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‘Melly Mel’ blames Govt for detention in U.S.
…vows to continue advocacy with greater passion
Kaieteur News- Social media activist Melissa Atwell-Holder has vowed to continue her advocacy despite failed efforts by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Government to silence her.
Social media activist, Melissa Atwell-Holder
Atwell has fingered the current administration for her arrest and detention in the United States by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
More than two weeks ago, members of the immigration enforcement agency arrested Atwell-Holder at her New York home, after which she was later transferred to an ICE detention center in Louisiana. She remained there until her release last Friday, following her virtual appearance before US immigration judge Francis Mwangi and a US$7,500 bond.
In her first Facebook post since her release, Atwell-Holder said, “Was the government of Guyana involved in my detention? The answer is YES! They were deeply involved.”
She explained, “How do I know this? The personal information which was revealed through political operatives such as ‘Critics’ in Guyana, could not have been known unless there was someone on the inside of the US bureaucracy feeding this information to a lobbying firm, which in turn passed that information to PPP sources. No one in Guyana could have known so quickly that I was being detained and taken to ICE office at that hour in the morning.”
Atwell-Holder said no one could have known her US identification numbers unless they were leaked from the inside and passed to a lobbying firm. “No one could have known I overstayed my visa by two days before marriage unless it came from the inside. The PPP activists who called ICE specifically refer to the two-day overstay, which was the loophole identified by the lobbying firm; this is coordination at the highest level,” Atwell-Holder added.
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall had sworn that the government played no role in Atwell-Holder’s arrest. The government has been accused of levelling complaints against Atwell-Holder’s ongoing allegations of corruption by the administration. Further, Atwell-Holder contended that it was PPP operatives who reported her marriage more than 25 times, claiming it was a business wedding. “They tried everything and failed until a lobbying firm that comes at the expense of taxpayers, found a loophole and used their connection on behalf of the Guyana government,” she said.
She explained that her detention and court appearance officially destroyed the narrative that she was tied to criminals or criminal activities. “The US Government swept their systems ten times over; all stones were overturned, and there is nothing. I have a clean bill of health; I am a law-abiding human rights activist,” she stated.
“The work has now started,” she asserted, emphasising that she is now in a position to expose the PPP Government’s corruption on a global level. During her court appearance, Atwell-Holder’s lawyer Joyce Booth had told the court that her client entered the US in 2022 and has been married to a US citizen, Paul Holder, for the past two years. “Your honour, my client is married to a US citizen, there is an approved I1-30, and there is also a pending I-485 in the system, so she is eligible to adjust,” the lawyer said. She noted that the I-485 has been pending since September 2023. She added that Atwell-Holder attended an interview last year and has been awaiting approval of the I-485.
The Department of Homeland Security told the court that there were no other charges against Atwell-Holder. To this end, the judge enquired, given that Atwell-Holder is married to a US citizen, if she would not get a waiver from the overstay charge. He then asked for the lawyer to submit a copy of the I-485, a copy of the approved I1-30, as well as the birth certificate of Paul Holder. These documents are to be submitted to the court by April 18, 2025.
(‘Melly Mel’ blames Govt for detention in U.S.)
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