…for LGBT humans
Today’s Easter Monday, and a most holy day for the Christian community. So, your Eyewitness would like to wish all Guyanese a Happy Easter and all that goes with it. While he isn’t the most “religious” fella around – meaning his attendance record at church isn’t spotless — he’d like to believe he lives on the straight and narrow.
So, on this special day, he’d like to know what’s going on with that move made back in 2000 to prohibit discrimination against Guyanese citizens on the basis of their sexual orientation. As far as your Eyewitness remembers, the prohibition was among a welter of others that opened up Guyana to what the rest of the world had long accepted — that we’re all human beings, and are all entitled to be treated equally. “Human” Rights were the same as “Fundamental” Rights. 
Now everything was hunky dory in the National Assembly, where the 65 representatives UNANIMOUSLY voted out the old discriminatory laws and voted in the new Bill; and, hopefully, the dawning of new era wherein we could all be “God’s creatures”. It was not to be. Since before an Assembly-approved Bill can become the law of the land, it has to be signed by the President, some eminent men of the cloth from the Christian section of the society raised such a fuss that the President didn’t sign on the dotted line! Maybe the fact that elections were scheduled within months might’ve had something to do with it!!?
Well, fast forward to 2003, and there’s another attempt to do the right thing and prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. But the good Christian men of the cloth — who’ll be espousing peace on earth and goodwill amongst men quite fervently today — were emboldened by their earlier victory and raised an even bigger hue and cry about “the subversion of values”. And the Bill was withdrawn. And this is where matters have stood since.
Ain’t that a shame? Well, your Eyewitness thinks so. Living in a country and a region where some men (and it’s always mostly men; but that’s another story) interpreted the Bible to allow Africans to be defined as not fully human so they could be treated as chattel, don’t we see the dangers of these invidious distinctions? Where does it end? For it’s not just discriminations and not just against “gays”. Didn’t one of these same “men of the cloth” from the USA use the same reasoning used by their Guyanese cohorts recently to call for Guyanese of other religious faiths to be wiped out — along with Obama and gays?
Now it’s LGBT humans, tomorrow it could be YOU!
…Justice Holder
Sometimes your Eyewitness just doesn’t get it with the “big ones” in society. We’ve been socialised to see gays, the poor and the powerless as less than humans, so it doesn’t raise too many hackles when justice is denied them. As, for instance, the gays mentioned above being denied human rights and the sugar folks over in Wales being crushed underfoot like so many cockroaches. But what about a judge of the High Court??
It’s been more than two weeks since Justice Holder sent a letter to the Chancellor and Chief Justice asking for justice against Attorney General Basil Williams for displaying contempt to the court. Simply asking that Williams apologise for his “insulting, disrespectful…(and) contemptuous” behaviour in court. But a deafening silence has followed. Maybe Williams knew what he was talking about when he retorted, “What apology?” After all, he’s continued in his role as the highest legal official of the Government — most recently on the SARA Bill in the National Assembly.
This matter’s dragging the entire judicial system into disrepute. Does Prezzie care?
…on pharma storage
The Minister admitted there was hanky-panky on the rental of the Albouystown pharma warehouse. He apologised. He was demoted. But what about Larry Singh?
Doesn’t it take two to tango?? Or bribe?
