Criminal activity in Georgetown, Guyana, counties to be a concern for some of the volunteers still stationed there. I recently received this email from one of them who currently lives on the same street that I lived on with my host family during training. It is also just three blocks away from where I would have been living and about five blocks away from the Peace Corps Guyana office.
The bad news…..i was walking home with a volunteer on Friday nite from another volunteer’s house on Pike street and we got mugged and assaulted – yeah pretty darn traumatic and disturbing. They stole my bike and i got a couple of knife marks in my back – but i’m okay – it’s certainly not an exciting aspect to my experience and of course i’m debating on whether my life is really worth it….being here that is….the crimes seems to be only getting worse and the incidents more often. So we’ll see – i’m giving it to the end of the month to evaluate if it gets any better – since i hate my site too – but that’s another story.
yeah you’d think that Kitty [the neighborhood she lives in] was safe – but it apparently happens anywhere any time – unfortunately – i feel bad for the other volunteer because this is the second time [she’s been assaulted] – yowsers! The stats at the police station is partly what has me freaked – it has only been increasing in incidents/cases – nearly doubled since last years numbers and is only getting worse….and on top of that – even Henry [a Peace Corps host family and friend] tells me that he’s scared – in addition to every other Guyanese i talk to – and in his response to what i told him what happened he was surprised i wasn’t going home – yeah totally crazy i tell ya.
During training, we were asked to all be home before dark (6:30 p.m.) unless we were being escorted by our host family or Peace Corps staff. Naturally, it’s tough to have a curfew.
Stay safe my friends. Stay safe.