By Javone Vickerie | HGP Nightly News|
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA — Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, SC, has declared that while the constitutional right to peaceful assembly is guaranteed, demonstrators cross a legal line when they disrupt or block the lawful public meetings of others.
However, the Attorney General’s strict stance comes as commentators and opposition members point to the People’s Progressive Party/Civic’s (PPP/C) own history while in opposition between 2018 and 2020, when party supporters frequently blocked venues, confronted Cabinet ministers, and interrupted an address by then-President David Granger.
Constitutional Boundaries of Peaceful Assembly
Speaking on his weekly program, Issues in the News, on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, Nandlall cited Article 147 of the Constitution of Guyana—which guarantees freedom of assembly, association, and demonstration—to defend recent government consultations on the Model Village Initiative across Region Four and Region Two:
- Protecting Competing Rights: The Attorney General argued that one group’s right to protest cannot infringe upon or extinguish another group’s constitutional right to peacefully assemble, listen to public officials, or participate in community consultations.
- Risk of Unlawful Assembly: Nandlall warned that demonstrations lose statutory protection and enter the realm of unlawful assembly or riotous conduct when protesters attempt to block entrances, threaten participants, or physically disrupt proceedings.
“Any political leader that tells his supporters to go and disrupt a meeting… is engaging in conduct that is completely illegal and inimical to the rights of others,” Attorney General Anil Nandlall emphasized during the broadcast. “You have a right to assemble, but other citizens have an equal right to participate in meetings held in their community.”
Historical Parallels: The 2018–2020 “Chase Them Out” Protests
Despite the Attorney General’s emphasis on legal boundaries, critics note that similar confrontational tactics were deployed by the PPP/C following the December 2018 No-Confidence Vote.
In March 2019, then-Opposition Leader Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo explicitly urged party supporters to “chase” President David Granger and government ministers out of communities once the three-month constitutional deadline expired:
- Pegasus Hotel Interruption (Sept 2019): PPP/C activists holding placards breached security corridors inside the Pegasus Hotel in Georgetown, loudly disrupting a luncheon address by President Granger.
- Saraswati Vidya Niketan & Arthur Chung Conference Centre: Protesters staged demonstrations at school graduations and state venues, blocking ministerial arrivals.
- Vehicle Confrontation: Demonstrators encircled and attempted to rock a official vehicle carrying then-Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Karen Cummings outside an event venue.
Escalating Tensions Across Model Village Outreaches
Nandlall’s warnings follow a series of heated confrontations during recent presidential outreach sessions, including opposition protests in Melanie, East Coast Demerara, over the M.V. Barima tragedy, and the removal of a Charity resident from an Essequibo Coast consultation.
As public demonstrations persist, the debate highlights the ongoing political friction over where constitutionally protected protest ends and unlawful disruption begins in Guyanese democracy.
