| Arbitrary killings by the government or its agents was the most significant human rights problems in Guyana as identified in the 2015 Human Rights Report of the Department of State of the United States of America.Additionally, the report cited allegations of government corruption, including among police officials and laws that discriminate against women and lesbian, gay,Wholesale Jerseys Authentic, bisexual, transgender, and intersex persons as other human rights violations in Guyana.It also mentioned lengthy pretrial detention as a major cause for concern.According to the report, there was also a lack of independent and transparent procedures for handling allegations of abuses by security force members.Prosecutions when pursued were extremely lengthy,Cheap NFL Jerseys, and convictions rare, leading to a widespread perception that security force members and government officials enjoyed impunity, were also highlighted in the report, which was recently released.ARBITRARY OR UNLAWFUL DEPRIVATION OF LIFEThere were several reports the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings during the year.In July a member of the police anti-smuggling unit shot and killed Charles Caesar while attempting to arrest him. Police reported that Caesar was suspected to have smuggled illegal goods into the country and attempted to run away to avoid arrest.While the report did not mention it, the killing of Courtney Crum-Ewing last March, which is widely believed to be politically linked, is still engaging police investigators.Crum Ewing was gunned down in the Diamond New Scheme on the East Bank of Demerara, while he using a bull horn, urging residents to vote against the then ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic at the May 11, 2015 General Elections.DISAPPEARANCEThere were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.The report also touched on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.According to the report,Cheap Jerseys From China, while the law prohibits such practices, there were reports, nonetheless, alleging mistreatment of inmates by prison officials as well as allegations of police abuse of suspects and detainees. Prison and jail conditions, particularly in police holding cells, were harsh and potentially life-threatening due to gross overcrowding, physical abuse, and inadequate sanitary conditions and medical care.The report referred to a Guyana Prison Service report that as of October,Wholesale NHL Jerseys, there were 1,944 prisoners in five facilities with a combined design capacity of 1,640. A total of 963 prisoners were in Georgetown’s Camp Street Prison, designed to hold 550 inmates. Overcrowding was in large part due to a backlog of pretrial detainees, who constituted approximately 11.3 percent of the total prison population. This situation was recently highlighted when a prison riot erupted, leading to the tragic deaths of 17 prisoners in the Camp Street facility.The US State Department said that while the prison service offered rehabilitation programmes focused on vocational training and education, such programs did not adequately address the needs of prisoners with substance abuse problems.Officials held offenders 16 years of age and older with the adult prison population.In most cases, officials held juvenile offenders aged 15 years and younger in the New Opportunity Corps (NOC),Wholesale Jerseys Online, a juvenile correctional centre that offers primary education,Cheap Jerseys Wholesale, vocational training, and basic medical care.It was reported in April, however, that a 15-year-old girl was ordered by the court to be placed in the NOC, but instead she was held for weeks in a detention centre at a police station and was subsequently sexually assaulted by a male constable, according to the report.On a good note the US State Department report noted that the Guyana government generally observed the rules regarding arbitrary arrest and detention.(See more in subsequent articles) |
