Claims by the opposition PNC concerning vote rigging and mismanagement in the 1997 elections were judged by a Caricom-selected investigative commission to be largely without merit, although numerous administrative shortcomings were detected. In 1997, an effort was made to reduce the possibility of the fraud and impersonation that had marred previous contests by requiring voters to have identification cards bearing their photographs when they went to the polls. Under the 1980 constitution, the president has wide powers and immunities. Because the constitution lacks explicit guarantees, political rights and civil liberties rest more on government tolerance than on constitutional guarantees. The rights of free expression, freedom of religion, and freedom to organize political parties, civic organizations, and labor unions are generally respected.
Prisons are overcrowded, and conditions are poor.
Guyana is the only Caribbean country to have cut all ties to the British Privy Council, the court of last resort of other former colonies in the regions. Officials have complained that U.S. efforts to deport Guyanese to Guyana have caused an upsurge in violent crimes such as car jackings and shoot-outs with police. In 1998, a string of murders of mostly East Indian business leaders caused Jagan to beef up security, particularly in the capital, including calling out the army to backstop police patrols. The Guyana Defence Force and the Guyana Police Force are under civilian control, with the latter invested with the authority to make arrests and maintain law and order through the country. The police force is prone to corruption, particularly so given the penetration by the hemispheric drug trade.