Guyana govt silent before UN Human Rights Committee on US detention of Permanent Secretary

Last Updated on Wednesday, 20 March 2024, 8:16 by Denis Chabrol

American Human Rights advocate, Laurence Helfer’s questions to the Guyana government before the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) about last year’s detention of Permanent Secretary Mae Toussaint Jr. Thomas-Meerabux by United States Customs and Border Protection Agents.

He pointed to her arrest as an example of alleged corruption and wanted to know what the Guyana government had been doing to address such allegations. “For example, how is the state party responding to allegations of corruption that have become publicly known, such as the the detention of Mae Toussaint Jr. Thomas-, a senior public official at the Miami Airport in the US on April 8 of 2023. Are the authorities of the state party investigating this incident and if not, why not?,” asked Mr Helfer who was nominated to the Committee by the UN Human Rights Committee.

However, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira did not answer that question, although she had responded to corruption-related questions  by the UNHRC Committee member. She attributed her failure to answer many questions due to the rapidity but remained ready to respond to more or send responses after the hearing.

Mr Helfer’s questions about specific cases of assets recovery through the various agencies such as the Guyana Police Force’s Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), Ministry of Home Affairs’ Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) were also not answered by Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira.

Ms Thomas-Meerabux , who is a member of the governing People’s Progressive Party (PPP) and is one of several politically-appointed Permanent Secretaries, was detained by US authorities  in April 2023 while transiting to China for a political party assignment. Her phone had been seized and her US visa revoked, causing her to return to Guyana via the United Kingdom.

She has since been moved from the Home Affairs Ministry to the Labour Ministry.

Mr Helfer noted on Tuesday that the Guyana delegation mentioned that the State Assets Recovery Agency has been replaced by several government bodies that have authority over asset recoveries in keeping with laws adopted in 2022 and 2023 and that civil forfeitures have been carried out by these agencies.

“Will the state party please provide information regarding these forfeitures including the number of cases the identity of the individual is targeted and the amounts recovered. Please also indicate whether any criminal prosecutions have been initiated by any of these agencies. In addition, does the state party consider that these agencies have a positive duty to be more proactive in investigating allegations of corruption?,” he asked.

Mr Helfer earlier this week asked the Guyana delegation about whether allegations of corruption against Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo had been investigated. In her response, Ms Teixeira said the Guyana Police Force could not do so because no one had filed a complaint.

The US State Department is on record as stating that Mr Helfer brings to the UN Human Rights Committee “a determined passion to protect and promote civil and political rights.”