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Tekst en beeld Euritha Tjan A Way PARAMARIBO — “Monique Pool is recent door mij benoemd als focal point voor

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka’s president and prime minister agreed to resign Saturday after the country’s most chaotic day in months of political turmoil, with protesters storming both officials’ homes and setting fire to one of the buildings in a rage over the nation’s severe economic crisis.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said he will leave office once a new government is in place, and hours later the speaker of Parliament said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa would step down Wednesday. Pressure on both men grew as the economic meltdown set off acute shortages of essential items, leaving people struggling to buy food, fuel and other necessities.

Police had attempted to thwart promised protests with a curfew, then lifted it as lawyers and opposition politicians denounced it as illegal. Thousands of protesters entered the capital, Colombo, and swarmed into Rajapaksa’s fortified residence. Video images showed jubilant crowds splashing in the garden pool, lying on beds and using their cell phone cameras to capture the moment. Some made tea, while others issued statements from a conference room demanding that the president and prime minister go.

It was not clear if Rajapaksa was there at the time, and government spokesman Mohan Samaranayake said he had no information about the president’s movements.

Protesters later broke into the prime minister’s private residence and set it on fire, Wickremesinghe’s office said. It wasn’t immediately clear if he was there when the incursion happened.

Earlier, police fired tear gas at protesters who gathered in the streets to march on the presidential residence, waving flags, banging drums and chanting slogans. In all, more than 30 people were hurt in Saturday’s chaos.

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said in a televised statement that he informed Rajapaksa that parliamentary leaders had met and decided to request he leave office, and the president agreed. However, Rajapaksa will remain temporarily to ensure a smooth transfer of power, Abeywardena added.

“He asked me to inform the country that he will make his resignation on Wednesday the 13th, because there is a need to hand over power peacefully,” Abeywardena said.

“Therefore there is no need for further disturbances in the country, and I urge everyone for the sake of the country to maintain peace to enable a smooth transition,” the speaker continued.

Opposition lawmaker Rauff Hakeem said a consensus was reached for the speaker of Parliament to take over as temporary president and work on an interim government.

Wickremesinghe announced his own impending resignation but said he would not step down until a new government is formed, angering protesters who demanded his immediate departure.

“Today in this country we have a fuel crisis, a food shortage, we have the head of the World Food Program coming here and we have several matters to discuss with the IMF,” Wickremesinghe said. “Therefore, if this government leaves there should be another government.”

Wickremesinghe said he suggested to the president to have an all-party government, but did not say anything about Rajapaksa’s whereabouts. Opposition parties were discussing the formation of a new government.

Rajapaksa appointed Wickremesinghe as prime minister in May in the hope that the career politician would use his diplomacy and contacts to resuscitate a collapsed economy. But people’s patience wore thin as shortages of fuel, medicine and cooking gas only increased and oil reserves ran dry. Authorities have also temporarily shuttered schools.

The country is relying on aid from India and other nations as leaders try to negotiate a bailout with the International Monetary Fund. Wickremesinghe said recently that negotiations with the IMF were complex because Sri Lanka was now a bankrupt state.

Sri Lanka announced in April that it was suspending repayment of foreign loans due to a foreign currency shortage. Its total foreign debt amounts to $51 billion, of which it must repay $28 billion by the end of 2027.

Months of demonstrations have all but dismantled the Rajapaksa political dynasty, which has ruled Sri Lanka for most of the past two decades but is accused by protesters of mismanagement and corruption. The president’s older brother resigned as prime minister in May after violent protests saw him seek safety at a naval base.

With fuel costs making other forms of travel impossible for many, protesters crowded onto buses and trains Saturday to get to the capital, while others made their way on bicycles and on foot. At the president’s seaside office, security personnel tried in vain to stop protesters who pushed through fences to run across the lawns and inside the colonial-era building.

At least 34 people including two police officers were hurt in scuffles. Two were in critical condition, while others sustained minor injuries, according to an official at the Colombo National Hospital who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to talk to the media.

Privately owned Sirasa Television said at least six of its workers, including four reporters, were hospitalized after being beaten by police while covering the protest at the prime minister’s home.

Sri Lanka Medical Council, the country’s top professional body, warned that hospitals were running with minimum resources and would not be able to handle any mass casualties from the unrest.

Protest and religious leaders said Rajapaksa has lost his mandate and it is time for him to go.

“His claim that he was voted in by the Sinhala Buddhists is not valid now,” said Omalpe Sobitha, a prominent Buddhist leader. He urged Parliament to convene immediately to select an interim president.

U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung on Friday asked people to protest peacefully and called for the military and police “to grant peaceful protesters the space and security to do so.”

“Chaos & force will not fix the economy or bring the political stability that Sri Lankans need right now,” Chung tweeted.

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By KRISHAN FRANCIS, Associated Press

Associated Press writers Bharatha Mallawarachi in Colombo and Krutika Pathi in New Delhi contributed to this report.

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A police constable who remains in custody after he allegedly handcuffed, attacked and sexually assaulted his girlfriend last year, was freed of a separate charge relative to touching a 15-year-old female student on her leg.

Ryan Anderson from the Portland Police Division was found not guilty of indecent assault last week.

The parish judge who presided at the trial determined that the complainant’s testimony was not credible, as several inconsistencies were found in her evidence.

The girl claimed that in August of 2021, the cop inappropriately touched her on her leg while she was a passenger in his car.

The matter was reported to the police, and following a probe, Anderson was charged.

The cop, however, denied the allegations at his trial, which ended in him being acquitted.

In relation to the matter surrounding his girlfriend, Anderson is to appear in court later this week.

The constable is charged with rape, grievous sexual assault, three counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, unlawful wounding and malicious destruction of property.

Allegations are that between November 13 and November 29, 2021, Anderson and the woman got into a dispute after he accused her of being unfaithful to him.

During the course of the dispute, the cop allegedly handcuffed his lover and beat her severely on several occasions.

It is further alleged that he also sexually assaulted the woman during the reported ordeal.

Further reports are that the lawman burnt some of his girlfriend’s clothing during their disagreement.

The woman eventually made a report to the police and an investigation was launched.

A file was subsequently submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), which ruled that Anderson should be charged.

He was subsequently arrested and booked for the offences stemming from the alleged altercation.

The cop has remained in police custody since that time.

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Randolph Indarsingh, grandfather of Daniel Guerra, speaks with reporters at his home in Gasparill on Sunday. – ROGER JACOB

The grandfather of eight-year-old Daniel Guerra is hoping for a speedy trial after the policeman charged with his murder surrendered on Saturday after almost nine years on the run.

Randolph Indarsingh, 68, of Bedeau Street in Gasparillo, said he became aware of the latest development on Sunday morning.

Crying as he sat on a chair, Indarsingh added he was happy that the accused, PC Darwin Ghouralal turned himself in to the police.

“Someone spoke about it this morning, and I went to buy a newspaper. Daniel’s mother (Rona Indarsingh) also called and told me about it this morning,” Indarsingh, a stroke patient, said.

“She was not crying. It seems she was content with it.”

PC Darwin Ghouralal . –

He said Rona lives “somewhere” in the Claxton Bay area.

Daniel went missing in February 2011, after he left the family’s home at Bedeau Street to go to a nearby parlour. Two days later, his partially-decomposed body was found in a river along the Tarouba Link Road on the outskirts of San Fernando.

The boy was a student of the Gasparillo Government primary school.

Three autopsies were done and one found he died by drowning. Another found he died from asphyxia, and the third found he died from homicidal asphyxia.

In April 2011, the police charged Ghouralal with the boy’s murder.

In September 2013, he was freed after the presiding magistrate upheld a no-case submission filed by his attorneys.

However, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions challenged the magistrate’s decision. About a month later, a judge’s warrant was issued for his re-arrest. The warrant mandated that he be taken into custody upon arrest to await trial.

Ghouralal, who had about 15 years of service, last worked in the Southern Division.

Daniel’s grandfather said he enjoyed his time with Daniel even though it was short.

“He used to live here. If someone had to go out, they would leave him with me, and I would take care of him. We were close,” Indarsingh said.

“Daniel often spoke about what happens after death and where people go. I did not bother to question his reasons for asking about after death.”

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The Guyana Police Force (GPF) this morning (Sunday, July 10, 2022) paid homage to the sixty-five fallen heroes at a Wreath Laying Ceremony for those policemen and women who died in the line of duty.

The Wreath Laying Ceremony was held at the Monument for Fallen Heroes in the Police Officers’ Mess Compound, Eve Leary, Georgetown, as part of the GPF’s celebration of its 183rd anniversary.

The event saw the Minister of Home Affairs, Hon. Robeson Benn, MP; Acting Commissioner of Police, Mr. Clifton Hicken along with his Deputy Commissioners, Commanders and other high-ranking officials of the Force with widows, children, relatives and friends of the fallen heroes laying wreaths at the base of the Monument of Fallen Heroes.

Families of slain GPF members at this morning ceremony

During his opening remarks, Deputy Commissioner Administration (ag) Mr. Calvin Brutus said that “this event here today, marks the 21st occasion that we are labouring in memory of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice of dying in the line of duty to ensure that public security is maintained”.

“It is a significant occasion because had it not been for their sacrifices we will not be here standing, celebrating this occasion and remembering their sacrifice and contribution to the security landscape in Guyana”, Mr. Brutus said.

As a mark of respect, a 21-gun salute was executed while the Police Military Band sounded the Last Post, a moment of silence was observed, followed by another 21-gun salute and the Reveille.

Wreaths were also laid by Minister Benn, Mr. Hicken, Members of the Police Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and all divisional commanders and branch heads.

During brief remarks, Minister Benn lauded the Guyana Police Force for a well-organised ceremony. He also lauded the efforts being made by the Fallen Heroes Foundation to support the families of those policemen and women who would have died in the line of duty, especially with respect to the ambitions of the children of the fallen heroes.

“Why would policemen stand up, face the danger, not run away…but perhaps lay down and made the supreme sacrifice. They were defending and building and creating the environment for a better and greater Guyana for ourselves and for all Guyanese”, Minister Benn asserted.

Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn receives the salute during the parade before the wreath-laying ceremony

Bearing in mind the ultimate sacrifice of the fallen heroes, Minister Benn urged the Force to re-dedicate itself to duty, not forgetting the dangers posed from time to time.

The Minister also solemnly spoke of the critical period when policemen were killed in the line of duty, the days he termed “dark days”, and expressed sympathy to the family members of those killed.

In closing, Mr. Benn thanked the Acting Commissioner of Police for the splendid display today. “I want to identify that, in my view with the continuing service, the fallen heroes will be and must continue to be proud of us in the Guyana Police Force and proud and satisfied that their sacrifice would not go in vain”, Minister Benn posited.

Meanwhile, in his remarks, Acting Commissioner of Police Mr. Hicken asked the audience to observe a minute of silence to remember the Police Officers “who made the ultimate sacrifice for this nation — the fallen heroes who never went home to their families and friends”.

Emphasising that safety and security are precious gifts that benefit all of us, the Top Cop noted that too often we give little thought to the price paid for them.

In 2002, the Guyana Police Force, under the tenure of the then Commissioner of Police Mr. Laurie Lewis, DSS, DSM, established the Monument of Fallen Heroes that is dedicated to the memory of members of the Force killed in the line of duty.

The Top Cop noted that “the monument serves as a place of reflection, honour, tribute, and communal gathering for the family, friends, fellow colleagues, and the nation of the fallen”.

This, he lamented, is in light of the fact that, as Police Officers, we are frequently exposed to life-threatening situations, not only to ourselves but also to the grieving relatives of the deceased. “Moreover, we frequently lose fellow officers to on-duty deaths and lasting, career-ending injuries, which can negatively impact our health and wellbeing. Henceforth, being a Police Officer takes commitment as we must be able to maintain mental and moral strength to resist opposition, and fairness of mind to protect the nation in the line of fire and must stand by our fellow officers in the face of danger or extreme difficulty,” Mr. Hicken said.

The Top Cop noted that the “Guyana Police Force recognises the importance of honouring our fallen heroes through its Fallen Heroes Foundation Inc., which was established in 2015 in collaboration with the Cops and Faith Community Network”.

Chairman of the Fallen Heroes Foundation Bishop Raphael Massiah participated in the ceremony 

The Foundation provides benefits to families whose members have died in the line of duty. Such benefits include providing welfare support to families of ranks who died in the line of duty; providing financial assistance to the families of ranks who died in the line of duty; providing educational assistance to children of ranks who died in the line of duty who are under the age of 18.

Mr. Hicken noted that “through our gratitude and respect for our fallen members, the Guyana Police Force will continue to provide ‘benevolent benefits’ to the immediate family of deceased ranks; take responsibility for the wake for deceased ranks, and take responsibility for the funeral for deceased ranks”.

“As we pay tribute to the fallen heroes, let us also rededicate ourselves to upholding the passion and purpose they so bravely fought for and died for, so that others might live. Let us keep faith with their service and sacrifice by renewing our own commitment to the Guyana Police Force motto, “Service and Protection”. So once again, my sincere condolences to the husbands, wives, parents, children, siblings, friends, and fellow officers, all of those here today who have been touched by the lives we honour. You have been called upon to bear a special burden. And, though there is no speech that can ease your pain, no tribute or salute, we honour their courage and ask you to fill your hearts with our nation’s gratitude”, the Top Cop stated.

Chairman of the Guyana Police Force Fallen Heroes Foundation, Bishop Dr. Raphael Massiah, CCH, in his remarks commended the Guyana Police Force for the solemnity for which this occasion has been organized.

During the ceremony, words of comfort were offered to the relatives and friends of the ranks killed in the line of duty by the Police Force Chaplain, Pastor Patrick Doolichand.

Also attending the ceremony were National Security Advisor Captain Gerry Gouveia, Heads of the Disciplined Services, Former Police Commissioner Floyd Mc Donald, DSS, DSM, senior officers and other ranks, and other retired senior officers of the Guyana Police Force.

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