Commemorating Walter Rodne's 25 Anniversary.

ASSASSINATED OR KILLED? Dr Walter Rodney

THE Working People’s Alliance (WPA), the party which the brilliant Guyanese historian-politician Dr Walter Rodney co-founded, yesterday sided with the main opposition PNCR to change a motion before Parliament to say he was “killed” and not assassinated on a Georgetown street 25 years ago.

The party, which has long maintained that its charismatic and world-renowned co-leader was assassinated in an elaborate plot by the then governing People’s National Congress (PNC), yesterday got backing from that party in seeking to replace the word “assassinated” in the motion with “killed”.

Dr Rodney, then 38, was a fierce critic of the late President Forbes Burnham and his government and he was blasted to death on the night of June 13, 1980, when a remote-controlled bomb disguised as a walkie-talkie, exploded in his lap.

He was sitting in a car with his younger brother Donald who, although injured, survived the blast to tell the world that the walkie-talkie was given to his brother by a now dead former Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Sergeant, Gregory Smith.

Smith slipped out of the country after Rodney’s assassination and surfaced in French Guiana where he later died.

Rodney’s death was widely condemned here and abroad as an assassination and his party’s backtracking on this and supporting the PNC (now the PNC Reform PNCR) in Parliament yesterday shocked observers in Guyana and the Caribbean.

“This is a shocking development and will not go down well with those who respected Rodney and have no doubt about the manner of his death”, an eminent regional commentator said last night.

The National Assembly approved the amended motion moved by the WPA/Guyana Action Party (WPA/GAP) calling for an inquiry into Rodney’s death.

The WPA/GAP sought to have the words “assassinated” and “assassination” in the original motion proposed by the government replaced by the words “killed” and “death”.

However, there was division in the House when the vote was taken on the amended motion, as 17 members from the opposition voted in favour, while 21 members from the government benches abstained.

A government spokesman said the government side abstained from voting on the motion because it did not want to support a “watered-down version” of it.

The original motion introduced by Minister of Home Affairs and acting Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Ms Gail Teixeira said Rodney was assassinated and this sparked controversy between the government and opposition benches who otherwise supported the intention of the motion.

The motion Teixeira moved calling for an enquiry into the death of Rodney, read: “Whereas on the 13th June, 1980 Dr Walter Rodney, a distinguished Guyanese scholar, was assassinated by an explosion which occurred in his car at John and Hadfield Streets, Georgetown;

And whereas Dr Rodney was at the time of his death, an eminent political leader engaged in a struggle against authoritarian rule for democracy and social justice;

And whereas there have been calls for a full investigation into the assassination of Dr Walter Rodney, which have received broad support,

Be it resolved: That this National Assembly, in paying tribute to the memory of this illustrious son of Guyana and on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his untimely and tragic death, support an inquiry being conducted into the circumstance surrounding the death of Dr Rodney.”

The amended motion proposed by Mrs Sheila Holder of WPA/GAP and supported by the PNCR, read:

“Whereas on the 13th June 1980 Dr Walter Rodney, a distinguished Guyanese scholar and champion of the multi-racial working people, was killed by an explosion which occurred in his car at John and Hadfield Streets, Georgetown;

And whereas there been calls for a full and impartial investigation into the death of Dr Walter Rodney, which have received local, regional and international support,

Be it resolved: That this National Assembly, in paying tribute to the memory of this illustrious son of Guyana and on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his untimely and tragic death, support an international enquiry being conducted without delay into the circumstance surrounding the death of Dr Walter Rodney.”

The PNCR’s Winston Murray argued that the use of the word “assassinated” would prejudice an enquiry because the motion is already pronouncing on the outcome of its finding.

Mrs Holder supported this position as did Mr Jerome Khan, Mr James McAllister, Mr Vincent Alexander and Dr Deryck Bernard, all of the PNCR.

However, Ms Teixeira, refuting their arguments, stressed that ever since his death, publications throughout the Caribbean and beyond called it an assassination.

Publications by the WPA for the recent observances for the 25th anniversary of Rodney’s death also maintained it was an assassination.

An inquest held under the previous government headed by the late President Desmond Hoyte found that Rodney died by “misadventure” but this did not find general acceptance.

Teixeira, however, said the acceptance of the need for an enquiry is historic as it is the first time the National Assembly has “attempted to deal with a piece of our history,” and therefore sight must not be lost of the enquiry.

She also described the move as one that maybe is an attempt at a “version of truth and reconciliation commission” to that of South Africa which was conducted after the end of the racist apartheid system to aid the healing process there.

She told the House too that Rodney’s widow, Dr Patricia Rodney, in a letter to President Bharrat Jagdeo requesting an inquiry to bring closure to the issue, said her husband’s death was an assassination.

Rejecting claims that the present government when in opposition was vociferous in its calls for an inquiry but on assumption to office did not move towards an enquiry, Teixeira explained that the main witness and suspect, Gregory Smith, could not have been extradited to Guyana because the laws of France of which French Guiana is a protectorate, do not allow for extradition to countries which have the death penalty in its laws.

She added that negotiations with the French government lasted from 1993 to 1995, with the Guyana Government articulating that despite the death penalty there is also a provision for a prerogative for mercy by the President, but this was not accepted by the French government.

The minister also chided the opposition which accused the government of politicising the issue, and rhetorically asked whether Rodney had died from an illness or in a road accident or some similar occurrence.

“It is a political issue,” she stressed, adding that history can be unpalatable.

She was supported by Foreign Trade and International Cooperation Minister, Mr Clement Rohee, and Labour, Human Services and Social Security Minister, Dr Dale Bisnauth and General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party, Mr Donald Ramotar.

Despite the differences on the motion, members on both sides of the House spoke glowingly of Rodney, acknowledging his contributions to academia and political struggles both at home and internationally. (CHAMANLALL NAIPAUL)

Todays Stabroeknews-June 30, 2005

PPP abstains but Rodney death enquiry motion passed
Thursday, June 30th 2005

Minister of Home Affairs, Culture, Youth and Sport, Gail Teixeira (standing, right) reads the motion in Parliament yesterday. (Photo by Ken Moore)

An amended motion for an enquiry into the death of Dr Walter Rodney was passed in the National Assembly but without the support of the government as PPP/C MPs abstained on the wordings of the amendment.

The division in the National Assembly saw the opposition MPs in favour of the amendments and the abstentions from the PPP/C.

The motion for the enquiry was based on a request from Dr Walter Rodney's widow, Dr Patricia Rodney who recently wrote a letter to President Bharrat Jagdeo asking that an investigation be held so that closure and healing on the issue be brought to the family and to the nation. She also asked that there be unanimity on the issue.

The substantive motion was moved by Minister of Home Affairs, Culture, Youth and Sport, Gail Teixeira at a special sitting calling for "a full investigation into the assassination of Dr Walter Rodney" and to pay tribute to the memory of "this illustrious son of Guyana and on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his untimely death."

WPA MP Sheila Holder moved the motion for the amendments, which were seconded by PNCR MP Winston Murray.

After four and a half hours of debate with presentations by Teixeira, Holder, Murray, Minister of Labour, Human Services and Social Security, Dr Dale Bisnauth, ROAR Leader Ravi Dev, PNCR MPs Deryck Bernard, Jerome Khan, PPP/C MP Donald Ramotar, PNCR MP Vincent Alexander, Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation Clement Rohee and PNCR MP James McAllister, the house was still divided on the amendments.

In the amendments Holder asked that the word "assassinated" in the first clause be deleted and the word "killed" be inserted instead. The contentious clause read "...a distinguished Guyanese, scholar was assassinated by an explosion..."

The other contentious issue, which the PPP/C declined to vote on, was the removal of an entire clause that read, "And whereas Dr Rodney was at the time of his death an eminent political leader engaged in a struggle against authoritarian rule for democracy and social justice."

Commenting on the outcome of the amended motion, WPA member Dr Rupert Roopnaraine, who was in Parliament as an observer for the sitting, told Stabroek News, "the PPP does not quite understand what they have done." He said it was "completely logical in parliamentary practice for you to abstain on the amendments which you don't agree to" but it baffled him as to how they abstained "on a substantive motion which you have brought to the National Assembly and where the resolve clause is really not contentious."

The resolved clause read that in paying tribute to Dr Walter Rodney on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of his untimely and tragic death, the National Assembly support an enquiry being conducted into the circumstance surrounding his death.

Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran said the development, "is well within the rules, I suppose, but it is very unusual."

Teixeira said the motion the government brought to the house was agreed on and contended that no one voted against the motion even though the government's majority abstained. (Miranda La Rose)