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– Rohee?Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee has reiterated Guyana’s call for less lectures and more tangible assistance from the developed world to fight drug trafficking.The Minister in delivering the feature address at the launch of the National Drug Report for 2010, stressed that international cooperation is a pre-requisite to effectively fight the drug trade.He explained that since Guyana is not a drug producing or a major drug consuming country, to the extent that the amount of drugs consumed in the country is not proportionate to the amount of drugs that enter the country, the administration must think globally and act locally. Guyana, he stressed, is a transit country fighting a global problem.“This is where our challenge is; one, to stop or restrict the inflow of drugs into the country and two, to stop or restrict the outflow of drugs as well. In the case of the latter there are two schools of thought; either, to let the drugs flow through freely onto their destinations or to conduct controlled deliveries,” Rohee stated.“In the case of the former we all know that monitoring movements in the air, on land, and at sea, posses challenges to a developing economy such as ours. In this regard, international cooperation is a sine qua non to effectively fight the drug trade,” the home affairs minister added.Guyana has cooperation agreements with Brazil, Suriname and Venezuela, and according to Rohee, regular meetings with these partners to discuss the effectiveness of the cross border efforts as well as the efficacy of the various means used to fight the drug trade,Gregor Blanco Jersey, are mandatory.Additionally, there is the need to work to involve multilateral organizations to be part of the global fight against the scourge.To this end, Rohee stated that Guyana must show its readiness to cooperate and to collaborate, since to do otherwise could be damaging to the national security interests.“We have made the point time and again that we cannot fight this fight alone. We could be more successful were we to receive the kind of support we are looking for. We have made it clear both at the appropriate bilateral and multilateral fora what is the nature of the support we are looking for.?? And what do we receive in return? Talk and more talk,http://www.footlockershop.us.com/Mid/, lectures and more lectures, instructions and more instructions, as if talk and lectures will help us.”“And who do we receive these lectures from? Those who are the biggest drug consumers in the world. More than half of the drugs produced go to the capitals of these countries.? If they want us to stop the flow of drugs to their countries then they must provide us with the means to stop the inflow into our country.? It’s the only logical thing to do,” Rohee emphasized.He said that years ago, Guyana had warned the major drug consuming countries that if they continue to put up barriers to agricultural trade, thus preventing agricultural products from entering their respective markets, it would result in the pauperization of farmers and this in turn would force some farmers to resort to other forms of “agriculture” to survive.But the Minister said that should Guyana turn a blind eye to narcotics passing through its territory, the local Law Enforcement Agencies would be perceived as weak in the eyes of the populace and the international community, and eventually the country would be branded a narco-state.?? The repercussions, he stated, can be humiliating if not damaging, and Guyana can ill afford this.“This brings me to the much vaunted view, by certain political and academic agents in our midst, simplistic and uninformed as they are,Jerseys NFL Wholesale China Online, who rather whimsically claim that Guyana is a narco-state and that the economy is partially driven by narco-trafficking.”According to Rohee, all such claims will remain anecdotal and groundless, until such time when the hard evidence surfaces and the Law Enforcement Agencies are satisfied to do the right thing, resulting in the arrest and the successful prosecution of persons against whom the allegation is made.And what makes matters worse, he noted, is when Law Enforcement Ranks are found guilty of collusion and/or conspiracy to facilitate the trafficking in narcotics in the national jurisdiction.“This is a temptation we must avoid at all times. I take this opportunity to appeal? to all those whose job it is to uphold the security of the state, not to yield to the temptation of the get rich quick syndrome and the desire to have? a chicken in every? pot and a car in every garage.”The Minister stated that Guyana will continue to encounter challenges inside law enforcement and outside law enforcement; and the country will continue to face a non-responsive international community, “not because it is doing badly,Arizona Diamondbacks Gregor Blanco Jersey, not because it is inactive,Authentic NFL Jerseys Wholesale China, not because we do not have the political will, but because of weaknesses in character, bad influences, and international selfishness, not to mention the lack of modern technologies and regular training opportunities overseas.”However, Rohee asserted that Guyana cannot allow those subjectivities to discourage, dissuade nor distract it from efforts to carry out its mandate.“We have to maintain our focus, alertness and cleanliness at all times.? This is not an easy fight. It was Jimmy Cliff who said ‘It’s a hard road to travel, and a rough, rough way to go’.”Rohee said that he is proud to be associated with the publication of the first National Drug Report.It is Guyana’s first effort at producing a report on the national efforts of the State and it’s Law Enforcement Agencies at fighting the drug trade in Guyana, cooperating with its bilateral partners and collaborating with the multilateral institutions to address this global problem.The minister pointed out that the information contained in the publication is authoritative and can be authenticated by the very Agencies who worked hard to put the document together.“It is a manifestation of the collaboration and coordination sustained over the years since the establishment in 2007 of the Task Force on Narcotics and Illicit Weapons.Mind you, I hope this does not lead you to believe that this is all the Task Force has done since its establishment.? On the contrary,Curtis Joseph Red Wings Jersey, much has been achieved since the establishment of the Task Force but the single, greatest achievement, contrary to what others might believe or say, is the enhanced coordination and cooperation among the Law Enforcement Agencies in their fight against narco-trafficking.” |
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