Guyana police accused of burning boy's genitals
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| Published on Monday, November 2, 2009 | Email To Friend Print Version
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GEORGETOWN, Guyana (Reuters) -- Police in Guyana said on Saturday two officers had been arrested over accusations of setting fire to a 14-year-old boy's genitals in a case creating an uproar in the South American nation.
The incident is the latest in a series of rights accusations against President Bharrat Jagdeo's security forces in the former British colony of 750,000 people.
Relatives and rights groups said the boy was tortured at a police station in the rural community of Leonora after being arrested this week in connection with a murder case.
"The genitals of a minor were doused with inflammable liquid and set ablaze. The inside of (his) mouth burned with cigarettes and extensive wounds sustained from severe beatings despite a senior officer being reportedly in charge of the investigation," the Guyana Human Rights Association said.
A lawyers' group urged a public inquiry, calling the case "chilling" and "abhorrent."
Police said on Saturday that two officers had been arrested and would be investigated over allegations of "excessive force."
The case follows a scandal in March over allegations that security forces placed a suspect on an ants' nest as they sought information over cocaine trafficking.
Security forces are also accused of torturing people in several other high-profile cases in 2007 and 2008. | | | | Reads : 789 | | | |
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