Trinidadians by nature are very easy-going, peace-loving people. But living amongst us are persons whose brutal behaviour towards other citizens defy description. On Wednesday night, the end of the CNC3 television broadcast showed a horrific taped assault of an elderly man by two "security guards" at a mall in Chaguanas. The episode started with a guard questioning the elderly man at an ATM machine then it escalated into a violent one-sided event. The burly guard was seen slapping the frail-looking old man half his size, pushing him out the door and at one stage, one heavy boot was placed on the old man's face while you can hear him crying out in pain.
You can, from the footage of the incident, hear the burly security guard heap verbal abuse upon the old man while physically abusing him and also chasing him in the parking lot threatening to inflict further violence. Watching that incident on the news made me physically sick and outraged at the abuse suffered by the aged and frail man. It matters not that his ID did not look like him or he could not use the ATM properly or suspected of fraud, you quite simply show empathy to elderly people not treat them like a Good Friday bobolee. What is shocking also is the James Cameron wannabe filming the assault and not objecting to the assault. The security company who employed these "guards" should be censored for having such scandalous employees and the friends and families of these individuals should seek counselling for them because such senseless violence ultimately replicates itself in the perpetrator's personal lives.
Dr R Bernadette Shah
via e-mail