Dear Editor,
Mr Ashton Simon in a letter to the Guyana Chronicle Newspaper dated September 3, 2016, refers to what he considers a mild but stern advice His Excellency, President Granger, gave to Pandit Tillack regarding the comments the Hindu priest purportedly made against the Indigenous Peoples of Guyana.
Editor, yes I do agree that as people of Guyana we need to edify ourselves more about the cultures of our different ethnicities. However, in my estimation the question Pandit Tillack raised was not one of an attack on the cultural heritage of our Indigenous Peoples, but rather a breach of the laws of this land that negatively impacts our children in the Amerindian communities. Did his Excellency the President, Mr Simon or anyone else for that matter refute the claims made by the Pandit? This gentleman responded to the priest by hurdling insults to Indians and the Indian culture based on his jaundiced views. I read somewhere in his article that he claims to respect other peoples’ culture. However, the article he wrote completely contradicts his claims.
This writer is conferred with a very prestigious title for an association which is supposed to have been making representations for the Indigenous Peoples at the highest levels of government, yet we encounter statistics backed with reality that the Indigenous Peoples are the most deprived sections of our society. This situation exists because leaders like Mr Ashton Simon refuse to address the serious concerns of these people. I think the Pandit should be complimented rather than condemned. The Child Protection Agency should take serious note and get down to the bottom of the views expressed by the Pandit.
Further, I am convinced that Mr Simon’s blurred opinion of other cultures propels him to think that this Hindu priest has betrayed the Indigenous Peoples of Guyana. Conversely, I feel this was an honest attempt by a right thinking citizen to raise the level of awareness of a situation faced by Guyana’s children which needs urgent intervention from the Government.
The next thing I failed to comprehend completely from his article is the correlation between learning about other peoples’ cultures and children warming up the beds of adults. Is he implying that the cultural significance of this act must be understood before speaking? Modern society accepts laws to be supreme. Cultures, traditions and religions cannot be practiced in contravention of these laws. These must be practiced within the framework of the laws. The Pandit raised a question of something which is morally, ethically and legally unacceptable. Mr Ashton Simon and others from his brigade are making feeble attempts to disguise and divert the argument. The first attempt in the process of diversion was to create an opinion that the Hindu priest attacked the Indigenous Peoples and their culture, and secondly presenting counter claims that Indian culture is no better. This was never a debate about which culture is more superior or inferior. Is Mr Simon implying that since ‘child marriage’ is a practice in India, the Pandit, who is a Guyanese citizen, has no business talking about an immoral and illegal practice in Guyana? What is the connection? The Pandit raised something that is happening in Guyana which is wrong, requires condemnation and legal intervention. Instead we are telling him to mind his own cultural business.
Is ‘child marriage’ an Indo-Guyanese phenomenon? If the Indians in Guyana are in breach of Guyanese laws, retrospect practice of their culture, Mr Ashton Simon is most welcome to bring it to our attention and avoid baseless allegations. I am certain Indian laws and legal entities are capable of handling their cultural issues as it is a secular state.
Yours sincerely,
Vikash Ramkissoon
