Let’s follow example of Indian immigrants

Lots of positive achievements have been made over the past 172 years since the immigrants departed their homes in India and made Trinidad their new home. It is the introduction into Trinidad of a unique culture that continues to strengthen all races here.

In the same way that the early immigrants endured and overcame extremely tough conditions, we too as a nation must also use our strength and fortitude to rise above the complex circumstances and conditions that we currently face with the rising crime and other pressing issues.

Conventional wisdom tells us that certain crimes cannot be prevented, that the police and community at large are relatively powerless to drastically reduce violent and heinous crimes and that the difficult conditions cannot be overcome in this nation.

In order to be effective the Government must display strong moral leadership. By changing the traditional approach, homicide can be controlled and the number of homicides can be reduced more successfully.

The crime of murder has always been regarded as the most serious of all criminal offences.

The fluctuation of local incidents over the last few years has sparked national attention and remains a top priority for the Ministry of National Security.

Crime and violence are robbing us of our human capital which is our most precious and valuable resource.

High crime and violence rates present a huge challenge to the development of a country as they have an adverse effect on human welfare in the short term and economic growth in the long term.

The fear of crime remains the most important issue on the minds of Trinidadians. Moreover, the direct effect that crime and violence have on victims is widespread.

According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, murder rates in the Caribbean that average 30 per 100,000 are higher than any other region of the world.

The Caribbean is especially vulnerable to crime as it suffers from the disadvantage of being situated between the world’s source of cocaine (South America) and the primary consumer market (US).

However, sound policies at the national and regional levels can make a difference in changing the regional culture of violence.

Murder figures are considered to be the most reliable indicator of violent crimes in a country.

Murders should not be seen as solitary incidents but as fundamental indicators of social and economic issues including race, poverty, religion and social isolation.

Murder is merely a symptom of a deep-rooted social problem that has manifested itself through the trafficking of guns, the drug trade and the backlog of criminal cases due to a dysfunctional justice system.

Any crime plan that is aimed at reducing violence must take these factors into consideration in order to be successful and to gain control of the spiralling crime rate.

Having recently been the victim of an arson attack against my home in Chaguanas I have decided to follow the example of the early immigrants from India by overcoming difficult conditions with speaking engagements and my own motivational CD.

SIMON WRIGHT Chaguanas