Freddie admits to escaping National Service hardship

Dear Editor,
Freddie Kissoon (July 12) praised the late criminal mastermind Laurie Lewis for getting him out of the oppressive National Service system that was mandated for anyone seeking tertiary education; high school students were also coerced into participating in National Service. If someone did not participate in National Service, a diploma was denied. One’s promotion in government service or even a government job (teaching service) was tied to National Service.
Many abuses took place in National Service. There were widespread reports of rapes and violation of dietary needs forcing Muslims and Hindus to eat beef and pork. Pandits and Imams begged Burnham to excuse females from National Service because of reported rapes and unwanted pregnancies, but Burnham refused.
Freddie said he opposed National Service, but Laurie Lewis gave him a break. So he could get his diploma. Laurie was Burnham’s right hand man on terror. Freedom fighter Leyland Roopnarine said Laurie was in charge of the terror ring. Leyland was arrested several times by Laurie’s terror squad and beaten in prison. It is commonly known that Laurie was responsible for the disappearance of Burnham’s opponents.
Describing Laurie as a dangerous man, Freddie connected Laurie with Walter Rodney’s murder. Laurie was also connected to the beating of political opponents.
The DLM political leader, Paul Nehru Tennassee was arrested, stripped naked and placed on an ants nest; Laurie knew about it. Ravi Dev was beaten at the police headquarters. Several of us were beaten by Police at the instruction of Laurie who ran the terror dungeon in town. Laurie’s Police terrorised us when we participated in protests against the PNC dictatorship. Yet in spite of all the terror unleashed on freedom fighters and advocates for democratic rule, Freddie befriended Laurie for personal gain.
Freddie wrote: “I met Laurie Lewis in 1975 at the University of Guyana. From 1975 until he died in August 2012, we remained on very friendly terms.”
When many of us were being beaten, intimidated and some arrested for opposing National Service, Freddie compromised the struggle. Freddie stated: “I agreed to do National Service and Laurie facilitated me by having me work with him in his National Service office at Broad and Charles Street, Charlestown. This is what drove me to like Laurie”.
So Freddie used his connection with Laurie to avoid National Service in the interior of the jungle where one was forced into government propaganda, consuming foods that violated their faiths and where almost every female was raped or targeted for rape.
While others were forced to endure physical and emotional torture far from home in the jungle exposed to malaria and other dreadful diseases, Freddie was in an air-conditioned office and close to his family. No wonder he was grateful to Laurie.
Freddie had such a special relationship with Laurie that he penned: “I do not think Laurie ever refused me a favour. I could have asked him for anything.”
Freddie described Laurie as “a shrewd, Machiavellian operator. Laurie Lewis will remain one of the most controversial personalities this country produced. His life story is mired in dangerous and unappealing details”.
Freddie said Laurie would use favours he did for you against you, pointing out that this “was the lesson he internalised from his association with Forbes Burnham”.
He adds: “Laurie was part of the body … surrounding the Walter Rodney murder. I knew Laurie had a massive amount of intelligence data on people, data he threatened to use against them in order to succeed in the pursuit of his desires, and he did succeed”.
In spite of all Laurie did to political activists who opposed the Burnham and Hoyte dictatorships, Freddie remained close to Laurie for allowing him to escape National Service in the jungle and this while females were being raped. Has Freddie no self-respect?

Yours truly,
Vishnu Bisram