| With each passing week, news of another high profile shooting or robbery seems to be on the agenda in the Federation. In a morbid sort of way, it reminds one of a television drama, in which the watching audience knows that something bad is going to happen, but not exactly how it will occur, or when.
Needless to say, such a state of affairs is entirely unacceptable in a country that depends so heavily on tourism. Safety and security are very high priorities for persons who venture from various parts of the world to enjoy the beautiful weather in the Caribbean. Unfortunately, the whispers are growing louder about crime issues in the Federation, and more than likely decisions are being made to travel to other islands, rather than St. Kitts or Nevis.
Other worrying signs involve the number of weapons that are finding their way into the country. So far, the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force has seized a total of 32 weapons in 2010. Though slightly more than half of the year has past, the guns taken into custody number only one less than in all of 2009. If the averages hold up, this year’s total will blow right past all others and establish a new all-time high. What isn’t known for sure is the actual percentage of weapons in total to the number taken off of the streets. However, one can logically assume that if the number of weapons seized is growing, so are the total that are in active use.
Members of the Police Force work very hard, but clearly new tactics are needed to clamp down on the surge in crime and shootings. The St. Kitts and Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce recently circulated a communiqué decrying the current state of affairs, and calling for the Ministry of National Security to forthrightly address the growing issue. The business community is on edge, as is the rest of the citizenry.
Concerns about the situation are also mounting in the community of Nationals living abroad. This media house, and doubtless others are receiving more communications from such persons in the way of suggestions about crime-fighting tactics and other such proffers.
It is in no one’s best interest to watch the crime and gun situation continue to escalate, as is clearly happening right now. A means to reverse the current trend must be found if some measure of confidence is to be restored, both at home and abroad, before tourism is irretrievably damaged and the entire nation suffers for it.
Just as importantly, the sense of anticipation involving some sort of shooting each weekend must become a thing of the past. Questions need to be definitively answered, such as by what means are so many more weapons entering the country? Given the trend of daylight delivery truck robberies, will local business be stifled, and to what degree?
As it stands, the Federation is balancing on a knife’s edge. One slip, and the resulting damage could linger for a very long time. It is clear that the situation goes far beyond the line being pushed in some quarters that the graphic increase in violence is mainly isolated to gang-related reprisals.
There are two many questions right now, and not enough answers. |
