To change the fruit, we must change the root

THE EDITOR: The astonishing incidence of crime in Trinidad and Tobago within recent times is not a phenomenon created either by the change of Government from the hands of UNC to PNM or the appointment of Mr Chin Lee to the post of Minister of National Security; or for that matter, any other frivolous concoction of charges of political incompetence.

It might, perhaps, be more appropriately seen as the materialisation of a philosophical thought, that the spread of evil is the symptom of a vacuum; for, with this unprecedented descent of evil deeds and depraved practices upon us, it is reasonable to assume that the existence of a vacuum in the moral structure of this country is a reality. We have been witnessing for decades now a changing society; one that has become notorious for its abandonment of the values and ethics which once characterised our culture; and it is the forsaking of such values as self-respect, respect for others, self-discipline, honesty, loyalty and modesty that has led to the entry within our culture of iniquitous practices, including rape, teenage pregnancy, domestic violence, kidnapping, gruesome murders, unbridled corruption and carnage on the nation’s roads. There is, however, the feeling in some quarters, that this non-conformity to moral principles is a result of what is construed by some as unsatisfactory social conditions; but it would be unreasonable to justify criminalistic behaviour purely on that basis; and we are talking here of issues such as unemployment, the widening gap between rich and poor, marginalisation, the minimum wage, discrimination of one kind or another and feelings of disgust and frustration with any one politician or political party.

These factors may certainly play a contributory role in the perpetration of perverse behaviour, but they certainly are not the main players in the game. In my view, the perpetration of crime is influenced more by character than by circumstance. There is a good old maxim which says, “To change the fruit one must first change the root”; which suggests that if we want to reduce or eliminate crime, we must first change the root of the evil. We must begin by changing the perspective and priorities of parents. We must move to counsel them with a view of raising their level of consciousness as regards their responsibilities to their children. For example, it is significant that even before a child is born, it is determined that it will exert qualities of a genetic nature which are inherited from its family line; but beyond that, as it continues to grow during its babyhood, its parents exhibit some strong influences that will affect its future — and parents must know this.

In addition, psychologists claim that every child becomes engaged in building its own character; and by a process of introjection, selects from its parents and others, the ingredients which it wishes to adopt. These are circumstances which we cannot ignore; for it is abundantly clear that hereditarily and environmentally, the role of parents in the development of their children’s character is an enormous one, more especially if we are right in thinking that the perpetuation of crime is influenced more by character than by circumstance. We must also look at the structure of our institutions of learning to ascertain the extent of their contributions to character building. We think that it is the duty of our schools and religious bodies to assist in fostering a sense of moral responsibility among our young people by introducing them to such values as self-restraint, courtesy, a sense of gratitude, regard for proper authority and even fidelity. But however pro-active we might be in our efforts to reduce the current role of crime, we must be cognisant of the fact that there will always exist a certain level of delinquency due essentially to the potential of human beings in general to wrong doing. In fact, some writers are convinced that each of us is a criminal in the sense that we are highly endowed with impulses which, if they are not brought under control, will certainly lead to acute social misconduct. If there is merit in this theory, then herein lies the potential for the creation of another vacuum in the years to come, if we are not on the alert. As this country continues indefatigably to struggle against the assault on its cultural life, we the citizens must be patient and cooperative and acknowledge the fact that in the battle against crime, results are never immediately automatic.

VICTOR LOOK LOY
Arima