URGENT ACTION

TORTURED GUYANESE MAN MAY FACE UNFAIR TRIAL

A 20-year-old man held incommunicado at a police station in Guyana has been released without charge, and a 15-year-old boy receiving hospital treatment for torture suffered in police custody in the same case is no longer a suspect. However, another man, Deonarine Rafick, may face an unfair trial after being tortured in order to force him to sign a confession.

Nouravie Wilfred, aged 20, was released without charge on the evening of 3 November. He had been arrested in connection with the murder of former local government official Ramenauth Bisram. A 15-year-old boy (name known to Amnesty International), arrested in connection with the same murder, is still receiving hospital treatment, though his condition is improving. His lawyer has been told that he is no longer a suspect in the case, and he is no longer under police guard. Guyana's Commissioner of Police has publicly stated that formal charges have yet to be made against two police officers in relation to the torture against the 15 year-old boy as the police want to wait until the boy is well enough to observe an identity parade.

Deonarine Rafickremains in prison, after he was forced to confess to the murder of Ramenauth Bisram while being tortured in police custody. According to his testimony, he was struck by a piece of wood on his back, legs, buttocks, face and scalp; and the inside of his mouth was burnt with cigarettes. He has apparently been examined by a doctor from Georgetown Public Hospital but it is unclear whether he is receiving all the treatment he needs.

PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in English or your own language:

• calling for assurances that the evidence used to charge Deonarine Rafick with murder was not solely based on a confession obtained by torture; and that any legal proceedings he faces meet international fair trial standards;

• urging the authorities to ensure that Deonarine Rafick receives immediate and regular access to all the medical treatment he needs;

• calling for a full, prompt and impartial investigation into the allegations of torture and the circumstances surrounding the detention of Deonarine Rafick, Nouravie Wilfred and the 15 year-old boy, including the police’s failure to bring them before a court after 72 hours in custody and refusing access to family, lawyers and medical treatment for several days, with the results made public and those responsible brought to justice.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 18 DECEMBER 2009 TO: