We must take this opportunity to reflect on what it means to be Guyanese
I am no soldier. More than likely, you are not either. While we may each have our own way in which to express love of country and courage of purpose, none of us is volunteering to selflessly serve the nation of our birth with the life that we hold so dear.
Shock and grief at the passing of soldiers in the midst of fulfilling their pledge to be the stewards of our nation, demonstrating as best they could, that these sons of Guyana were already working to keep their homeland safe...for us. We that remain can do nothing less than honour their profoundly selfless dedication to our nation.
As I watched, my heart broke at the sight of them, our fallen returning to the capital, caskets embraced by the Golden Arrowhead; itself a sombre substitute for the love and gratitude of an entire nation. These five citizens of Guyana who volunteered to serve us all by being the shields that willingly navigated our densely lush and vast interior; the vanguard who remain vigilant for any possible threats to our sovereignty, freedom, and national territorial integrity.
The tumult of emotions this created; perhaps confusion is better than despair; uncertainty more palatable than sorrow. But, there is one, and only one, possible sliver of light peering at us between our prayers and tears; an ever-widening shimmer that gives me hope.
From small days, in our family we were exposed to the GDF and engaged with the families of the many comrades and friends my late father (Cpt Asad Ishoof) still had who remained in the disciplined services after he left. What we learned from this has been a lifelong personal ethos, crafting a perspective of Guyana that saw no racial, religious or other boundaries between us and our fellow countrymen. My father often remarked that Guyana’s army community, though quite sparse and seen as deeply polarizing at times, was one family. His ties to soldiers that served with him and under him, never broke. There was no space to infuse these relationships with the suppurating chancre that characterized the abysmal race relations in Guyana. Army loyalties ran blood deep; and I have witnessed the many, many instances whereby the country’s historic disease failed abysmally in separating military comrades.
Today, as our young President faces the task of providing leadership, compassion, empathy and strength for a country suffused with grief; he is not alone. Guyanese of every political persuasion, race, religion, region, local or expat, finally, finally...we seem to fully understand what One Guyana means, as our nation’s heart breaks with the loss of five honourable men, who died in service to us all. Nobody raised the spectre of race, nobody cared. Nobody cared what region they hailed from, or if they were of any particular socioeconomic status, or if their value stemmed from being affluent or influential...none of this mattered, drowned as it was by our tears for our lost countrymen.
In this moment, we all recognized that we cared, deeply. Not one person enquired what political affiliation these men were aligned to, as for once...we were one, united in grief.
Perhaps this is the catalyst that will finally break the back of the stranglehold that race has had on our nation? We must take this opportunity to reflect on what it means to be Guyanese..to be born in a country that is rapidly ascending internationally; one that is simultaneously, brilliantly able to initialize the herculean task of rapidly transforming into a significant, petroleum-producing nation; while maintaining our rainforests, contributing to regional food security and continuing to actively pursue viable avenues of alternative energy. A country, not perfect by any means, but it is ours to be proud of.
Do not forget how you felt seeing the caskets of five extraordinary Guyanese servicemen brought back from where they perished. Do not forget that in these moments, none of us cared where they came from, what race they were and most importantly, none of us gave a damn what their politics were. We just cared that they were some of the best of our Guyanese
family...and we had lost them as they did what they had sworn to do: honourably and selflessly serve Guyana.
It is time for us to become that nation of one people, with one collective destiny.