Monday, June 30, 2003

Monitoring of deportees

The deportee issue has been of grave concern for many Guyanese, and many persons are of the view that the Government and the Guyana Police Force (GPF) are neglecting deportees when they return to Guyana.

However, the GPF have put measures in place monitor deportees that come into the country, but there are some factors that hinder the monitoring process.

First and foremost, officials from the Guyana Police Force usually interview these persons at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport to obtain the relevant information.
However, according to Public Relations Officer of the GPF David Ramnarine there are some factors that hinder the effectiveness of monitoring deportees.

First and foremost the manpower for such an exercise is limited and according to Police officials with the number of deportees arriving in the country a special task force would have to be implemented to have an effective operation. At the moment the team that is responsible for monitoring the deportees has other duties and responsibilities to perform.

Another factor is the geography of the country. With such a vast amount of area to cover with some areas densely populated with forests there are endless possibilities of persons being in any part of the country undetected. Monitoring is also adversely affected because in some cases, the deportees are not at the addresses when the Police rank goes to visit. Therefore, a note is made in the records whenever this occurs.

However, the official noted that there is a perception that the deportees are engaged in illegal activities when they return to Guyana and they are more likely to be frowned upon.

Over the past two years, deportees have been returned to Guyana in large batches. Since December 1, 2002 221 deportees have been returned to Guyana, in two categories: drugs and serious offences. The two most recent batches were numbered at 14 and 13 respectively.
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