Father of murdered Berbice teen calls for end to violent protests

0

Gladson Henry, father of Isaiah Henry – one of the boys who was brutally murdered at Cotton Tree backdam, West Coast Berbice [Photo taken from Royston Drakes Production Facebook Live]
Gladson Henry, the father of one of the boys who were brutally murdered over the weekend, is calling on all citizens to desist from attacking persons and damaging properties during their protests for justice.

Protests have erupted across the country, particularly in West Berbice, following the discovery of the badly mutilated bodies of 16-year-old Isaiah Henry and 19-year-old Joel Henry, who were cousins, of Number Three Village, WCB.

However, the protests, particularly in villages in Region Five, have descended into lawlessness, with protesters attacking persons, engaging in theft, extortion, and damage to property.

A truck destroyed during the protests

The father of Isaiah, however, says he does not condone any of those actions.
In an interview with reporters this morning, he called on protesters to desist from such lawless actions. He noted that the protests, calling for justice for his son and nephew, should be done in an orderly manner.

“I am not racist. I still love my Indian brothers and sisters. I am not supporting unmoral protesting because I went out in Number 5 (Village) and I told them straight if you want to protest is our right, let we do it peacefully…We the nation cannot be fighting against one another because this is going on too long.”

“Let we not see this thing as black, white, Chinese or putagee (Portuguese) because if blackman did do this or a Chinese man did do this or any man did do this and if is not my family, I believe that he will have to pay the penalty and not no other people who looked like him and get the texture of hair like him, but the person who committed the act should pay for the crime,” the elder Henry said.

Murdered, Joel Henry and Isaiah Henry

The father, who was speaking to reporters just after witnessing the autopsy on the bodies of the young men, said he just wants to see justice for his son and nephew.

The boys’ bodies were discovered at Cotton Tree backdam on Sunday last.

The postmortem performed today found that they died as a result of haemorrhage and shock owing to the extent of their wounds. Additionally, their spines were severed.

 

---