Keep violence out of Carnival – Soca Dans

LIME Soca Dans artistes Delroy “Fireman” Hooper and Rondy “Luta” McIntosh are appealing to the Vincentian public not to use the carnival season to “stir up” criminal activities.{{more}}

The two mega artistes, who headlined the 2013 Hairoun Mayreau Regatta Saturday night line-up, condemned the actions of individuals who choose to commit crimes during the season.

Following their hyped performance at the Mayreau hard court, which ran into the wee hours of Sunday morning, the artistes, after taking a breather, briefly told SEARCHLIGHT that they were saddened by the news of the young man who was killed that morning.

Rose Place resident Devon Jahjus Steele, 33, met his death in the wee hours of May 5.

A police report stated that Steele sustained gunshot wounds to the back of his head and chest.

Later that day, 27-year-old Naphtali Diaz of Paul’s Avenue was shot dead. That incident occurred sometime around 10 p.m. on Sunday, in Paul’s Avenue, and according to police, Diaz died after sustaining bullet wounds to the head and chest.

In a more in depth interview on Monday, seven-time Soca Monarch, Fireman Hooper, said while the incidents may not be related to

carnival, the fact that they occurred during the season does not reflect positively.

“Carnival was officially launched the Saturday, right? And by Sunday morning one youth shot and killed and another later that night.

“No, that’s not what we want in our festival,” said Hooper, who last won the soca monarch crown in 2011 with his rendition, “Animal.”

Meanwhile, the “tight spot” singer, Luta, said it was unfortunate that the shootings had to occur during the carnival launch weekend.

“Criminal activities always hamper carnival celebrations, but when you listen to the stories, it’s just unfortunate that these crimes happen around the same time, but I don’t think they are really carnival related crimes,” he said.

The artiste said his enjoyment of the weekend in Mayreau was overshadowed after he learned about the shootings.

“We’re here in Mayreau, giving the locals a taste of what’s to expect for Vincy Mas 2013 … only to learn that gun violence took the lives of two young men on the mainland.

“It’s a very sad feeling, my brother,” he added.

Both artistes are, however, confident that the recent violence will not “hamper too much” the Vincy Mas 2013 celebrations.

“We all have a part to play. Artistes, revellers, bystanders, everyone who, each year, comes out to enjoy Vincy Mas will have to work together to ensure that violence does not have a negative impact on our celebrations,” said Luta.

“Love in the music. That’s what Soca Dans are about.

“We sing songs for people to enjoy themselves and have a good time and we’ve gotten off to a bad start, but with love, I know we can continue the season on a violent free note and make Vincy Mas 2013 live up to its slogan, ‘the hottest carnival in the Caribbean’”, Fireman Hooper stated. (AA)