Shadow Minister for Home Affairs Sherod Duncan is calling for the Government and Guyana Police Force to provide greater clarity on border security and immigration controls, arguing that the recent unrest in Vigilance and Buxton should not be treated solely as a public order issue.
In a statement, Duncan said the disturbances must be assessed alongside the investigation into the disappearance of two Surinamese and allegations of corruption involving police and immigration personnel in Region Nine.
Police have reported that roads in the Vigilance and Buxton area were blocked with burning tyres and debris, a sand truck was set alight, suspected gunshots were heard, and firefighters responding to the fires were obstructed. Police are reviewing CCTV footage as part of the investigation. Reports indicated that the unrest followed an effort by investigators to execute a search warrant linked to the disappearance of Surinamese men Siegiëllo Lorenzo Van Dalen and Derryl Danillo Bont.
Duncan said people responsible for identifiable criminal acts during the disturbances should be investigated based on available evidence. However, he contended that the circumstances that brought police to Vigilance require broader public scrutiny.
Van Dalen and Bont were reportedly last seen in Nickerie, Suriname, in late August before travelling by boat toward Guyana. Guyanese and Surinamese authorities have issued notices and conducted searches, but Guyanese police had earlier said there had been no confirmed sighting of the men in Guyana.
The Shadow Minister said that if investigators establish that the men entered Guyana outside official immigration channels, the case could expose weaknesses in the country’s ability to monitor informal crossings.
“This case becomes more than a missing person investigation,” Duncan said in the release. “It raises questions about informal river crossings, the ability of Immigration and Police to track persons entering the country, the identification of boat operators and landing points, and how quickly such movements can be reconstructed when a serious crime investigation begins.”
He argued that authorities should be able to establish whether the men entered Guyana, identify any vessel and landing point used, determine whether there is an immigration record, and explain the role being played by CCTV and telecommunications evidence.
Duncan also linked the matter to a separate internal investigation ordered by Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken on September 17. The Office of Professional Responsibility was directed to investigate allegations that police and immigration ranks stationed along the Lethem Trail and in Lethem received payments to facilitate the movement of foreign nationals. The claims have not been proven.
The Guyana Police Force said the investigation was intended to determine the circumstances and veracity of the allegations, while Hicken said officers would not be shielded if evidence establishes misconduct.
Duncan said the Vigilance unrest, the disappearance of the two men and the Lethem allegations may appear unrelated when viewed separately. Taken together, he said, they raise questions about whether Guyana has a border management system capable of reliably recording entries, identifying routes of travel, detecting irregular movements and resisting corruption.
The MP urged the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Guyana Police Force to provide the public with an update without compromising active investigations. He called for clarity on whether Van Dalen and Bont have been confirmed to have entered Guyana, whether investigators have identified the boat and landing point allegedly used, whether immigration records exist for either man, and the role of CCTV and telecommunications evidence in the investigation. Duncan also requested an update on the Office of Professional Responsibility probe into allegations involving police and immigration ranks in Lethem.
Duncan said Guyana’s expanding economic activity, migration flows and cross-border labour movement make effective border controls increasingly important. “A modern migration system must be able to connect entry, identity, movement and exit through records that are reliable, auditable and resistant to corruption,” he said.
