by Kevon Browne
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): The persistent issue of Crime in the Caribbean region remains a top priority for leaders of the CARICOM Bloc. Since 2023, the heads of Governments of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have been actively combating Crime and Violence, treating them as public health concerns.
In a 2023 statement following the Regional Symposium to address Crime and Violence as a public health issue in Trinidad and Tobago, the heads of governments collective said that they were “Alarmed by the epidemic of crime and violence in the Caribbean, fueled by illegal guns and organised criminal gangs, as a threat to our democracy and the stability of our societies.”
The onus for combatting crime has been placed on the leaders of countries and their national security apparatuses.
St. Kitts Nevis National Security Advisor Dr. Lionel Rawlins admonished the community, saying, “You saw it coming”.
“I want to remind you that crime and violence, what we are experiencing now, did not just start last year. It didn’t start even two years ago. This has been festering for years, people. You saw it coming. You knew it was coming. So, I don’t want anyone to act like they’re surprised at what’s going on. The country is full of guns. Where did these guns come from? How long it took these guns to get here? Where did they come from? Who brought them in? Who are using the guns? Who are dying? When did it start? I just want us to have a soul-searching moment. Ask yourself these questions. Now I know for political expediency, people will say, ‘The NSA is talking about where they come from. You are the NSA’. Yes, we are. I am. But it didn’t start yesterday. You saw it coming.”
Dr Rawlins also asked, “Where were you?” to the greater community.
“A few days ago, I spoke with two young men. They are basically guys from the gang subculture and some of the leaders in the gang subculture. What did he tell me? He said when he was a boy, he knew he was going to be a gangster. When he was a boy, he knew he was going to be a gangster. When I asked him, how did you know you were going to be a gangster? He said everybody wanted to be in a gang. All the guys who had guns and cars had the girls and had the money. I knew that’s what I wanted. Today, he’s one of the leaders in the gangs. He and his friend. Didn’t anybody notice that these guys were going to be gangsters? I will go a little deeper. Where was his family? Where were the neighbours? Where were the schools? Where were the churches? Where were the pastors? Where was anybody at all? These guys told me as well, and I know for sure because I’ve seen the statistics that they were in juvenile delinquency problems all their lives. They were being arrested. They were thrown in jail. They were pulled out. They were sent here. They were sent there. Today, they’re gang leaders. Didn’t anybody see that coming? So when we are talking about, oh my God, my country is going to hell. Where were you? What were you doing when it was going to hell?”
Psychological, biological and sociological influences determine why a community has criminals, according to the National Security Advisor. Dr Rawlins thinks that the main reason for the Federation’s crime problem is the latter of the three fundamental reasons.
“In criminology, there are three theories; there are many theories out there, but let me give you three different theories of why we have criminals. Three basic [reasons]: one – psychological, [which] means that something is wrong with you mentally. The other one is biological. It means that something is wrong with you physically. You’re born with some deficiency somewhere. The other one is sociological, and this is the impact [which] is affecting us. This is a theory that’s affecting us. The kids learn what they’re learning from what they see on TV. How many of you have seen this video with our young boys rapping and glamorising guns? Gangster lifestyle. How many five-year-olds are watching that and saying, I want to be like that? How many people were getting money as criminals, and we all loved it? They loved it. If I were a kid, I would want it too. I’m just saying, people, we have a problem. We have a situation. It did not just start. It’s been with you. It’s been with us for a very long time.”
There is good news, though: the Federation is not hopeless, said Dr Rawlins. He said that criminal activity exists in every society and that activity has peaks and valleys. St. Kitts and Nevis is now experiencing a peak. He welcomed suggestions from the extended community on how to deal with the issues of crime in the country, furthering the call for an all-of-society approach to dealing with crime and violence.
The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis has had 11 murders since the start of the year, and community concerns continue to mount.
