Check UNODC Report

01.June.07

EDITOR: On Thursday, 3rd May 2007, the World Bank and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) published a joint report stating, among other things, that the Caribbean region has the highest murder rate in the world, that three of the top ten recorded rape rates in the world are from Caribbean countries, that the crime situation is having a serious negative impact on business and economic development in the region, and that the illegal drug trade – particularly in cocaine – is largely responsible for our crime and developmental problems. {{more}}It calls on developed countries to do their part in the fight against crime and gives recommendations on crime prevention and reduction.

The report does not feature St. Vincent and the Grenadines as prominently as Jamaica, but we did get some dishonourable mentions. According to the report, the latest data (which are from as far back as 2002) show that we have the third highest murder rate (after Jamaica and the Bahamas), the second highest recorded rape rate (after the Bahamas) and the second highest reported youth unemployment rate (after St. Lucia) in the Caribbean.

Thursday, 31st May makes four weeks since the report was released. Yet, at the time this letter was submitted to the newspapers, to the best of my knowledge, neither the government nor the opposition has made a single statement informing the public of this report. They have not publicly praised it, criticised it or called for caution in interpreting its findings. In addition to this, with inaction that marks them as collaborators in this silence, the media and the relevant parts of civic society have publicly said little or nothing about this report.

When will the government and the opposition tell Vincentians about this report? Why have they waited so long? If by some cosmic chance they don’t know about it, they may read the full report at www.worldbank.org/oecs and do now what they should have done almost a month ago.

Kamal Wood