Talking about our alcohol problems in Guyana..

 The problems..

 "My husband consumed alcohol to deal with problems. So he would go drink when he was upset/annoyed and behave like a crazy person, cursing, hitting, screaming throwing around food .."

 "... alcohol only causes more problems in relationships as it does not solve anything.."

The woman who was waiting on electricity to join the conversation and sent a text to say why she wanted to come. The violence and abuse in the marriage, increased with alcohol. One of the problems related to alcohol consumption which is not talked about in Guyana. 

The other problems which include the death and injuries caused to alcohol induced violence, including drunk driving, the chronic physical and mental health problems. Alcohol is a legal drug in Guyana, celebrated as part of the heritage and culture. 

The two alcohol companies in Guyana reported increased profits of 11.7% and 15.9% during a bad year of pandemic and Elections 2020 - while other people were counting losses due to Covid including losses connected with alcohol consumption.

In another discussion this week, Bahamian psychologist Stephen Thompson shared a concern "As a Psychologist in The Bahamas, I find that we also need to better focus on the implications of Alcohol and substance use/ abuse as coping and its role in mental health, GBV[gender based violence], and so on. High functioning alcoholism has become almost a badge of honour, and a normalised part of dealing with the pandemic and lock downs. The Caribbean has to look at the role of alcohol in its culture and how these inequalities and violence against women, girls and children are being precipitated through varying degrees of normalised alcoholism along with other variables."

Keeran Persaud and I organised a virtual discussion to talk about Guyana's alcohol problems. The discussion was on Saturday 12 June, 2021. It went on for about three hours...

Talking..

Electricity came back and the woman joined the conversation and talked. She said that this was the first time she was talking in public about the abuse, and that she was glad to get it off her mind. Another woman shared about growing up in Mahaica and Mahaicony, the alcohol and the violence, how weddings and so on were not celebrations because they quickly turned to violence.  

We talked about the following things:-

• Alcohol and parliament and Government
• There are open secrets about how some Members of Parliament and Government have alcohol problems
• The Parliament apparently pays for liquor for the parliament sittings. One public servant in the group said that public servants cannot drink while working so it is was abhorrent that the tax payers were paying for liquor for the chief public servants - the MPs.
• The Government has not made any serious efforts to deal with alcohol consumption in Guyana
• One indigenous village Karaudarnau banned the sale of rum and other hard liquor to deal with the violence issue.
• That even though there were restrictions in not having alcohol in the chutney lyrics, that national events seemed to include the alcohol chutney songs as part of the inclusive agenda.
  
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• Alcohol and children
• the cultural dilemma where children are exposed to alcohol early - anecdotes shared about children's birthday parties still have alcohol around.
  
• alcohol is sold to minors and the police does not move or charge anyone
• There is no serious or sustained effort to talk with children about alcohol use in schools
  

• Alcohol and business/politics
• Alcohol is big business. All alcohol is legally made, even if sometimes sold illegally. There is now smuggled alcohol being sold openly. There seems to be no monitoring of illegal selling points
• The alcohol companies show no corporate social responsibility in reducing consumption beyond very fine print in some of their advertisements. They sponsor events which target men and boys and have no problems with doing that. Some feel that the companies should fund the rehab programmes.
  
• There should be limits on the amount of alcohol sold per person in off licenses.
  

• Alcohol/tobacco 
• The comparison was made with the anti-smoking campaigns Alcohol poses a greater health burden in Guyana and the Americas and yet Guyana passed anti-tobacco legislation which restricts advertising, calls for strong warning signs, etc. There are strong no smoking polices, advertisements against smoking and things like World No Tobacco day. We talked about how it was possible to get drunk and go kill and injure someone in a place where there was no smoking allowed.
  

•  "Tek a drink nah.. come on .. tek one.. whuh wrang wid yuh?" 
• We talked about how the culture seems to shame people who do not drink, and that when drinking stop, it could be socially isolating. There is pressure to drink all around, including in the social spaces and so people have to find ways to socialise without alcohol.
  

•  Advocating for zero consumption or reduced consumption
• There was discussion about whether to advocate for reduced consumption of alcohol or zero consumption of alcohol.  One man who does not drink said that he felt that asking people not to drink was unrealistic and that reduced consumption was more practical. I argued that we do not ask people to smoke less, we ask them not to smoke and the same with alcohol. I also said I would never ask children and young people to not do things which I myself would do. 
• Different people will do different things in different settings.

 

Weddings - Hindu weddings.. and alcohol

We talked about alcohol and Hindu weddings, - and now many other Hindu celebrations. In 2014 a group of Hindu organisations had convened to try to deal with the problem of bars and weddings. There was backlash from Hindus and non-Hindus alike who felt that weddings and rum went hand-in-hand. (A Jehovah's Witness told me that the only Hindu ceremony he eats 7 curry from was a wedding because Hindu weddings were not seen as religious ceremonies like say a jhandi or other puja)

In 2011, Sanatan Vaidic Dharma Pandits’ Sabha, Region 3 expressed concern about alcohol and Hindu weddings. In 2013, the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha came under fire when they became the public face of the group of other Hindu organisations who were concerned about alcohol at weddings and wanted restrictions on the licenses. Hindus and non-Hindus objected. 

The group wanted to ensure no sale of alcohol licenses for or near Hindu wedding houses.

 

Talking to action..

•  Two of the persons who in the conversation lead Hindu organisations which were part of the 2013 efforts to not have alcoholic bars at Hindu weddings. They will reconvene the organisations to resume the advocacy for the legal and policy changes at GRA and with Ministry of Legal Affairs. The concerns include
• limiting licenses in villages
• limiting licenses for bars at weddings and other religious functions
• calling for Hindu holidays to be like Good Friday with no alcohol sold publicly
• In 2018, PAHO/WHO worked with the Government on a draft alcohol policy. The policy was held up due to no confidence motion, pandemic, elections 2020 , pandemic, floods and now it is up to the Ministry of Health to implement. We hope to get a copy of the draft and use for public discussion
• People felt the discussion was helpful and useful.
  

Support resources :

• Alcoholics Anonymous meetings exist in Guyana - Georgetown - and are probably virtual during the pandemic. Phoenix Recovery Project (Tel 2206825 ) would have some details.
• Al Anon is for relatives and friends of alcoholics. Al Anon exists in Guyana, meetings are probably held virtually during the pandemic. Alateen is for teenagers, children of alcoholics.
• Theresa Roopnauth also connects with a virtual Al-Anon group and shared her number for anyone wanting to contact them - 621 8223,  231 8876
• I learned that there is another self-help virtual rehabilitation group with Buddhist principles - Recovery Dharma
  

Feature Image by Elias Kauerhof on Unsplash