Violence part of culture

Even today, our cadets march with rifles and the victor in a stickfight must inflict a “buss head”. A crime plan must therefore address cultural development.

Culture is not limited to manifestations of human intellectual and creative achievements, but it can also be understood as the pattern of responses people develop over time to meet everyday challenges.

Culture encompasses dispositions, assumptions, beliefs, behaviour, dress, norms and values.

It determines what a group of people finds to be acceptable or unacceptable, right or wrong, and important or unimportant.

Culture is transmitted social interaction by which new members learn to behave in ways that they believe society finds acceptable.

The process includes observation of goings-on, such as what the society rewards, and what it does not; the public behaviour of the national leaders, and the laws that are enforced and those that are not.

The family, the church, the media, peers, public opinion and the school are often listed as agents of socialisation.

Sometimes these socialising agents can become dysfunctional.

For example, when some religious leaders flaunt conspicuous consumption; when they exploit the fears and superstitions of their followers for personal gain; when pastors publicly exalt themselves; and when an IRO leader can defend child marriages as a means of consolidating wealth in families.

Religion is rapidly losing credibility as a responsible socialising agent.

What is the effect on youthful observers when the Parliament remains an arena for exchange of personal abuse and untruths; and when political decisions are designed to appease financiers, and ignore the needs of the people? People soon realise that with political affiliation one can obtain taxpayers’ money without effort from “make-work” projects.

The judicial system seems oppressive when the cost of seeking justice is unaffordable to many and cases take decades to be decided.

Members of society perceive that the police arbitrarily select the laws to be enforced and the violations to ignore; that the police can interfere with the democracy by delaying critical final reports; and that in desperation, the police now turn to prayers after all they have tried have failed.

The education system in TT reflects a lost opportunity and fails the people when bullying is swept under the carpet; when the majority of students fail in the same schools, year after year, without anyone being called to account; and when the curriculum fails to develop peaceful citizens.

Dysfunctional socialisation foments reactive sub-cultures; that is to say, groups of people who adopt behaviour, modes of reasoning, beliefs and lifestyles that are quite different to the national culture.

Within criminal sub-cultures, stealing from the rich becomes acceptable, extortion is defended and even violence and murder can be justified.

The challenge for the authorities in TT is therefore to take steps to reduce negative socialisation of our young people.

Our leaders must reflect on their public behaviour, political decisions must not be self-serving, the church must return to its foundation of humility and service and all the laws must be enforced consistently. A comprehensive crime plan cannot ignore a critical review of all the socialising forces in TT .

DAVID SUBRAN via email