to condemn the brutal murders of Joel and Isaiah and to also condemn the brutality and unlawful behaviour of those who have inflicted injury, and robbed and damaged property of innocent Guyanese. He added that this is a time for Guyanese to reflect as a nation and to redouble efforts towards strengthening relations.
The President has assured the families of Isaiah and Joel that he will work with law enforcement to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to swift justice. He made the commitment to the families during a telephone call on Monday with Gladston Henry, the father of Isaiah and Gail Johnson, the mother of Joel Henry, to express his condolences.
“This morning, I had the unfortunate task of speaking with the father of Isaiah and the mother of Joel. It is unfortunate because of the tragic way that these young men met their death. On behalf of the people of Guyana and my own behalf and that of my family and Government, I express our condolences to the family, to the parents,” President Ali said.

The President said the murders are particularly heinous and reiterated his Government’s commitment to bring those responsible to justice.
“I assure you that as President, I will work very, very hard to ensure those criminals are brought to justice…. We have to work on ensuring that crimes like these do not reoccur,” President Ali said.
The President also called on the nation, and Berbicians in particular, to stand in solidarity during this tragic time and to offer their support to the teenagers’ grieving parents, relatives and community.
“I want to ask all Guyanese not to use this moment to divide us or to separate us, but for us to be conscious of the implications that our statements, comments and posts can have, especially on social media… I can tell you the parents of these two young men are sincere; they are humble people, and as they go through this moment of loss, as they grieve in these moments, communities from which these young men came… what we can do as a people, as a country, as Guyanese is to strengthen our resolve, strengthen our commitment, strengthen our sense of purpose to our communities, to our neighbours, to our friends, to each other in ensuring that our society… our communities do not have to go through these painful moments,” President Ali said.
The President also called on the public to exercise patience and to allow the Guyana Police Force to conduct its investigations.
“I ask that you give them an opportunity to complete their work, to support them as they seek to aggressively bring the perpetrators to justice; that whatever we do in demonstrating our emotions, I appeal to you to do so in a peaceful manner, to do so in a respectful manner, to do so in a lawful manner,” President Ali said. (G2)