COMMENTARY: So much pain: Crime and murder In Antigua- By Lennox Weston

By Lennox Weston

19 august 2024

Murder and crime have been features of Caribbean society and recent events in Antigua and Barbuda have created fear, panic and so much pain among residents.

The recent murder of two young ladies, the recent  senseless shooting and murder of father and son at shanty town and the spread and weekly frequency of armed gun  robberies across Antigua, along with the  recent uptick of rape and school children fights and melee have created a sense of fear, panic, heart ache, tremendous loss and unease among residents of Antigua Barbuda.

It is true that based on statistics and increase in prevalence of crime across the Caribbean and the World and the mass killing from the senseless wars  on going in Europe and the Middle East  that the specter of murder has become so common place that the normal social sensibility of citizens have become dulled in some ways and degrees. It is even true that some countries in the Caribbean have virtually become the murder capital of the world based on murder per hundred thousand static used to report on murder rate worldwide.

Internationally low murder rates are considered as below 3.5 per country while countries with high murder rate can go as high as 53 per hundred thousand, Antigua with a reported murder rate in 2022 of over 10.67 per hundred thousand could see higher rate in 2024 with 10 murders reported so far, this year.

This table based on 2022 data by World Population Review shows select countries murder rate both in the Caribbean and internationally.

The data speaks for itself Caribbean countries have some of the highest murder rates in the world. With the negative economic impact of crime  based on international research quoted as 3.5% GDP and crime estimated to cost Jamaica 5% of its GDP it is clear that when one  also considers the social emotional impact of crime and the recent experience in Antigua it is time for a reset.

There is clear need for a reset in terms of developing and implementing a holistic crime fighting plan in Antigua and Barbuda which would draw upon the tremendous work done at UWI  ICJS INSTITUE OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND SECURITY and the experience in fighting crimes in those countries in the Caribbean and in the international communities who have been successful in keeping crime levels low.

Based on international data, most murders occur because of gangs and drugs and socioeconomic factors like social inequity and unemployment.

It is also true based on international experience that effective law enforcement, strict weapon regulations and severe punishment are effective in keeping crimes at a low level. It is instructive that several countries with low murder rates still have hanging as one of the punishments for murder.

This is a debate that is ongoing with many individuals asserting they do not only see hanging as a deterrent but also as  a principle of an eye for an eye, those who illegally take life must be prepared to lose theirs. Rewarding murderers with 20 years of free food, health care and housing then freed wining dining fed by the State, all done in the interest of protecting their human rights.

While the victim condemned to a cold dark grave, their rights illegally appropriated by the murderer and supported by sanctimonious human rights advocates and jurisprudence of former colonial powers in Europe and North America who butchered and murdered millions during slavery and two wars they called world wars and even today sanctioning mass murder in wars in Europe the Middle East and coups all over Africa.

 With Antigua Barbuda being a small close knit society with close social bonds, crime and especially murder have a devastating effect on the whole psyche, safety freedom and social milieu of society and therefore immediate action is required, a time to reset our crime fighting plans.

In this regard I propose the following elements be included by government officials in the discussions that would culminate in the rolling out of an effective enhanced crime fighting plan.

There are three basic elements that officials must consider and treat in any crime fighting plan in Antigua Barbuda. The first element that one needs to consider is based on informal reports from the Prison that vast majority prisoners are repeat offenders with a number as high as over 75% reported.

Prison officials should confirm the actual number. Recidivism is a major factor Government Authorities must tackle in this reset of a crime fighting plan.

The second element, which must also feature highly in designing crime management in Antigua Barbuda has to do with the geography of crime, the communities where most crime occur and where most criminals reside.

Again informal reports from the police suggest that communities around St. John’s within a five to seven miles radius of the city center delineate the hot bed area of criminal activity with over 75% of the criminal activity taking place. Again, the police must confirm the actual geography of criminal activities.

 The third element of criminal activity that Government Authorities must consider has to do with the social characterization of criminals in Antigua Barbuda.

Again from informal reports criminals in Antigua are generally  from single parent households with overburdened mothers, absent fathers with little home control, usually heavy drug abusers often times involved in the drug trade or gangs, generally young with low educational and skill status, with no permanent jobs or church  involvement, with many showing signs of psychosis from abusing  some illegal drug substance and significant levels of societal alienation.

The youthful age of many of the criminals indicates that a major component of criminal activity in Antigua and Barbuda is social in its origin although criminal in its execution.

With these patterns of criminality in mind the following elements in a reset crime fighting plan should be considered.

The first element has to do with Law enforcement intelligence gathering, patrol surveillance. It is obvious that the police with community and army support should mount foot and motorized patrols within the communities within that 7-mile radius of St John city center where most of the crimes occur, setting maximum standard reaction times for arriving on the scene of a crime.

This can be achieved by basic geometric calculations within each team patrol zone. The public should know this standard reaction time.

The police need to also have and cultivate informants and undercover intelligence gatherers to penetrate the gangs and gang activities to disrupt criminal activities before they occur.

The police must conduct intense searches and stop activities in this hot bed crime area day and night, intelligence gathering should allow more focus targeting of criminal elements.

Added to the human patrol every street every exit every entrance in communities around the corporate area should have electronic surveillance cameras mounted with high night resolution and citizens should be given tax exemptions to put up surveillance cameras on their homes, with at least one point into the street area in front of their property.

Government should approach friendly governments for a supply of these cameras.

All  highways in Antigua and Barbuda should have multiple security cameras allowing tracking of vehicular movements while community police stations in the various communities should step up their nightly and daily patrol of communities with residents encouraged to install camera surveillance as well as intelligence gathering since criminals from rural areas tend to migrate to the city area allowing exchange of information and tracking of  criminal elements.

To improve management of recidivism where repeat offenders are a major part of criminality in Antigua Barbuda, the proposal is for Parliament to change the law and add on three years of electronic tracking of criminals after serving the incarceration or prison component of their sentencing.

Every criminal should be fitted with electronic GPS bracelet for three years on release from prison with curfews from 7pm to 6 am.

As part of this tracking program and as part of its rehabilitation program the prison farm should  be increased to three times its size with mini feed lots  added for sheep goat duck rabbits pigs  yard fowl, honey and chalk coal production ,as well as a joinery for chairs desk kitchen cup boards and a tailoring  center for making uniforms. These will augment the vegetable crop and fruit tree and livestock feed component of the farm.

Individuals within the three-year tracking program along with inmates within the prison should be given priority employment opportunity on the prison farm.

 The idea is to break the pattern of criminality and provide skill training and employment and self sufficiency options for released prisoners as well as skill training for self employment livelihood occupations.

The fourth element is a step up on border control at official ports of entry both air and sea ports but also increased  patrol of known smuggling  point s for drugs and guns and illegal consumer goods  especially in jolly harbour Friars areas, English Harbour Falmouth areas Crabbes  and Willikies and Brown Bay using drone technology to support all surveillance activities including their use by  marine patrol.

Increase surveillance and punishment for SPARROWS Good Citizens who are sponsors of crime and criminality in terms of drug pushing money laundering and gun running should be an important element in the plan.

Who are to guard the Guards considerations should be satisfied by the introduction of a high caliber advisory board similar to the Crime monitoring oversight committee in Jamaica with members from academia civil society and political directorate to provide an over view of the efficacy and efficiency of the crime fighting programs.

The fifth element of this reset of crime management plan has to do with the social component and the fact that a lot of the criminal elements start off as social problems from households with overburdened mothers, absent fathers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, godfathers and absent church and religious bodies and community leaders and elders.

The degeneration of the social and community umbrella  so necessary in mentoring and training children and especially young boys who are left rudderless dropping out of school abusing drugs  developing psychosis no sense of GOD  and Godliness  impotence at a young age advanced aging and paranoia with limited conflict resolution skills and income earning skills provide a ready supply line of criminals ,women abusers with violence as their only option in conflict resolution.

In this regard there is urgent need for a national census starting off with the communities surrounding the corporate area of identifying delinquent youths, at risk youths, overburdened mothers and with targeted programs to assist these households, these children these parents immediately implemented.

Community Social Boards made up of church officials, teachers, community health workers, social workers sporting leaders and community exemplars should be set up within each community.

These Social Community Boards should provide and share information and manage community-based programs that would seek to mentor support, encourage youths, and teach them social skills included conflict resolution skills as well as reduce the abuse of drugs and the use of violence and the early sexualization of our young people.

The churches should be encouraged to have outreach programs and activities for training supporting and keeping the youth busy, sports leaders should be trained and supported to provide sporting options and opportunities and school leaders should be encouraged to provide educational support to assist in the mental and academic development of our children.

Based on what appears to be the increase in abuse of drugs and the clear impacts that abuse of drugs have on the mental social and productive welfare of youths and workers in society as well as fueling the illegal drug trade and gang conflicts, there needs to be a serious review of the recent freeing up of marijuana and whether or not it has the unintended effects of legitimizing its use among the youths becoming a pathway to harsher drugs and increased alcohol abuse.

 Religious exemptions can also be maintained as part of this review.

The sixth and final element has to do with a direct focus on anti gang anti drug trafficking anti gun running anti money laundering program. Gangs must be tackled head on as a direct element of this program, so too gun running and drug importation and smuggling, Gangs and drugs and guns have proven to be the biggest source of homicides in most countries.

One UWI professor noted that except for negative economic impact of crime Jamaica would have had the same level development as Singapore today.

Crime not only destroys and brings suffering to family members, but it also deprives the nation of economic agents who die too young or are in prison not producing. Crime also deprives the nation of potential skillful athletes’, academic officials and quality spouses and fathers.

Every murder committed is the loss of a loved one and every murderer who commits the murder is also the loss of a loved one. There are no winners in crime and criminality, No winners in murder.

As a society the old rule of knowing where your children are, setting rules and controls, seeking out support if you cannot manage, of good neighbors helping a child who’s going astray, providing lunch, dinner a safe haven for homework and support, taking children to church ,all those traditional community activities that built social bonds and strong social capital  we must continue to do,  and even reinforced with greater vigor.

Some parents, some mothers, some fathers do need help in managing their children, as a community we should ensure we provide that help. fathers are especially guilty of not only not providing child support but not spending time training mentoring caring for their children.

Young girls must stop this fetish for choosing ‘bad man’ claiming the are exciting and men should alienate and not lime with fathers who fail to feed their children.

Sadly, sometimes you will have some individuals who have lost so much of their humanity that they are better off six feet down feeding the worms.

As a society Crime is every one’s business let us discuss these matters and push our government to take decisive action with regular reports on the implementation and success of a reset of criminal management in Antigua Barbuda. For whom does the bell toll? The bell tools for each one of us.

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