Practical solutions for alleviating crimes in the Caribbean

By Kimani Wiseman

Growing up, action movies had a lot of us glued to the TV. The use of weapons and fast cars are components of action movies. The two most popular actors that come to our mind with action movies are Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, action movies are not real. In the year 2025, never in my wildest dreams, I would imagine that action movies will be a reality in the Caribbean.

From Jamaica in the north to Guyana in the south, a lot of the Caribbean Islands are experiencing a nightmare of crimes. The Caribbean is surrounded by a lot of water which makes it very easy to transport guns and drugs from island to island. Guns and drugs are one of the main reasons why a lot of the islands are seeing an increase in crimes. It is very difficult for the Coast Guard boats to patrol these large territories of water to protect each island border. The Caribbean Islands that does not have a helicopter, I would recommend the pooling of resources to purchase helicopters. For example, the Windward Islands can pool their resources and purchase at least one or two helicopters which would assist the coastguard boats with better border protection. This is a matter than can be discussed at a Caricom meeting to have the support of each island. This will bring more independence in the Caribbean instead of depending on the USA for their helicopter services which sometimes take a long time to get their approval.

The Caribbean cannot afford a situation where there are more guns and drugs on the streets than people. Neighbour hood watch programs need to be more active in the communities to assist the police with combating crimes. This would also bring communities closer together. Cameras can assist with solving crimes. Having duty free concessions on cameras would encourage households and businesses to purchase cameras which the police can use to assist with solving crimes. Poverty and Unemployment can lead to crimes in the Caribbean. When persons cannot afford to feed themselves and their family, this makes them more vulnerable to get involved in the fast life of drugs and guns. Politicians in the Caribbean must ensure that money trickles down to the lower class of people. If the money remains at the top and it does not trickle down to the lower class of people this would cause poverty.

Jobs in the Caribbean should not evolve around office jobs. More training needs to take place in plumbing, electrician, mechanic, agriculture, etc. This will ensure a balance workforce to equip the youth with different skills to make them more marketable for a job. The ghetto youths should not be deemed a menace to society. These ghetto youths could have a lot of hidden talent locked away and might need some help from society to unlock their true talent. They could have a skill in music, sports, or some other skill that needs unlocking hence the reason why some programs need to be established for the ghetto youths to help them find their true talent and to get them off the streets and away from gangs, drugs, and guns. For example, the popular Judge Greg Mathis in the United States of America, before he became a judge, he grew up on the streets and was involved in gangs and he even spend some years in jail. Today, Mr. Mathis is a well-qualified judge. Tupac Shakur and Biggie, two famous rappers from in the 90s, they also grew up on the streets. Although they grew up on the streets their talent was singing.  The next Lionel Messi in Sports could come from the ghetto somewhere in one of the Caribbean Island. Everybody is born with a talent which is sometimes hidden from us.

We must also acknowledge in some Caribbean Island there are some lazy persons who do not want to work. They believe in stealing and getting involved in drugs. In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, we should admire the group of young men who sell fruits outside of Courts SVG Ltd. These young men work on a shift system, selling fruits from morning until night. Why can’t more young people work honestly for what they want in life? The young people who are lazy and do not want to work and believe that getting involved in gangs and drugs are the only way to earn an income, educational programs need to be put in place to deter these people from getting involved in gangs and drugs. I am willing to write the script for a film and work along with the relevant authorities to get this film up and running. The film will be used to deter young people from getting involved in drugs and gangs.

Those Caribbean Islands that do not have a forensic lab, they need to consider introducing one in their country to solve crimes in a timely manner. We would have watched CSI Miami and other crime scene series and seen how fast forensic labs help to solve crimes in a timely manner. The use of K-9 dogs at airports and at various port of entrance can be very effective in eliminating drugs and guns from getting into the Caribbean. To alleviate crimes in the Caribbean, it will take a collaborative effort from the communities and the police and also regional leaders must put policies in place to deter criminals from their wicked act.