From Urban Renewal 1.0 to 2.0 ...in the war against crime in The Bahamas

Urban Renewal Revamp 'An Error'

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

REVAMPING the original Urban Renewal was a “fatal error” in the fight against crime, Social Anthropologist and College of the Bahamas professor Dr Nicolette Bethel told The Tribune.

Her analysis of the country’s crime problem comes as tensions over the issue have escalated, with police officers this week expressing alarm at the murder rate.

Speaking with the Tribune, Dr Bethel said: “Urban Renewal 1.0 was an integrated, multifaceted programme that attempted to take a fundamentally different approach to solving the problems of the inner cities.

“That approach involved bringing government services to a single point in a community, to make it easier for the people who have the fewest resources to have access to the governmental services that they needed.

“The idea was that they could pay light bills and phone bills in the Urban Renewal centres, thus shifting the question of inconvenience on to the people providing the services rather than the people who are supposed to be receiving them.

“The idea was to rethink our approach to the inner cities — rather than seeing those areas and the people who live in them as ‘the ghetto’ and dismissing them, by recognising that not all people who live there are criminals and the law-abiding residents of those areas are on the front line of crime and are menaced by violent criminals long before anybody else is.

“Urban Renewal 1.0 was designed to give the law-abiding citizens real opportunities to gain access to social services and community policing worked on the premise that if you can gain the trust of the law-abiding citizens in a troubled area it becomes far easier to solve, deal with and ultimately prevent crime.

“And the programme was accompanied by some real efforts by psychological professionals to help to heal people who had suffered long-term abuse, brutalisation and so on.

“This core is what I considered revolutionary at the time, and which was removed when Urban Renewal was reformed because it was considered a waste of time and money, and a waste of policemen’s training too, as apparently police are supposed to fight crime, not prevent it.”

“By focusing so much on the criminals, we lose sight of the law-abiding citizens in the same communities, and it is a long time since we have really sought to serve them or meet their real needs.”

Dr Bethel added that the policing of inner city communities that arose after Urban Renewal 1.0 ended helped inspire distrust in inner city communities for authorities.

“Imagine if you were,” she said, “a 12 year old living in inner city Nassau in 2002 and in 2003 all of a sudden police are put into your community and they’re not violent or menacing, they are friendly, father figures who are teaching you music. They are walking around, learning your names and so on and for five years you get to know them.

“Then, when you are 17, they are taken away, and the only replacement are police with guns. How are you ever going to trust your country again? That’s what I think part of the root of this particular kind of violence is.”

What replaced Urban Renewal 1.0 was an idea that urban communities are war zones which are entered by policemen, sometimes in riot gear, brandishing guns and threatening residents, she said.

“I have heard first-hand of the experiences of people who, having the misfortune to live in an area where a crime has been committed and the police are in pursuit of a criminal, have themselves been threatened by those police. One family had their dog shot in front of them, simply because the dog barked at police who were running through the yard in pursuit of a perpetrator.

“I cannot see that as something that would have been likely to happen under Urban Renewal 1.0, and I cannot really blame people who have had that happen to them from mistrusting the police and seeking to fend for themselves.”

She added: “The Urban Renewal programme and community policing programme of the early 2000s are things that could have made a difference. It reached into the communities using tactics not being employed under Urban Renewal 2.0, tactics that were important because there is a huge part of the community that does not feel it is a part of the Bahamian society, a part that does not feel there is a place for them so they make a place for themselves.

“Urban Renewal 1.0 also helped deal with the problem of guns by gaining the trust of people which eventually led police to the guns. That trust is now gone.

“With Urban Renewal 2.0, you have no one dealing with people in an intimate way, just people dealing with houses and the like. I have not found anything reasonable for why people thought Urban Renewal 1.0 wouldn’t work in the long run.

“With 2.0, they took the healing part out of it and they can’t put it back in. You’re not going to get those people back because you have to rebuild trust in the inner city community and that will take time. In 2002 there was hope; in 2014 there is no hope.”

As for criticism of Urban Renewal 1.0, which she said was considered a “waste of time” by many, Dr Bethel said the perceptions that the programme failed could “at least be challenged” since the country’s crime spikes began in 2007, after Urban Renewal 1.0 ended.

Tracing the origins of the country’s crime problems, Dr Bethel said a failure to deal with the then burgeoning gang and drug culture of the 1980s is partly responsible.

She said: “I think this upswing in crime is linked to the gang and drug culture that started in the late 80s; but we knew it was an issue back then, it’s just something we never dealt with. Concepts, issues and ideas were put in place to deal with it but they were resisted.

“At the end of the 80s, one of the responses to the rise in gang culture was a mandatory National Service system for young people. It was vigorously resisted from the then opposition and those who supported them, so for the whole of the 90s we did not deal with the youth gang issue, possibly because the change in government brought about better times; Atlantis came, the economy grew, things were great – but the prosperity did not solve structural issues.

“They just gave people opportunity to do something other than rely on the gangs.

“Now, today, I’m not even sure a National Service programme would work if reintroduced. They missed the opportunity.”

“While there was resistance to the proposed National Service in the 1980s when it was set up as a military programme, the resistance continued even after it was reformulated to be a programme of real service. Perhaps the sticking point was that it was to be mandatory, and many of the more privileged members of the society did not think that their children needed to be included in the programme.

“However, once again, I think the idea was a radical one which might have brought about a little more social cohesion. But who knows?

“Another thing we have done,” she added, “we sent a message that our young people are not worth protecting when we took police out of the schools.

“Too many things are done in our society without understanding the consequences of them or what perception they will create. I don’t think police need to be in the school all the time, but I do think students need to feel safe.

“When we took the police out of the schools we put them on Bay Street to protect the tourists. People are not blind and they got the message loud and clear. The safety of our children is less important than the safety of our visitors. Message received.”

Finally, Dr Bethel said the recent crime problems are unlikely to keep on escalating and called for a reform of the justice system,.

“Crime and violent crime rarely escalate and escalate,” she said. “I think this is a spike. In terms of the response in the short run, I think there needs to be a show of law and an imposition of consequences in a very judicious kind of way.

“Opening the courts will be great, putting police on 12 hour shifts will help clamp down on criminal activity yes, but those are not long term solutions.

“We have a group of men that have learned to fend for themselves because they don’t trust anyone else. They have learned to respond brutally.

“Let’s say you arrest them, rush them through the 10 new courts, then what? Fox Hill Prison cannot accommodate the needs that we have.

“Secondly, I’m not sure the justice system is at all just, not in terms of corruption, but that the people who tend to have the most access to all the options our justice system allows, like bail and appeal, tend to be the people that have committed the most serious crimes.

“The people that have committed the least crimes tend to wait the longest because we a trying to rush the hard criminals through.

“The justice system is not fair to the hapless kid arrested for having marijuana or for stealing somebody’s bicycle. They are the ones waiting on remand for their trial to come up for years in the same prison we put the hard criminals in.

“We need to deal with this. We need to be making the system work and the system just, make it serve the perpetrators, the victims and those that are in between.

“That’s something we need to think about, how we tweak, adjust and reform our justice system.

“In addition, we fall in the habit of de-humanising the perpetrators of these crimes. We need to make it a point to say we are all human and all citizens deserve the same attention.

“And we can’t be changing our minds whenever our government changes; we have to come to some consensus as a society on how to deal with crime,” she said.

January 08, 2014

Tribune 242

To address our crime problem comprehensively, we must address our way of life comprehensively... But we haven’t the will

Gangster’s Paradise Part 2

By Ian G. Strachan

This week we continue our series on crime in The Bahamas.  It seems fitting to take stock of the research and consultative work that Bahamians have already undertaken. We will work backwards about 20 years, with reports we have easy access to.

We begin with Police Sergeant Chaswell Hanna’s 2011 study, “Reducing Murders in The Bahamas: A Strategic Plan Based on Empirical Research” (available at 62foundation.org/resources).  These are among the more interesting facts and observations made by Hanna.

First, the murder rate for the past 12 years (I have added the last two years):  2000-74; 2001-43; 2002-52; 2003-50; 2004-44; 2005-52; 2006-61; 2007-78; 2008-72; 2009-79; 2010-94; 2011-109 so far.

Between 2005 and 2009, the period Hanna studies most closely, 13 percent of murders involved domestic violence, 18 percent took place during robberies, eight percent happened outside or in bars and night clubs and 61 percent involved a firearm.

Hanna notes that of the 349 classified murders between 2005 and 2009, police were only able to build 243 cases – 231 charges were filed but only 130 murder cases were sent to the Supreme Court.  Only 34 cases were completed in the time frame and there were 10 murder convictions, eight manslaughter convictions and zero executions.

So for cases that actually were completed, there was a 53 percent conviction rate.  But of the 349 classified murders between 2005 and 2009, only 37 percent resulted in a trial.  And, so far, only five percent of murders resulted in someone being convicted of either murder or manslaughter.  To put this another way, 95 percent of the murders during this period remain unpunished.  This is despite the fact that police believe they have identified the murder suspect 73 percent of the time between 2005 and 2009.  Hanna claims that 54 percent of murder suspects offered a full or partial confession.

Hanna noted that “most local murder incidents in New Providence occurred in communities where annual household incomes fell below the island’s average.  This indicates that preventive strategies aimed at particular offenses ought to be complemented by, and complementary to, broader long-term initiatives to address poverty and social exclusion.”

There’s more.  He adds: “Findings in this study revealed that 46 percent of persons charged with murder [2005-2009] had prior criminal records involving violence.  In fact, 15 percent of these suspects had been previously charged with another murder.  Further analysis disclosed that 34 percent of persons charged with murder during the study period were on bail.”

 

Previous crime reports

From Hanna’s report we move to the 2008 National Advisory Council on Crime Report (available at 62foundation.org/resources).  The council was headed by Bishop Simeon Hall.  This report makes an array of recommendations from the standpoint of policing, the judicial system, incarceration and rehabilitation and prevention.  In addition to calling on government to encourage and assist citizens to establish voluntary crime watch programs, such as the citizens on patrol program and to expand the educational, vocational and entrepreneurial projects and programs currently being taught at the prison, inclusive of the training of personnel, the report pays particular attention to youth development.  It calls on government to:

• Strengthen and/or develop community centers and national afterschool programs.

• Strengthen rehabilitative services for all special populations – youth, disabled, substance abusers and persons diagnosed with mental illnesses by the use of multidisciplinary support teams.

• Promote positive lifestyles and culture for young people.

• Ensure the wider dissemination of information on youth organizations, programs and services.

• Strengthen the national educational curriculum to instill a greater sense of national pride and self-esteem in young people.

• Significantly raise the standards and performance of our education system and our nation’s students.

• Support and/or expand existing parental training.

• Strengthen and make mandatory the family life studies program in all schools.

Thirteen years earlier, in 1998, Burton Hall, David Allen, Simeon Hall, Jessica Minnis and others submitted the National Commission on Crime Report.  I have a particular interest in the following points made by the team, although these are only a fraction of the ones made:

• The incidence of “domestic violence” throughout The Bahamas is of such a level as to be a cause for grave concern among all residents, and innovative measures are required to cure this plague which replicates its consequences among succeeding generations.

• Commissioners are of the view that the reversal of our present problems begins with the elementary need to teach people how to parent.

• Commissioners add their voices to the lament of the small number of men who have remained as teachers in the system.  This problem tends to perpetuate itself in that young men, seeing teaching as “womens’ work,” would not be inclined to themselves become teachers.  The reasons for this are complex, and obviously tied up in the question of remuneration.

• New Providence is filthy.  That is the stark reality ... squalid surroundings strongly suggest a mentality conducive to other forms of anti-social activities, extending even to criminal behavior.

• We have no evidence that Haitians are, as a people, any more prone to violent or criminal behavior than are other peoples, including Bahamians.

• While a number of churches have developed community centers and host, for example, afterschool homework quarters, it appears to us that the physical facilities controlled by various churches remain largely underutilized.

The 1998 report revealed that really, nothing much had changed since the Consultative Committee on National Youth Development, led by Drexel Gomez, shared its findings in 1994.  Among many other things, it called on government to:

• Discontinue social promotion and, at the same time, produce alternative programs for under-achievers.

• Establish a training/research center for teachers to provide ongoing monitoring of the educational system with appropriate emphasis on the social, emotional and cognitive needs of Bahamian youth.

• Provide ... special incentives to males to enter the teaching profession.  Our committee considers that the virtual absence of male members of staff in the primary system is adversely impacting on the performance of male members of the student body.  Our committee is also of the view that this matter should be addressed as a national emergency requiring special measures to alter the present imbalance.

• Commission the Department of Statistics to conduct a youth labor survey

• [Initiate] A “Media Summit” at which the government and all social partners, particularly the media, advertisers and sponsors, will be invited to consider a national policy on the media and to identify ways and means to establish stronger indigenous media.

• [Cause] The Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas [to] place special emphasis on the production of appropriate youth programs for television and radio.

• Encourage sponsorship of local educational programs by the creation of fiscal incentives.

• [Encourage] The private sector to promote and sponsor productions that convey a sense of Bahamian identity.

• [Develop] Community centers at the neighborhood level or constituency level.

The committee wishes to recommend that community centers be established as part of the fabric of each community to assist young people and adults with lifelong skills and personal enrichment programs.  Such facilities can rekindle the sense of community participation and cooperation among the people who must take charge of their communities.  The strategy employed by the government to ensure that at least a park is in each constituency throughout The Bahamas is an important step in the right direction. Equally important is the need for a policy decision to ensure that a community center is part of each community.

 

What have we done with this research?

More on this final note.  The committee envisioned that these centers would develop programs to “satisfy the educational, social, economic, spiritual, cultural, sporting, civic and community service needs.  Additionally, areas of day care, children’s programs, afterschool programs, teen programs, school drop-outs and adult education and senior citizens activities can be provided at the community center.  The goal should be to establish a community center in each neighborhood or settlement.”

Of course, former MP Edmund Moxey tried to model this in Coconut Grove as far back as the late 1960s and early 1970s, with his Coconut Grove Community Centre on Crooked Island Street and the now demolished, but not forgotten, Jumbey Village.

These initiatives involved a high level of community effort.  Sir Lynden Pindling is credited with calling for national service in the 1980s, but this idea was being advanced in his cabinet by men like Moxey from the nation’s first years.  Sir Lynden bulldozed and starved Moxey’s dream to death.  And in the 44 years since majority rule, I know of no other effort like the Coconut Grove initiatives by any church, state or civic group.

Why haven’t we acted on these recommendations as common sense as so many of them are?  What are we waiting for?  The people’s anguished call for the blood of the murderer will continue to go unanswered.  There will be no shortcut to peace and prosperity.  The hangman’s noose won’t save us.  The policeman cannot be everywhere at all times.  The prison cells cannot hold all the people who need to be confined, disciplined and punished.  There will be no shortcut to commonwealth.  To address our crime problem comprehensively, we must address our way of life comprehensively.  But we haven’t the will.

More next week.

Oct 31, 2011

Gangster’s Paradise Part 3

Gangster’s Paradise Part 1

thenassauguardian

Caribbean Blog International

The murder rate for a country the size of The Bahamas has reached a crisis point... It is unacceptable

Are we doing enough to fight crime?

thenassauguardian editorial



Last Saturday’s triple homicide off Carmichael Road has shocked many Bahamians and residents of New Providence already reeling from a rising murder count that is certain to far outpace last year’s record of 94.

In what marked the 83rd, 84th and 85th murders for the year, two women, one of whom was pregnant, and a man were gunned down in an apartment on Montgomery Avenue early Saturday morning.

Police are investigating the possibility that the murders are connected to a double homicide that took place several weeks ago, not far from the site of the triple murder.

Police believe that many of the recent murders are connected and that generally speaking random killings are rare. This is the line that has often been used by senior officials trying to calm the fears of New Providence residents.

The murder rate for a country the size of The Bahamas has reached a crisis point. It is unacceptable.

By the end of July last year the murder count was at 54. This year that number had jumped by 31 by the end of July. Last month a recorded-breaking 20 murders were recorded.

Our average so far for the year is 12 murders per month. On that pace we could surpass the 94 mark before this month is up. It could also mean that we could record more than 140 murders this year.

We know that this point is not lost on police and government officials who have invested efforts and resources in the crime fight. And who obviously want to see crime brought under control.

The Gun Court has been an important step in the right direction and has so far been productive in helping to deal with our significant case backlog. There has also been a significant investment to increase resources for our police officers. And steps have been taken to improve the physical infrastructure of the judiciary.

But have those efforts and resources been enough? Obviously not.

More needs to be done to bring down crime in the country.

We acknowledge that the onus is not just on the government or police to come up with solutions, the community must also do its part.

However, the commissioner of police and minister of national security have been given as a part of their mandate the management and prevention of crime to the highest extent possible.

It is a difficult task, but we must do better than we are doing now.

The crime phenomenon is not unique to The Bahamas, the Caribbean or anywhere else.

We need to look at how other developed countries are approaching their fight against the scourge of crime and violence.

Jamaica, which has had one of the highest murder rates in the world, has seen a significant drop in its murder count this year after a gang crackdown, according to officials.

Based on what is often said by our local police and government officials, it would seem that a similar approach could prove successful here.

It may also be time to look at how existing youth, community and rehabilitation programs can be improved.

Perhaps it is time to consider — as some cities in the U.S. have done — the appointment of a crime prevention coordinator who works closely with the commissioner of police and Ministry of National Security to help implement crime prevention programs, among other things.

We do not have the answers, nor do we pretend to have them.

But we must do something more, and quickly.

Aug 05, 2011

thenassauguardian editorial

Caribbean Blog International

The less tolerant and accommodating we are of criminal enterprise and behaviour, the more effective will be our fight against crime...

The corrupters of the judicial system

tribune242 editorial



IN 1981 then Attorney General Paul Adderley considered a court system not in tune with the society in which it functioned, lawyers with neither a good nor high reputation, and corrupters of the system as part of this country's problems in getting criminals off the streets.

On the floor of the same House from which Mr Adderley had made that observation 30 years before, Prime Minister Ingraham advised politicians to distance themselves from criminals.

"The stark reality is that we did not reach the current level of crime overnight.

"And our attitude towards crime makes a difference. Complaining about crime, yet aiding and abetting criminal behaviour hurts our shared fight against crime," Mr Ingraham said.

"The less tolerant and accommodating we are of criminal enterprise and behaviour, the more effective will be our fight against crime.

"The entire society has an obligation to assist the police in doing their jobs."

Mr Adderley was of the opinion that the police were not getting the assistance they needed from the courts. He believed the judicial system was demonstrating more sympathy for the law-breaker than for the long suffering public.

Mr Adderley criticised the category of people who perpetrate acts of corruption -- influence peddlers and people seeking permission by paying off someone.

Lawyers, he said, among other professions, fall into this category.

"For the most part," said Mr Adderley, "the vast majority of lawyers are entitled to a good and high reputation, but those who are entitled to a good and high reputation do not have either a good or a high reputation because there are some lawyers who have an atrociously bad reputation who are entitled to neither a good nor a high reputation.

"By the conduct of a relatively small number of lawyers in the Bahamas, lawyers generally today have a low reputation.

"This is to be attributed to those lawyers who belong in the category of the corrupt."

He also had something to say about the category of lawyers who charge clients "outrageously, almost criminally high fees."

He then moved to those -- especially drug dealers -- who bribed the courts.

"One of the most corrupting influences on the total system is the amount of money which is in the hands of the drug traffickers," he said.

As attorney general he found it necessary to have drug cases put in a distinct category.

Two years before he felt he had justifiable reasons to give directives to magistrate's court prosecutors that any case involving drugs could not be withdrawn without the consent of the Office of the Attorney General.

He knew of "prevalent incidents" that justified his decision "because some way along the way the system had been corrupted."

Even juries in the Bahamas were bought, he said, but unfortunately, sufficient evidence could not be found to prosecute.

We leave it to our readers to judge whether much has changed in the profession since Mr Adderley's 1981 observations.

What he as Attorney General complained of in 1981 remains among the many problems that make the fight against crime difficult today.

June 08, 2011

tribune242 editorial

...no end is in sight to high crime rates in The Bahamas, said a United States Embassy in Nassau February 2009 confidential cable titled “Bahamas: Crime concerns simmer as economy softens”

'National anxiety' over crime travel advisory


By BRENT DEAN
Deputy News Editor
thenassauguardian
brentldean@nasguard.com


The United States Embassy in Nassau closely monitors the crime situation in The Bahamas, noting the potential for a “high-profile violent crime tragedy” and resultant media disaster as a result of the high rate of crime in the country. It is also very aware of the immense fear many Bahamians have of the issuance of a travel advisory by the U.S. government, according to several cables in the WikiLeaks cache obtained by The Nassau Guardian.

“Against the background of economic crisis, the crime numbers, trends, and daily headlines, as well as the expressions of concern about the state of society, all indicate that no end is in sight to high crime rates in The Bahamas,” said the February 2009 confidential cable titled, “Bahamas: Crime concerns simmer as economy softens”.

There have been three homicide records in The Bahamas the last four years, and in 2011 the country is on pace for a fourth such record in five years.

Over the last five years, armed robberies have trended up towards the highs of the mid-1990s. In the property crime category the 2010 police report reveals other disturbing trends. The 3,120 housebreakings recorded were the most in the country since 1998 (3,165).

The Free National Movement (FNM) administration has done much to try to fix the crime problem. Along with refurbishing the courts, there have been three commissioners of police, two chief justices, four attorneys general and two directors of public prosecutions during this term.

The government has also spent millions of dollars buying new equipment for police; it has introduced a plea bargaining system; it has amended the Juries Act reducing the number of jurors from 12 to nine in non-capital cases; and it has put in place an electronic monitoring system for accused offenders.

Despite all of these measures, the crime problem has not improved.

In the December 2007 unclassified/for official use only cable, ‘Bahamas grapples with sharp rise in violent crime’, the embassy noted that that Juries Act amendment alone, which was implemented before the other measures mentioned, would not fix the Bahamian crime problem.

“No recent initiative, including the Juries Act amendment, is likely to make an immediate impact on the crime rate as long as the criminal justice system effectively puts indicted criminals back on the street to commit more crimes,” said the cable.

“Without introducing specific measures to monitor suspected offenders out on bail, break the logjam in the courts, or increase or optimize space in the prison to keep violent offenders in and others out, the GCOB (Government of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas) is unlikely to make much progress in addressing the underlying causes of the latest ‘crime wave’ to shake The Bahamas.”

The government has increasingly made statements indicating that it is working to improve the prosecution system.

Recently, Attorney General John Delaney and Director of Public Prosecutions Vinette-Graham Allen held a news conference explaining that the establishment of a case management unit at their office is expected to result in significant improvements in the administration of justice.

Recent public focus on the crime problem in The Bahamas has shifted to the quality of cases being produced by police and the quality of prosecution by the AG’s Office.

In his new book, “Reducing Murders in The Bahamas: A strategic plan based on empirical research,” police researcher Sergeant Chaswell Hanna reveals that from 2005 to 2009 there were 349 murders recorded and only 10 murder convictions and eight manslaughter convictions.

The Americans realized, based on the cable, that as long as The Bahamas is unable to prosecute and convict those it suspects of committing crimes, the crime problem in the country will continue to worsen.

Effects of the crime problem

The cables reveal that the U.S. does not think The Bahamas is that safe a place.

In a February 2006 unclassified cable, “Country Clearance: For consular management assistance team (CMAT) visit,” the embassy advised its visiting team to be careful in this country.

“Threat analysis: The threat against Americans from political activity is considered low. The threat from criminal elements is high. Incidents of violent crime have risen significantly in The Bahamas during the past few years,” said the cable.

“Travelers should use caution and common sense when moving about the island of New Providence. Visitors should travel in pairs, avoid areas prone to higher crime such as the Over-the-Hill area, and avoid isolated, deserted and/or poorly illuminated areas.”

In a January 2006 unclassified/for official use only cable, the embassy again expressed concern for the safety of its citizens in The Bahamas.

“During Spring Break, sexual assaults against American tourists are extremely high,” said the cable, which added that its Regional Security Office has also stressed the growing pattern of violence to embassy personnel, reminding employees to always be vigilant about their surroundings.

The fear of the American response

There have been several high profile criminal acts in New Providence in recent years, in tourism areas, which have alarmed Bahamians.

The November 2009 robbery of a group of tourists on tour at Earth Village; Sunday’s armed robbery at John Bull in the middle of Downtown Nassau; and the January 2008 murder of teenager Deangelo Cargill at a bus stop, also in Downtown Nassau, are some of the events in such areas that attracted national attention.

Referring to the 2008 Cargill murder, the embassy said in a cable that January, “How the government meets the crime challenge will play an increasingly decisive role in how the public perceives its overall effectiveness.

“This event has brought home to the Cabinet that it has no higher priority than beating back the surge in crime before the violence begins to impact The Bahamas' tourism-dependent economy.”

In these cables on crime the Americans do not seem to be near to taking a decision to publicly intervene and apply full pressure on the Bahamian government to accelerate worthwhile reforms to the local criminal justice system.

The U.S. already assists The Bahamas in significant ways regarding law enforcement — most noticeably through funding and manpower via Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands.

The U.S. does understand, however, that Bahamians have an extreme fear of the issuance of a travel advisory informing Americans that The Bahamas is not a place they should travel to.

In that same 2008 cable after the murder of Cargill, listed as unclassified/for official use only, the embassy described the fear of such an advisory as a “national anxiety.”

“The downtown killing at the peak of the afternoon rush hour prompted renewed concern in the public and press about the potential issuance of a travel advisory or warning by the U.S. Embassy — an almost compulsive anxiety within the tourist-dependent island,” said the cable.

“In fact, the media have speculated for months, as the murder tally rose, over such an announcement and its potential negative effects on the all-important tourism sector, which forms the backbone of the economy in Nassau and The Bahamas.”

The embassy noted that officials had to make public statements indicating that no such advisory was imminent. Public consular information is already available for Americans advising them of safety issues in The Bahamas.

The realization by the Americans of this Bahamian fear likely means that if The Bahamas was to become uncooperative, as it was during the ‘drug days’ of the 1970s and 1980s, the use of this punishment would at the least get the attention of the leaders of the country.

5/25/2011

thenassauguardian

Bahamas Blog International

...we are much exercised by what is not happening for the masses as the classes go from strength to strength

Beyond Pious Bleating
The Bahama Journal


As one crime-ridden day flows into another, some thoughtful Bahamians have begun a conversation among themselves concerning some of their more extreme conclusions about what is actually happening in our beloved land.

What we are hearing from some of these sources is that, crime –as it is currently being expressed might well have within it a kernel that suggests the early rise of a virulent form of class-driven warfare, assault and insult to person and property in today’s parlous economic times.

Here we are certain that while these conversations are going on, there are Bahamians who would out of hand deny any such class-based set of developments; here we do suspect that they do so to their peril and to that of the wider Bahamian society.

Our thoughts are turned in this direction as we reflect on some of the words and thoughts of the Rt. Hon. Hubert Ingraham. The Prime Minister suggests that, "In a 21st Century Bahamas, if we are to become all that we might be we must aspire to transcend historic prejudices and break loose from the stereotypical bounds of the politics of race and class division that belongs to a bygone era."

He went on to suggest "That is behind us and we must leave it so that we can achieve full unity in our land with government dedicated to serving all Bahamians, black and white, middle class, rich and poor, young and old, able and disabled."

No right-thinking Bahamian would dare quibble with anything the prime minister says concerning this aspiration for the coming of that day when discrimination is no more in The Bahamas.

That will be a great day not only for The Bahamas, but for human beings everywhere. That is because were we to achieve such a feat, our example could provide a template for people all over the world.

The truth of the matter is that race does matter in The Bahamas. Class does matter in The Bahamas. Ethnicity does matter in The Bahamas. Gender and sexual orientation do matter in The Bahamas and so does disability. And for sure, so does poverty and wealth living cheek to jowl in the same society.

It matters little what people say about their aspiration to create this or that kind of Bahamas. What matters is what they do about it.

Experience elsewhere would seem to suggest that before a problem can be resolved, it must first be recognized as a problem; that being a necessary prerequisite to action, if we - as a people – wanted to be honest about any of these issues that do matter, we would do something about it.

Take for example, the manner in which we deal with people who are so-called ‘disabled’. We further hobble them when we decide that no changes need be made to processes like voter registration that would allow these people their rights to privacy in the sanctity of the booth.

Whoever never thought that in this day and age that voter registration and voting should not be made user-friendly for people, who are blind, crippled or otherwise challenged?

Or for that matter, whoever decreed that Bahamians born of Haitian parents should be forever stigmatized because of the fact that they are Haitians? What ignorance! What rot! What utter nonsense!

Closer to home from a racial point of view, how is it that so-called White people around the world have already acknowledged that slavery was a crime against humanity, while so few in The Bahamas even want to broach the issue.

Here we take little or no note of some of that literary stuff by this or that ‘artiste’ out to make a name by chatting about the issues at hand.

This and other such issues should be encouraged among so very many so-called ordinary people.

Like the late, great and seriously under-estimated Milo Boughton Butler, we are much exercised by what is not happening for the masses as the classes go from strength to strength.

That is why we counsel and caution each and every social observer who would dare think that they could understand a modern Bahamas without taking into consideration the raw reality that class does matter; that race does matter; and that gender and disability are also realities that matter.

The truth is that none of this understanding comes easily. And for sure, this is clearly the urgency in the current moment when things are so very bad for all Bahamians.

And so, we would suggest that, in the ultimate analysis, then, real bridges have to be built between where we are, who we truly are and what we are prepared to do with and on behalf of whom.

Otherwise, brave words about what we wish amount to little more than windy rhetoric and a most pious bleating about social justice.

November 18th, 2010

The Bahama Journal

Bahamas Blog International

The Bahamas' crime wave must stop

The crime wave must stop
thenassauguardian editorial


It seems as though everywhere you go, crime like an ugly monster, raises its head negatively affecting society and taking away the comforts of safety enjoyed by so many Bahamians over the years.

Even though careful steps have been taken by the leaders of the country to ensure that offenders are brought to justice, there is still a lack of respect by certain criminals in the country, who feel they are above the law and continue to engage in illicit behavior, a number of them inflicting undue pain on innocent people through violent acts.

Some acts are so brutal that there seems to be no regard or concern for human life.

Apart from the number of cases in New Providence where people have been tragically gunned down or stabbed to death after violent altercations with others, Grand Bahama has seen its own share of unexplained and brutal murders that have left many residents in shock.

Just yesterday, a man was brutally stabbed in a crowded bank in front of numerous witnesses.

According to police reports and eyewitness accounts, a man who appeared to be in his mid 30's was preparing to be served by a teller when he was approached by a younger man who began arguing with him.

The argument which was reportedly over money, intensified when the two men began choking and punching each other. The younger man reportedly pulled out a weapon and began stabbing the older man about the body.

Then on Thursday, a woman was attacked outside the Rand Memorial Hospital and her jewelry snatched from her neck. According to Officer-in-charge of the Central Division Superintendent Macktavaus Daniels,"People are becoming violent. We had an incident just this morning where a lady had dropped somebody at the Rand Memorial Hospital and a guy ran up to her, punched her and yanked her chain off her neck,"he said."And so that's where this thing(crime)is going now."

While these incidents represent a small fraction of the number of cases that take place in Grand Bahama and the northern region, one cannot argue the severity of the crimes and the awful disregard for the lives that were lost.

The sad thing about this whole situation is that whether we want to admit it or not, there will be more incidents to report this year as we head into the Christmas holiday.

There will be some that will escape our hearing and others, so brutal, we will wonder if such acts will ever end. The bone-shivering truth is, they will not stop.

So what should the government and concerned citizens do to help stop it?

Some say enforce the laws and resume hanging. Others say always impose the maximum punishment as dictated by law. The reality is, something must be done. During these harsh financial times, and with the tourism industry of the country suffering much loss, The Bahamas cannot afford to be known as a destination where crime is out of hand.

As we move toward a new year, it is time for those in authority to consider and implement new strategies. The criminals are not backing down, they are getting more aggressive everyday, therefore so must the system that brings them to justice.

10/16/2010

thenassauguardian editorial

Bahamas Blog International

Rodney Moncur - The Anti-Crime Activist To Lead a 1,000 Man Anti-crime March as The Bahamas Celebrates its 37th Anniversary

Anti-Crime Activist To Lead 1,000 Man March
By Karissma Robinson:


Local anti-crime activist Rodney Moncur is seeking to lead the country back to a place where everyday citizens ultimately "chose peace above crime."

Mr. Moncur plans to host a 1,000 man anti-crime march throughout the streets of New Providence as The Bahamas celebrates its 37th anniversary this Saturday.

He is hoping to send a strong message to the criminal element.

At this point, 48 murders have already been recorded for the year, six of them in just one week.

Mr. Moncur said the issue of crime still sits front and centre in the minds of Bahamians.

"Bahamians are still trying to process what is happening. It is getting out of control," Mr. Moncur said.

He insists that The Bahamas cannot afford to celebrate its independence in this state.

"Pregnant women are now being shot for whatever reason. When is the government going to get it? There is a lot of fear in the society, particularly the fear of being killed. Every witness in a murder case is in peril. The reality is no one seems to be sounding the alarm that witnesses in The Bahamas are being assassinated," said Mr. Moncur.

It is for that reason Mr. Moncur is appealing to Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham and other government officials to step up to the plate in the fight against crime.

He said the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) "cannot and should not tackle the problem alone."

Earlier this week, Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade said police officials have devised new policing strategies.

The police force plans to conduct more walkabouts throughout New Providence and the Family Islands to become more familiar with the residents.

However, Mr. Moncur insists that it should be the Members of Parliament conducting walkabouts in their constituencies.

"It is time for the government to step up. It is now time to issue a state of emergency. We now have to pull other military forces together, such as the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBPF) to intervene. Law enforcement should be dispatched at every corner. This has to happen before it is too late," said Mr. Moncur.

Mr. Moncur asserted that the solution to the problem is very simple.

"First, the prime minister needs to stop granting murderers bail. Secondly, he needs to hang all murderers. This is where the problem ends. If these two things are done there will be a drastic reduction in criminal activity," said Mr. Moncur.

He admitted it would not be easy, but believes it is highly possible to reduce the country’s crippling crime problem.

Mr. Moncur stressed the significance of hosting such a march during the country’s 37th birthday.

"This is the time when all patriotic Bahamians should come out in full force. Independence is the time for Bahamians to unite. Bahamians should take this time to send a strong message to the government that they are not safe," he said.

Mr. Moncur said he intends to continue to march until change comes.

He is calling on Bahamians from every fabric of society to join him at the R.M. Bailey High School at 9:00 a.m. this Saturday.

He wants participants to wear paraphernalia that would best represent The Bahamas.

July 8th, 2010

jonesbahamas

Bahamas Blog International

Crime in The Bahamas 'scaring away investors'

Crime 'scaring away investors'
By BRENT DEAN ~ Guardian Senior Reporter ~ brentldean@nasguard.com:



Co-owner of the Grand Bahama Port Authority Sir Jack Hayward has warned that the Government of The Bahamas must find solutions to the escalating crime problem in the country before countries such as the United States issue travel advisories warning their citizens not to come to this jurisdiction.

"Any moment now the American Embassy could be advising American citizens that this is an unsafe country to travel (to)," said Sir Jack yesterday in an interview with The Nassau Guardian.

He also noted that the worrisome situation is scaring some potential investors.

At the end of the first half of 2010, there were 47 homicides in The Bahamas. The country appears on pace to near 100 homicides for the year.

The Bahamas set homicide records in both 2007 and 2009. The current homicide record from last year is 87.

The current homicide count puts the country on pace to record its third homicide record in four years.

Sir Jack said that the disturbing crime trend in the country could threaten both tourism to, and investment in, the country.

"When a potential investor or a potential visitor sees the headline, Up to record levels – More than last year, and so on, they are obviously going to say, 'Hey is this a safe place to travel?'," said Sir Jack.

"I mean the government has got to do something about the crime rate."

The government acknowledges that the Bahamian criminal justice system is facing significant challenges.

Two weeks ago in the House of Assembly National Security Minister Tommy Turnquest revealed that more people who are charged with murder are on bail than on remand at Her Majesty's Prison.

Up to April 30, 130 people charged with murder were on bail and an additional 127 were on remand, according to Turnquest. In total, there were 257 outstanding murder cases.

The government has attempted, in terms of personnel changes and infrastructure investments, to address the crime problem, which has worsened in recent years.

Since the Free National Movement (FNM) came to office in 2007, there have been three commissioners of police; three attorneys general; two chief justices; and the second director of the Department of Public Prosecutions is soon to take office.

The government has bought the police a new fleet of vehicles and it is spending more than $20 million upgrading the court system.

The new Magistrates Court complex at Nassau Street is expected to be completed within the next few months.

Sir Jack expressed concern about the high number of accused murderers on bail.

"God knows what they are doing? The whole thing is out of control," he said.

As recently as 1991, the homicide count in The Bahamas was as low as 28, according to police records.

The international homicide standard countries seek to be at or under is five murders per 100,000 persons. Ideally, The Bahamas would have around 18 homicides per year if it was near this mark.

The projected population count for The Bahamas this year by the Department of Statistics is 346,900.

If the homicide rate continues on the same pace in the second half of 2010, The Bahamas would have a homicide rate of around 27.17 per 100,000 population.

The Bahamas is moving towards a homicide rate comparable with countries in the region that have serious crime problems.

In 2008 the homicide rate for Jamaica was 59.5 per 100,000 population; it was 39.7 per 100,000 population the same year in Trinidad and Tobago, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.


July 1, 2010

thenassauguardian

Bahamas Blog International