Keys to an uncertain future

Our midweek edition carried on the front page a story entitled “Five brawlers handed keys to their own cell”. Oh! how we wish that it could have read instead, “Five youngsters handed diplomas to a brilliant future”.

But we lament that the story was about five school children having been given suspended sentences for brawling and causing general mayhem in a public place in the city. Many had seen the images on social media of the fracas which developed inside a popular restaurant then spilled out onto the streets of Kingstown.

One might dismiss it as the excesses of youth. Except that we learnt, from the very admissions of the persons charged, that they belonged to gangs which proliferate our communities.

It was brought to the court’s attention that the defendants had made mention of gangs called the SIXX and SEVEN and were aware of their locations.

The issue of the existence of gangs operating in our midst has been publicly debated against the backdrop of the high incidence of crime and in particular, gun related murders. Sadly, this debate too often became caught up in whether gangs existed or in the very definitions of gangs.

This issue became a major point of contention in the recent past when top crime fighter Assistant Superintendent Brenton “Buju” Bailey declared on radio that gangs were operating about our nation. He received public pushback from the then minister responsible for National Security Dr. Ralph Gonsalves who preferred another definition akin to their being loosely associated groupings.

To the public however, the definitions really mattered little. The principal concern of most was what impact such gangs or groups of persons operating in our midst were having on the fabric of our society.

We hear about persons being recruited from very young at schools to sell ganja. We hear of school-aged children living in fear of being bullied for refusing to associate with one or the other grouping or gang. And we are aware that getting to the bottom of this issue has never been and is not going to be a simple matter.

We do have prime breeding grounds in children growing up with parents who themselves suffered from inadequate parenting. Babies making babies one calypsonian quipped. We hear of the possible negative impact on the mind of a fatherless, motherless or an abused child. We hear all kinds of descriptions for remedying what clearly is a major problem of our nation. But what we all recognize is that we have to collectively tackle our problems.

For too long has the issue of truancy and crime been kicked around by politicians to score points before, during, and after election. One party replaces another and the blame begins to be thrown at the other. Vote for me and I’ll set you free. This has been so for decades.

Our new administration therefore has a lot of work on its hands. And no one should expect or demand any miracles. No one should expect that Prime Minister Dr. Friday or his deputy and National Security Minister St Clair Leacock work magic. Just as we did not get where we are in one day, resolution will not be forthcoming tomorrow. And throwing cheap shots is not going to help. But certainly, we expect them to take the lead. Addressing the many sided issues we have with youth and their involvement in crime will require an all hands on deck unified effort. It is not beyond us to unlock the doors to a better future together.