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Murder of Bernard Darke

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On 14 July 1979 Bernard Darke, a British-born, Guyana-based Jesuit priest and photographer for the Catholic Standard, was stabbed to death by members of the House of Israel, a religious cult closely tied to the People's National Congress, while photographing Working People's Alliance demonstrations of the PNC.[1][2][3] Guyana's Stabroek News described the murder as "the low point of democracy in Guyana" and, for those in the media, "perhaps the most traumatic event of the [Forbes] Burnham regime."[4]

Bernard Darke

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Darke was born in 1925.[5] He attended St Peter's College in Southbourne.[citation needed] Darke served in the Royal Navy during the World War II, then became a Jesuit in 1946.[5] He was reported to have been involved in scouting and to have developed an interest in photography while in formation at Heythrop.[5] During the 1950s, Darke taught at Wimbledon College.[5] He was ordained in 1958.[5]

Darke went to British Guiana in 1960 and became a lecturer teaching scripture and math at St. Stanislaus College in Georgetown.[5][6] There, he continued his interests in photography and scouting, where he was scout leader from 1962 until his death.[5][7]

Murder

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Members of the House of Israel pursue Bernard Darke on the morning of 14 July 1979.

In 1979, Darke was a photographer for the Catholic Standard, a tabloid paper described as being "extremely critical" of the People's National Congress.[2] The House of Israel was a cult founded by David Hill, an American fugitive known as Rabbi Edward Washington.[8] Opponents of Forbes Burnham's government said that the House of Israel was a private army for the People's National Congress, and the group was reported to be a "brutal force in street demonstrations".[8] On behalf of the PNC, the House of Israel also engaged in strike breaking activities and the disruption of public meetings.[8]

On 14 July 1979 Walter Rodney and two supporters within his Working People's Alliance were charged with arson for the firebombings of a government and PNC offices three days earlier, resulting in a violent clash between political factions.[6] During the clash, Darke, a bystander, was stabbed to death [6] by some of the rioters.[9][10] According to Jesuit author Malachi Martin, Darke was stabbed to death by a faction of Forbes Burnham partisans.[11] He was working part-time as a photographer for the Catholic Standard newspaper of Georgetown, Guyana.[12] According to a 2013 article in Kaieteur News, the target of the assassins may have been Father Andrew Morrison, the newspaper's editor.[13] Kaieteur News describes Morrison and the Catholic Standard in the 1980s as, "fighting against corruption and freedom of the press" that were "muffled" by the Burnham government.[13]

In July 1986, Washington and some of his key associates were charged with the murder of Darke.[2] After pleading guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter, Washington received a fifteen-year prison sentence.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "Thirty Years Since Guyana-Based Priest's Murder". Bahamas Spectator. The Caribbean World News Network. 14 July 2009. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d Rose, Euclid A. (2002). "Guyana: The Adoption of Cooperative Socialism". Dependency and Socialism in the Modern Caribbean: Superpower Intervention in Guyana, Jamaica, and Grenada, 1970-1985. Lanham, Massachusetts: Lexington Books. p. 210. ISBN 9780739104484.
  3. ^ Hinds, David (2011). Ethno-politics and Power Sharing in Guyana: History and Discourse. ISBN 9780982806104.
  4. ^ "The Murder of Father Darke". Stabroek News. Vol. 8, no. 163. Georgetown, Guyana. 17 July 1993. p. 6. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g "Bernard Darke SJ". jesuit.org.uk. Jesuits in Britain. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  6. ^ a b c "British Priest Dies in Guyana". Observer-Reporter. Washington, Pennsylvania. AP. 16 July 1979. p. D3. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  7. ^ "Scouting in Guyana 1909 to 2009". 16 August 2009.
  8. ^ a b c Vidal, Silvia; Whitehead, Neil L. (2004). "Dark Shamans and the Shamanic State". In Whitehead, Neil L.; Wright, Robin (eds.). In Darkness and Secrecy: The Anthropology of Assault Sorcery and Witchcraft in Amazonia. Duke University Press. pp. 74–75. ISBN 9780822333456. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
  9. ^ "Jesuits remember priest murdered in Guyana". ICN. Archived from the original on 11 December 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
  10. ^ Oakland, Ross (10 December 1980). "The volatile battle to enter Guyana's halls of power". The Globe and Mail. ProQuest 386849854.
  11. ^ Martin, Malachi (2013). Jesuits. Simon and Schuster. p. 315. ISBN 978-1476751887.
  12. ^ Horgan, Denys (29 August 1980). "Don't send newsprint to Guyana, editor urges". The Globe and Mail. ProQuest 386867729.
  13. ^ a b Rooplall, Dwijendra (25 December 2013). "A closer look at 'The Catholic Standard'". Kaieteur News. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

Further reading

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