Guns and murder

Every time we hear reports of a new murder, there is reaction in the society. In most cases there is genuine concern for our safety and security and the fact that this tragedy seems to be occurring all too often for our comfort. There is also political reaction, a phenomenon to which we are no strangers since it also occurred under previous administrations.

One major concern very often overlooked is the uncomfortable fact of the use of guns, illegal weapons at that, in committing these crimes. It is one of the disturbing elements of modern life which has contaminated Caribbean society in recent times. More worrying is the abuse of the internet to spread deadly ideas about murder and the all too frequent news from our neighbour to the north about the use of guns in mass murder. Fortunately, we have yet to see any evidence of that contamination affecting us and long may that cultural difference protect us in that regard.

But let us go back to our situation. Some years ago the presence of illegal firearms “on the streets” as it was said, was of such national concern that the Government introduced a Gun Amnesty which has long expired. In light of the continuing use of illegal weapons in homicides, particularly in the brazen gunning down of young men, it would be more than useful to revisit that initiative analytically.

Thus, in the opinion of the Government and the security forces, can that Amnesty be considered a success, not just in terms of weapons recovered, but moreover in terms of its impact on the use of such weapons in committing murders? What were the lessons learnt from the Amnesty? Is it a viable strategy in fighting violent crime?

There are also related aspects. For instance, what does the police experience tell us about the origin of such illegal weapons and how has that experience helped in trying to prevent the proliferation of such potential weapons of death?

There is already much evidence of the need for anger management strategies among our young people. Easy access to illegal weapons can prove to be a deadly cocktail in such circumstances.

It is a complex situation with no easy answers but at least we need to re-examine what has worked and what has not as a guide to future action. We cannot, as we are prone to do as a society, sit back and wait for dangerous underlying currents to swamp us before we react, every possible preventive measure must be explored. Those proven successful need to be strengthened and ineffective tactics abandoned.

We have our nation to protect and our youth to guide on to productive paths.