Opposition member Alden McLaughlin took issue with an
absence of an overall strategy to tackle crime in Cayman in the strategic
policy address delivered by Premier McKeeva Bush last week.
Mr. McLaughlin said Cayman’s escalating crime rate is
foremost in the minds of many people in Cayman, and that the issue of a
strategy to deal with crime was “conspicuous in its absence” from the premier’s
address – which lasted nearly two hours – earlier in the day.
“I want to hear, and I believe everyone in this country
wants to hear, what it is that the government is going to do in terms of a
national strategy against crime, particularly violent crime, gun crime,” Mr.
McLaughlin said.
Mr. Bush only mentioned crime in his initial speech on
Thursday, 25 November, when outlining the broad outcomes of the Strategic
Policy Statement.
Among the policing and crime-related issues listed in the
documentation that accompanied his speech are: improving overall border control
through cooperation among law enforcement agencies; improving offshore
operational capabilities of the Royal Cayman Islands Police marine section by
building a drug task marine base; fingerprinting passengers and migrant
workers; using alternative sentencing options; increasing police foot patrols;
and introducing X-ray scanning machines for cargo.
Police and security issues fall under the remit of the
United Kingdom and the governor of the Cayman Islands, rather than under the
local government, although the government does have representation on the
National Security Council, formed under the new constitution. Council members
include Governor Duncan Taylor, Premier Bush and two other government
ministers, Leader of the Opposition Kurt Tibbetts, Deputy Governor Donovan
Ebanks, Attorney General Sam Bulgin, Commissioner of Police David Baines,
business representatives Brigitte Kirkconnell-Shaughness and Dan Scott, with
Orrett Connor serving as the council’s secretary.
All members took oaths of non-disclosure when they took
up their positions on the council.
Mr. Bush said Mr. McLaughlin was very aware that
discussions in National Security Council meetings could not be revealed
publicly.
Mr. McLaughlin said in light of recent crime statistics
for January to September 2010, which showed a nearly 10 per cent increase in overall
crime, and an armed hold-up at Butterfield Bank at the Compass Centre the day
before the Strategic Policy Statement was released, the lack of mention of
crime in Mr. Bush’s speech was “astounding”.
He said all the efforts of the government to improve the
economic environment for financial and tourism services were being “thwarted to
some extent by this issue of crime”.
“It affects the quality of life of all of us who live
here, Caymanians or otherwise,” he said, adding that when he visits certain neighbourhoods,
he is approached by young men who offer to keep an eye on his car for $10.
“I ask the government to reconsider its strategic policy
and include a provision, which calls for the development of a national strategy
against crime, not just the details about border control and improving policing
generally and neighbourhood policing… The most concerning thing for me, and
what ought to concern the country most, is the government appears not to be
giving this key issue the kind of priority that it needs,” Mr. McLaughlin said.
The premier, responding to Mr. McLaughlin’s comments,
said the PPM member was “playing Opposition tactics” by laying the blame on the
government for the crime situation in Cayman.
Mr. Bush argued that under a version of the Constitution
he had drafted when he was in opposition in 2004, more power could have been
given to the Cayman Islands Government in relation to policing, but under the
current constitution, the only role the government has in tackling crime is
membership in the National Security Council.
“This matter is in the hands of the governor where the
new constitution left it… How could [Mr. McLaughlin] expect me to come here
and relate to the members and the public, including criminals who would be
listening, about our crime strategies or the strategies of the Commissioner of
Police? If I did that, it would be a severe and unpardonable breach of national
security,” the premier said.
Legislators concluded their debate on the Strategic
Policy Statement on Friday and adjourned until 6 December.
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I fully endorse the views expressed by Opposition member Alden McLaughlin concerning the escalating crime rate in Cayman. Certainly the public has a right to know what the government is doing about the situation.
In reading about the recent Butterfield Bank armed robbery at the Compass Centre, one is compelled to ask the following questions. "Is the police doing everything possible to stem the tide of crime, especially violent crime?" "Is there a strategy in place, with the required expertise and manpower?" "Are illegal guns being smuggled into the island without the knowledge of law enforcement?"
So many residents are either baffled, speechless, or totally fed up with gun crims that have been and are being committed in Cayman. Perhaps the perpetrators of these crimes feel confident that they will never be caught, and if they are ever apprehended and sent to prison, their time behind bars will be like a picnic (all medical, dental, and dietary needs will be effectively met). Furthermore, these thugs know that they will not encounter any (armed) resistance at their intended targets because "security" guards do not carry guns.
Some argue that the dire situation Cayman is experiencing stems from a lack of armed police patrols. Irrespective of the reason(s) for the ongoing gun crimes, it points to the failure of law enforcement to get a handle on the situation.
It is certainly amazing that such a small island as Cayman with a population of approximately 50,000, that crime cannot be contained and brought under control. To depend on witnesses to "come forward" and volunteer information leading to arrest is not having the desired effect.
Crime has a devasting effect on society and the quality of life for everyone. Absolutely no effort should be spared to investiate the root cause of criminal activities and prosecute accordingly. There is a strong possibility that unemployment and the state of the economy are contributory factors. If criminal gangs are operating on the island, and it is believed they are, then it is possible that gang members are responsible for some of the armed robberies.
Statistics reveal that unemployment and poverty, substance abuse, and school drop-outs, in addition to easy access to illegal guns are major contributory factors to violent crimes. Drug addicts will engage in whatever it takes to feed their addiction.
Having various security systems in place such as CCTV, alarms, guard dogs, etc., do not appear to be a deterrent. The record shows that many of these crimes are swiftly carried out in broad daylight during nmormal business hours.
Until the right solution is sought and implemented, the fear, frustration, anger, resentment and "blame the police and government" will continue to exist and expressed by the public.
GEOFF DANIELS