Dillon: All come in same vessel

The minister continued, “Within our murder rate,there is a strong nexus between the use of illegal guns and our murder rate.” Explaining there is also a nexus between illegal guns and other crimes such as human trafficking, Dillon said that growing up in Point Fortin, “we have had the movement of goods and services” through the community over time. However he noted, “what has happened over time is that the commodity has changed to a large extent.”

Dillon, who is also Point Fortin MP, added, “The commodity has changed from what used to be in those days...a little bottle of scotch here...some groceries there...to arms, drugs and the illegal movement of people.” He observed that while persons in the past would get into a fist fight, “now we get into a gunfight.” He told the gathering, “That is not only for TT , it is across the region.” Dillon stressed the only way to address threats such as illegal firearms and the ever changing security landscape which faces individual countries to entire regions is through, “cooperation and collaboration.”

Dillon said this is “not only by ourselves...but we also have to rely on some of the expertise and some of the information and intelligence sharing from our international partners.” Recalling that national points of contact featured prominently in Caricom’s security framework for hosting major events such as the Fifth Summit of the Americas and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2009, Dillon said, “There is no point having a national point of contact if you are locked in to your own environment. None of us is stronger than all of us.”

” Notwithstanding the country’s crime problem, he welcomed the delegates at the workshop which ended yesterday, “to what we consider still the paradise islands of TT .” Meanwhile, in a statement, Tabaquite MP Dr Suruj Rambachan asked, “What kind of intelligence gathering is the police engaged in through partnering with communities along the coastal ports that are not guarded where illegal entry is attained?” According to Rambachan, “Residents speak in ‘hush hush’ tones in areas like Moruga, Otaheite, Orange Valley, Cedros, Carli Bay and elsewhere, about nocturnal activities.”