CRIME IS STRANGLING SOCIETY

Jul 10, 2016 Editorial

No sooner had the police announced that violent crime is under control, and assuming that the announcement was heard by all, than the criminals indicate that they are not threatened by the authority.
Shortly after the announcement, a series of armed robberies and four murders took place in open defiance of the police declaration. Sadly, two of the most gruesome murders occurred at Best Village, West Coast Demerara when 27-year-old Suresh Ganesh murdered his 37-year-old wife, Vanessa Sookram and his two-year-old son, Joel Ganesh.
All across the country, crime is strangling society. Criminals have become so emboldened that they no longer wait for the cover of darkness to commit crimes. Some are seen cradling their guns as they walk the streets. It is unfortunate that this is the reality in some communities which are under siege. Too many guns are in the hands of youths, too many of whom are dying senselessly at a young age.
The nation has reached a tipping point where it is evident that the strategies being utilized by the Police to stem crime are not working. Gang violence, armed robberies and murders continue to strangle society. Efforts by the police to tackle and reduce them have failed.
The joint police-army patrols which were introduced a year ago were viewed positively by the people as asserting the rules of the law. They were desperately needed to ease the fear of the citizens, many of whom are cowering daily under the violence that has shattered their communities.
Their sense of relief and appreciation has been profound and they wanted the joint army-police patrols to stay indefinitely. However, that was not what the government had promised but the joint patrol continue to maintain their presence in the communities while a permanent solution is found to solve crime.
As bad as the crime situation is right now, and as improbable as solutions might seem, the public believes that it is not beyond the capability of law enforcement to reduce this scourge permanently. After all, this is why the people have decided to cooperate with the police by providing them with information on criminal activities in their communities.
The fact that some communities are rife with crime raises questions about the effectiveness of the police crime fighting techniques. Many believe that the joint patrol is not as effective as they had first thought.
With this year’s murder rate exceeding the number of murders during the same period last year seems on course for statistical infamy. The people are depending on the government and the police to reduce crime and make their communities safe. Inevitably greater than normal stigma descends on the community whenever a murder takes place.
However, the soldiers and police alone cannot solve this scourge. If the government is serious about reducing the crime rate, then it must not only focus on putting the criminals behind bars. It needs to carefully examine the policy failures that are causing youths to gravitate toward a life of gang and criminal activities.
Studies have shown that most crimes are committed by youths who have dropped out of school and have fallen by the wayside.Many are poor, jobless and are from single family and broken homes without male role models. They commit crimes in order to survive.
To change the dynamic, strong and transformative leadership is required. The solution to reducing crime is not the militarization of the communities or the imprisonment of the youths. What is needed is prison reform and the socialization of youths into believing that they can make a positive contribution to society.
Schools, churches, the government, the private sector, parents and all stakeholders must be involved in the reform and socialization process.

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