GTUC makes a desperate plea for justice- calls for an investigation into allegation of sexual grooming, rape, sodomy and forced sexual violation by a minister of a teen

The Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) is making a desperate plea for justice and calls for an investigation into allegation of sexual grooming, rape, sodomy and forced sexual violation by a minister of government on a teenager.

The story told by the 16-year-old captures vividly the brutality of rape. At 16-year-old, still a child, still innocent, she writes of her alleged sexual exploitation and brutalisation at the hands of Minister of Regional Development and Local Government Nigel Dharamlall.  This is a powerful man, who is no stranger to similar allegations made before, and a vulnerable child allegedly exposed to sexual violence that no human being, no child, deserves to experience.

From the teen’s story, she was carefully groomed for her physical and emotional exploitation, allegedly by this minister, whom, though she was suspicious of based on advice of others, she developed trust from the way she and her mother were treated with respect in his presence.

The teen tells a story, in detail, of her vulnerability and efforts to avoid someone she perceived with predatory instincts but nevertheless fell prey. Her youth and inexperience were no match.

The story of rape is about raw, naked power domination, exploitation, and sexual depravity.

Society should not sit quietly and accept the teen’s very articulate claim being swept aside without a thorough and independent investigation of the allegations made. To do otherwise would be a failure on behalf of this government, but most significantly a failure of society, Rights of the Child organisations, religious bodies, women’s organisations, every woman, and every mother and all those to whom she appealed for help, in her words drawing comparison to the 20 children killed in the Mahdia fire, don’t wait for her to died.

GTUC, and all of us know, this teen alone cannot fight this battle, for the forces are already at work, not only to attack but to create conditions for her to withdraw her statement as a means of discrediting her story. So much so that one headline allegedly referred to her free and willing withdrawal as ‘flip flopping.’

The teen spoke about the alleged perpetrator having direct conversation with her family, as she was sitting in a car, and reportedly blamed his behaviour on the devil. This is according to a report on a conversation she was having with someone, whom she described as Saddam, the Chief the Education Officer (CEO), sent to her by Minister Priya Manickchand. From the telephone record seen, the CEO admitted to the teen “if it was his daughter, he would have been in jail.”

The traumatised teen has pleaded to the wider society, including the diplomatic community, for help. GTUC supports  her plea for justice, not only for herself but on behalf of all the Indigenous children and the nation’s children who are subjected to such abuse by those in power. This matter must not go un-investigated.

GTUC demands President Irfaan Ali fire the minister instantly because the damning allegation and his present portfolio make him unsuitable. The Congress is also calling for a criminal investigation.

We call on the family and/or the teen, who vowed to be a protector of Indigenous girls, to file a police report.

We further call for pro bono service from the legal fraternity to support this teen to make a police report and overcome the legal hurdles created by those operating behind the scenes of her ‘alleged’ free and willing recant to the police dated June 16, 2023, in Facebook post. There must be some members of the legal fraternity, sufficiently concerned about the well-being of this child and our nation’s children, willing to offer the protection and legal support to this brave teen, coming out as an activist in the hope of protecting others.

The social work community is also being called on to provide the teen and family with the required counselling and support because no doubt the alleged incident is traumatic for the victim and family.