Fighting on several fronts

THE fight against crime goes on. Varying reports suggest that countries within the region are facing escalating levels of crime – some unarguably more alarming than others. The crimes vary from drug trafficking to firearms, theft and bodily harm, as well as cyber-crimes. Three interdependent approaches to countering this scourge bear heavily on the mind.

Firstly, it’s a fight of morality. The reasons put forward for social degeneration have been the diminishing involvement and effect the church has in the raising and grounding of wholesome families, as well as the shift away from moral principles which it advocates. Added to this is a breakdown in parent–teacher relations which once saw parents actively involved in their child’s education and saw teachers going beyond the stipulations of the employment contract to impart other social and life skills into their pupils. Another factor to contend with is changes within family structures such as the diminishing role of the extended family in child-rearing. Furthermore, our children are heavily targeted and – left unrestrained by authority figures – can be influenced by criminals, resulting in lives held in bondage to substance abuse, theft and other indiscretions. One mistake has been to limit this lifestyle to the block culture and to traditional “hot spot” communities. With greater awareness of how crimes are evolving we see that the fight is taking place within white collar institutions, law enforcement operations and sadly even within some churches.

Secondly, our fight has to be united on a national front. Quite often, people limit this approach to the work of the police. Though they are the prime agent of law enforcement in the land, a collaborative effort is needed to reduce crime. Collaboration must happen between public and private sectors, community centres, schools, and the religious community. That said, work in this area can be impeded by compromises in national security systems by persons who are allowed – for whatever reason – to operate above the law because of their perceived standing in society and by the unwillingness of some persons to cooperate with the police force in the fight against crime. The Force must be commended in the area of improved public relations and initiatives such as the Crime Stoppers hotline, which have – among other things – rebuilt people’s trust in the Force’s ability and commitment to serve and protect citizens. Added to this, policymakers must not shirk from heavily investing in crime prevention technology and training available to our law enforcement agents.

Lastly, a regional approach must not take back seat. Recently, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, warned regional leaders last month that they need to adopt “urgent and drastic action” to deal with the scourge of transnational crime in the Caribbean. Speaking at an intercessional CARICOM summit in Haiti she told her regional counterparts that the emerging reality for governments was that criminal activity was more often than not influenced and precipitated by external factors, transnational in nature. “A country that stands on its own is a country which will be left behind,” she said.

Again, we reiterate the changing face of crime, not necessarily in nature, but certainly in approaches. Unfortunately, some of the criminally minded are those with brilliant minds that have been perverted. In as much as we place emphasis on the need for regional trade and competitiveness, we need also to solidify our regional security systems. As some have made the point, included Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar, the region was able to pull out all the stops for the 2007 International Cricket World Cup. Can we find that same will to push for a more long-lasting security for our citizens?