Deadly state of madness

We express our deepest sympathies to the families of all who have been affected by the brutal murder of Hafeeza “Rose” Mohammed and her neighbour Vedesh Subar, 13. This is a crime which strikes at the core of our community values: it demonstrates a willingness to attack old and young alike; to snuff out young promise and age-old wisdom in the most vicious manner; to assault the idea of community and neighbourly conduct.

One report suggests robbery was a motive and that the perpetrating elements may have slit the throats of the victims out of fear of being identified.

Members of both families must be provided with counselling and members of the Malabar community must also have the option to access same should they wish.

At the crime scene on Wednesday, the head of the Northern Division, Snr Supt McDonald Jacob, said he was shocked by what he saw in the house.

“It is really worrying to see that people in our society would choose to enter someone’s private domain and commit these acts, probably just for some material gain,” he said. “None of these items are of any great value when you compare it to a human life. We have to ask the question: what kind of people are we really breeding in society today?” It is a deep and troubling question.

How can we account for the complete disregard for the sanctity of human life in this country? Why are we no longer able to see each other as human beings? A wife and a son were snuffed out in the blink of an eye, and brutally too. The victims were tied up.

Sadly, this kind of carnage is not unique to Malabar. Hours earlier, in Santa Cruz, a similar horror was wrought. A 33-yearold Chinese businesswoman who moved to this country ten years ago and opened a mini mart was robbed and fatally shot by two bandits in full view of her two children and husband. Yana Zeng is the third Chinese national to be murdered in this country this year.

According to reports, the mother of two owned and operated Que Que Mini Mart in Cantaro Village, and at 9.15 pm on Tuesday, two men, one armed, announced a robbery. Zeng was ordered to hand over an undisclosed amount of cash by the gunman. As the bandits were leaving, the gunman turned and fired a single shot which struck Zeng in the chest.

On June 15, Chinese nationals Shirui Zhao, 32, and Yanli Gu, 29, were sitting in a vehicle in the car park of a Marabella restaurant when a gunman sprayed the car with bullets, returning repeatedly to ensure the ultimate impact of his lethal weapon. The couple died at the scene as police confirmed more than 60 shots were fired into the car. No arrest has been made in either incident.

These murders have done irreparable damage to the families and communities involved. They have also done severe damage to Trinidad and Tobago’s international reputation. But it seems the gunmen do not really care about the nationality of their victims.

Yana Zeng was the mother or two Trinidad and Tobago citizens: children born on our soil.

The murder toll for the year is higher than it was at this time last year. But whether higher or lower, one murder is bad enough.

Steps must be taken to bring the perpetrators of all these crimes to justice.

The State must give the Police Service all the resources needed in this regard and must seek fresh avenues to arrest this deadly state of madness.