The much anticipated Argentine Team of Forensic Anthropology (EAAF) has arrived in Guyana to determine what assistance can be given to local police regarding the gruesome murders of the three West Coast Berbice teenagers – cousins Isaiah and Joel Henry, and Haresh Singh – back in September.
See below for a full statement from the Guyana Human Rights Association:
In accordance with the wishes of the affected families, the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) is facilitating the visit to Guyana of Dr. Luis Fondebrider, the Director of the Argentine Team of Forensic Anthropology (EAAF) to Guyana. The purpose of the visit is to assess whether the EAAF may be able to support the efforts of the Guyana Police Force in their investigations of the deaths of the three youths in West Coast Berbice.
The visit will take place from December 12-16th, 2020. The main components of the visit will be meeting the families, visiting the crime scene, meeting with investigators and police personnel as well as briefing appropriate Government and diplomatic representatives.
As a result of the visit, the EAAF will determine whether and to what degree they may be able to support the Guyana Police Force in its investigations. If that conclusion is positive the modalities of how it may be implemented will be addressed.
During his visit Dr. Fondebrider will also hold a Zoom meeting with representatives of official and civic organizations engaged with the problem of violent deaths of women. The EAAF have developed protocols for the investigation of femicide – the violent deaths of women by men. The purpose of that session will be to explore the possibility of capacity-building in this area in the future.
Dr. Fondebrider will also give a public presentation on the work of the EAAF. That presentation will take place in the Catholic Cathedral on the corner of Brickdam and Camp Street on Tuesday, December 15th from 5.30 p.m. to 7.00 p.m. The Cathedral is an appropriate venue in terms of safely accommodating COVID-19 protocols.
Dr. Fondebrider was one of the speakers at the Conference on Truth and Justice, In Search of Reconciliation in Suriname held in Paramaribo in 1998 by the Justice & Peace Organization and the Inter-American Institute for Human Rights. At the time he was a staff member of the EAAF.
