Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
May 13, 2010 News
Attorney-at-Law Khemraj Ramjattan is justifying his request for a settlement of in excess of $40M for his client, 16-year-old tortured teen, Twyon Thomas, in his arguments before Justice Roxanne George-Wiltshire of the High Court last week.
Ramjattan brought the suit against the Attorney General, the Commissioner of Police, Henry Greene, and the two ranks charged with the offence, Sergeant Lall and Constable Dolai. In it he seeks redress for the young man Twyon Thomas who was tortured at the hands of the two ranks in question late last year.
It cites exemplary and/or aggravated damages for oppressive and authoritarian conduct by the respondents during the period October 27, 2009 to October 31, 2009 in West Demerara.
Prior to the sessions before Justice George-Wiltshire, Ramjattan stated that the defence being put up by the Attorney General was making a mockery of the Judicial Process.
He quoted the Attorney General as saying that Constitutional redress for the youth in question was dependent only upon a conviction of the two ranks who were charged in the matter.
A point of contention that he addressed in his arguments when he highlighted an excerpt from Article 153 of the Constitution which says: “…without prejudice to any other action with respect to the same matter which is lawfully available, that person …may apply to the High Court for redress.”
Ramjattan also pointed out that when the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Seelall Persaud, claimed that he had no knowledge of the events surrounding the incident, he was doing himself no credit. Considering that charges were brought against the two ranks in question, Ramjattan pointed out that there had to be enough “cogent evidence” to make a case against the ranks and as such he was of the opinion that the AG just wanted to delay justice.
Ramjattan’s preliminary arguments sought to elucidate the conditions that would amount to torture, which he then applied to Thomas’s case.
At the foundation of his position he noted that Article 141 (1) of the constitution provides that “No person shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading punishment or other treatment”. This provision enshrines the basic right to physical integrity. It is among the most important fundamental human right guaranteed to Guyanese. It reflects an abhorrence of human abuse and its prohibition is absolute. The Court then must enforce it with rigour.”
Ramjattan noted that the code of law highlighted three areas of offence – torture, inhuman treatment and degrading treatment, which he said that his client had clearly undergone at the hands of the two police officers named in the matter.
Ramjattan stated that according to his deposition Thomas was detained for several nights without access to his parents or a lawyer. During this time he was subjected to beatings as well as having his genital area set on fire.
Then he was treated by a doctor while his head was covered—treatment, that Ramjattan argued, was clearly inhuman and amounted to torture.
As such he felt that it was the duty of the state to move towards compensating the young man for the physical, emotional and mental damages that he suffered at the hands of the police ranks.
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