Many Guyanese remember the March 2020 period as the beginning of a tumultuous era where the APNU+AFC attempted to rig the results of the General and Regional Elections. But how many would recall that scores of citizens were pumped with pellets about their body as they fought to protect Guyana’s democracy from being defiled? On March 6, 2020, Devon Subhan from Cotton Tree, West Berbice died after being shot about his body with 11 pellets by police. His crime? Peacefully protesting the blatant attempt by the APNU+AFC regime to alter the votes cast for Region 4.
Many other courageous citizens from West Berbice, even their children who protested that day with Subhan, were sprayed with pellets that they still walk around with to this very day. As Guyana prepares for the 2025 electoral cycle, General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo said these sacrifices should never be forgotten.
The official, who also serves as Guyana’s Vice President, opened his weekly press briefing on Thursday, reminding that on March 7, scores of media houses locally and abroad documented the riots and callous shooting of pellets at Guyanese who fought to guard democracy.
The General Secretary was keen to note the significance of such a period as it was one where the country’s fundamental freedoms were under severe threat.
Jagdeo noted that when the PPP/C took office in August 2020, he met with a group of persons who were victims of the attacks during that time. “We’d just taken office a few, maybe two months into the government, and it was still the COVID period…they came masked up, and I met with them, and they said to me, do you know that there are a large number of people, over 35, that have large amounts of pellets in their body? One girl had over 70 pellets in her body,” said the General Secretary.
He added, “…we sent them to have the pellets removed. And a lot of them, they said, we can’t remove all the pellets. They are too many…maybe just to leave it in their body. And so you have, in this country now, a number of young people who have significant amounts of pellets in their body because they were fighting for the future of this country.”
Jagdeo said these Guyanese should be remembered for their courage and heroism, for standing up for what is right.
He also stressed that it is necessary to refresh the memories of citizens so that they know to be even more vigilant as the 2025 electoral cycle heats up.
