Narissa Deokarran

Review of Ministry of Education - Guyana

This place is a tax-payer funded state agency that...

This place is a tax-payer funded state agency that should reflect the philosophy of the so-called secular state yet for its representatives who apparently spend all day being unproductive the only power-rush they get is from humiliating and body shaming women. Recently, I had cause to visit twice in a short timeframe.
The first time to request a document which should've taken a few minutes and entail seeing only the guard and maybe a clerk in the waiting area. Although, the building has no dress code I was told I needed to cover my arms because I was wearing a sleeveless blouse and pull down my skirt which was just above my knees! Everyone knows that Guyana is a tropical country, a few degrees above the equator, with stifling hot and humid weather all year round and most places including govt. agencies don't even have AC plus the state is supposedly secular but on the ground the reality is vastly different and policing women's bodies is the norm.
On the second occasion I returned to just collect the document which should have taken less than a minute and again the security guard told me to cover my arms with 'winter clothes' although she couldn't show me a dress code. Not only do such places operate like religious institutions but they engage in blatant discrimination. After covering my shoulders I was allowed into the waiting area where I saw a woman with 'spaghetti straps' on her blouse which exposed more skin, waiting for service and the guard said nothing to her! Many public institutions are wasteful, unproductive elephants where there is a lack of vision and innovation and the only productive thing that is accomplished each day is the policing of women's bodies.