Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 09, 2011 Editorial
When the United States issued one of its many reports on Guyana and more or less warned people about coming to Guyana many people felt that the United States was actually over exaggerating the situation. These people acknowledged the crime situation that exists but argued that when it was much worse there was no such warning to visitors.
And this was indeed the case. In the wake of the 2002 jailbreak Guyana saw an unprecedented crime wave and the types of crimes that were previously unknown to the society. Gunmen roamed the country with virtual impunity. In broad daylight they attacked installations and facilities in a manner that would not have been contemplated in the past.
For example, they attacked a cambio mere metres from the police headquarters in the heart of the city and across from the home of the city police. There was no response to that attack although the criminals spent a long time there. The criminals controlled the city. In one instance they drove through the streets of the city and shot a traffic policeman dead.
Those were really dark days and it took the involvement of the army to bring an end to that crime wave but the deed had been done. Guns were the weapons of choice and just about every Tom, Dick and Harry managed to procure one. We are now seeing the young men who were small boys when the prison escape spawned the crime wave. They are now the tormentors. They are the people who have prompted the United States to issue what could be a ban on visitors to Guyana.
However, the average Guyanese would retort that there is crime in every society and that in some societies it is worse than Guyana. The report by the United States suggested that Guyana had one of the highest murder rates in the world per capita. However, such statistics could be misleading. Most of the murders are the result of altercations either between spouses or people who have disputes.
It is this perception of unbridled crime that has people in the Diaspora asking serious questions about the likely outcome of a visit to Guyana. In recent times, people visiting Guyana have been attacked within minutes of their arrival. And these attacks have not been confined to the city. People having arrived in communities in Berbice have been victims as have people in some near coastal communities.
A woman who led a mission to Canada to woo Guyanese back home said that to a man, everyone wanted to know about crime. It mattered not that there is crime everywhere, that they could walk in the streets of their towns and get shot or mugged. The fact that they still feel safer than in Guyana is interesting.
There is a reason for that. More often than not crimes are solved; the perpetrators are brought to justice. Just this week there was a report that the police in the United States made an arrest after nearly sixty years. It is this ability to solve crimes that make the situation in Guyana so untenable. To the administration’s credit a lot of money is being spent on resources. Mobile patrols are being increased.
Perhaps the police need to be even more visible. When cruise ships come to Guyana there are so many policemen and policewomen in the areas that the visitors are likely to frequent that so far there is no record of a visitor being attacked in the streets of Georgetown.
People want more of this. They also expect a faster response when they call for help. All over the country that has been the complaint. So where do we go? There are now cameras in the streets but these must be supported by a speedy response from the police.
If the truth be told there has been a decline in criminal activity but the people, particularly the visitors, do not want a decline. They want to see an end to crime. They want a crime free society.
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