"A WAR ON CRIME"
SPEECH BY
HONOURABLE MR LESTER B BIRD
PRIME MINISTER
AT THE END OF POLICE WEEK
ON FRIDAY, 5TH SEPTEMBER 2003

This week in our annual calendar gives us the unique opportunity every year to focus on the brave men and women who comprise our Police Force.

These men and women are in the forefront of the fight for the safety of our country, for the protection of our homes and property, for the security of our children.

Everyday, they put their personal well-being on the line for the rest of us. Just think what would happen if they did not exist, if they were unwilling to answer the calls for help, if they did not stand between criminals and their victims.

These men and women deserve our thanks for the job they do. They deserve our respect. They deserve our praise.

Mr Chairman, our country today faces many challenges, among them is crime.

My government will not deny these challenges, we will not ignore them, we will not pass them along to other governments, other police forces and other generations.

We will confront them with concentration, courage and clarity.

This is why I recently established a Task Force on Crime headed by the Minister of Public Safety.

My government will not allow crime to erode the significant gains that our country enjoys. Nor will we permit it to compromise our capacity to attract investment and grow our tourism industry.

Principally, we will not allow crime to threaten the freedom of our people or to rob them of the assets they have worked hard to acquire.

We are already tough on crime, and we will get tougher.
No person in this society - young or old - should have his or her life ended at the hands of a thief, nor should he or she be crippled by the bullet of an assailant's gun.

This society says no. Every well thinking person says no. My government says no.

And, I expect the men and women upon whom we focus this week - the men and women of the Police Force - to redouble their efforts to make Antigua and Barbuda safe for its people.

Let the word go out. Let it go far and wide. Let it go up to the hill-tops and down into the valleys - my Government has declared war on crime.

Over the last few years my Government's focus on criminal activities has led to Antigua and Barbuda experiencing one of the lowest levels of violent crime in the Caribbean.

As an example, the number of people murdered in Jamaica in the first eight months of this year totals 571. In Trinidad and Tobago, the figure is 109. In Antigua and Barbuda we have had 3.

This is not an unusual statistic. To illustrate my point, last year there were 1,040 murders in Jamaica, 171 in Trinidad and Tobago, 152 in Guyana and 9 in Antigua and Barbuda.

But while these figures demonstrate that Antigua and Barbuda's situation is better than others, let me make it clear that even one murder is too many for my Government.

Nothing justifies the wanton taking of a life.

One murder, therefore, is one murder too many.

Incidentally, because the crime figures in Guyana and Jamaica are high, and because we have sizeable communities of Guyanese and Jamaicans in Antigua, I am aware of the popular belief that the majority of crimes here are perpetrated by Guyanese and Jamaicans.

This is not so.

And, it is time that we put an end to this myth. For in looking in the wrong direction, we will fail to see the principal source of our problem.

Our prison population, excluding six who are at large, now stands at 173, of which 132 or 76 per cent are Antiguans and Barbudans. This figure clearly indicates that the majority of crimes in our society are committed by our own people.

This is not to say that foreigners do not commit crimes here. They do. But, the danger in believing that the majority of crimes are committed by foreigners is that we may place so much emphasis on them that we ignore the main areas of criminal activity.

At the moment, of the 173 persons in prison, there are 12 Jamaicans, 7 Guyanese, 7 Dominicans and 6 UK citizens. The majority of them are in jail for drug-trafficking offences. Of the others, 3 are from St Vincent, 2 are from the Dominican Republic, another 2 are Americans, one is St Lucian and another one is from Trinidad.

Of the 3,172 crimes reported in 2002, foreigners committed only 68 or 2.4% of them. And, of the 68 crimes, 19 were for the possession of drugs. Guyanese committed 0.6% of the reported crimes in 2002, Jamaicans 0.3%. Dominicans 0.4%, Dominican Republicans 0.1%, and British 0.1%. Others, such as Belizians, Americans, Kittians and Vincentians committed 1 crime each. This means that our own nationals committed 97.6% of the crimes in 2002.

Mr Chairman, let me make it clear that even though it is a fact that our own nationals commit the majority of crimes in Antigua and Barbuda, I am still concerned about any foreigner with a criminal background entering the country.

I have already instructed the Labour Department, the Immigration Department and the Police to strengthen significantly the checks on foreign persons seeking work permits or any other status here.

We must weed out such persons from the outset.

The society must not be made to pay for the negligence of those who are our gatekeepers.

I will insist on high standards and best practices in the diligent investigation of those who seek to enter and remain in our country.
I know that the vast majority of the foreign communities in our country join me in insisting on such high standards of investigation because they are hard-working, law-abiding people who are making an invaluable contribution to this country. They do not want to suffer for the transgressions of a few of their unworthy countrymen.

Mr Chairman over the last two decades, our little country has accomplished much. We have had spectacular results in our economic growth - unbroken except for 1995 when Hurricane Luis destroyed three years of our GDP in 36 hours.

We have lifted the standard of education. Today we have more university educated young people from Antigua and Barbuda than ever in our history. And while scholarships payments have been tardy these past two years, nonetheless we have more students getting a University education on government scholarships than at any other time.

More of our people own their own homes, own land, own and operate businesses than at any time in our history.

My Government has a duty of care to its people. A duty to ensure that all they have attained is protected; a duty to safeguard both their person and their property.

Part of fulfilling that duty of care is to provide a Police Force dedicated to fighting crime. We are doing that, and we will do even more by giving the Police more resources with which to defend and protect the society.

But, a significant part of fulfilling that duty is also to ensure that we maintain low unemployment. For every person out of a job, every person who cannot feed himself or his family, every person who suffers in poverty and deprivation becomes susceptible to crime.

This is why my Government has steadfastly refused to dismiss 4,000 persons from the public service. It is why we will continue not to sever them until there are enough jobs in the private sector to absorb them.

Were we to put 4,000 people out of work, what effect would it have on crime?

We must recall that those 4,000 persons also have others who depend on them. Were they not able to provide for their children and others, is there not a likelihood that they could be forced into a life of crime? Would we not be creating a society of half-haves and half have-nots? And would that not be a prescription for chaos?
This is why I have appealed to those public servants whose salaries and wages are delayed, to be patient and tolerant. It is not that they won't be paid, they will be paid even if payments are late. But, late payments ensure that everyone is paid. It ensures that the pie is shared equitably. It ensures that none go without and we maintain a society that is not overrun with crime.

The crime statistics tell an interesting story.

The majority of crimes in Antigua and Barbuda are burglaries and break-ins. In 2002, of 3,172 reported crimes, 1,383 of them were burglaries and break-ins, and 799 were thefts and other stealing. If we could eliminate these incidents, we would reduce by half the number of crimes here.

Incidentally, this has been the pattern for a number of years.

What this tells us is that, apart from those persons who are pathological thieves, we could eliminate much of the crime in our society if we could effectively tackle the causes of burglaries and break-ins.

Many of these crimes are committed by young, unemployed persons - some of them are addicted to drugs and rob to pay for their drug habit. Addiction crowds out friendship, ambition, moral conviction, and reduces all the richness of life to a single destructive desire.

Other offenders are drop-outs from the system - those who passed through the education system without success largely because of a lack of stable families. They have found security in gangs and in a criminal underworld.

This is a problem that has to be tackled and tackled swiftly.

But, Mr Chairman, while no-one could deny that poverty, dysfunctional family background, and low aspiration play a part in making the criminal, equally no one can argue that those circumstances excuse crime.

It is the victims of crime that are vulnerable. It is they who must be protected, even as we attempt to deal with the causes of crime.

Therefore, Mr Chairman, even as the Task Force on Crime is conducting its study, there are measures that can - and must - be taken.

We must tackle the causes of crime: To do so, the society itself has a responsibility.

The best defence against crime is stronger families and a stronger sense of personal
responsibility. I recall the days when every person in the neighbourhood kept watch over the behaviour of young people. We must see a return to those days, when parents encourage their friends and neighbours to guide young people, to report their transgressions, to counsel them. We must see a return to better discipline from parents. Teachers, too, need to take a more active interest in young people. Deviant behaviour does not start when persons reach adulthood. It can be seen in schools, and teachers have a responsibility to detect it and with the co-operation of parents to put programmes in place to address it.

The Government itself also has a responsibility. Over the years, we have invested a great deal of money in youth activities to keep bored youngsters off the streets after school and during holidays. Basketball courts and other sports activities are testimony to this. Now the Government's programme must include mentors at these recreational facilities. These mentors must give guidance and counsel to young people, identify where they need help, and recruit them for programmes where they could be trained to make a decent living outside of crime.

We must also crack down on anti-social behaviour. This includes vandalism and street crime not done by big criminals but by young people.

It is alarming that there are now eight gangs operating in Antigua whose activities law enforcement officers say is the major problem they face today.

The numbers in these gangs are said to range between 60 and 10. They are called:

• The Red Shirt gang
  
• The White Shirt gang
  
• The Mad People Family
  
• The Stone Cutters Crew
  
• Royal Flock
  
• 110 Gang
  
• Teflon Gang, and
  
• Storm Gangsters.

The membership of these gangs comprise young persons, some of whom are only 14 years and others as old as 35, but primarily they are between 14 and 25 years. In total, the gang members number 200 persons. At least two of these gangs were formed and are led by persons who lived in the United States, one of whom was deported to Antigua after committing criminal offences.

These gangs are involved in robberies, serious wounding, drug trafficking and assaults on persons. At least one of them has also been involved in causing disturbances at schools. Three members of one of them have been charged with murdering a Police Inspector who was in a shop they were robbing. These three are now in prison awaiting trial this month.

The Police are active in monitoring the gangs and there has been an increase in patrols.

But more has to be done.

These gangs are a menace to society, and while individual members may be the products of single-parent homes and deprived conditions, there can be no justification for their criminal activities.

Therefore, the Police will have to be given new powers to tackle this kind of disorder. The Government is considering legislation that will hold the parents of underage children responsible for their behaviour, as well as restrictions on bail, tougher sentences and secure accommodation, even for the very young who are out of control.

It is imperative that these gangs be stamped out of our society.

Every opportunity will be given to the gang members to break away from the gangs, to reform, to be trained for proper employment and to lead productive lives. But, if they persist in anti-social behaviour to the detriment of law-abiding citizens, they will be dealt with harshly.

I make this warning now. My government is willing to help rehabilitate gang members, but we will not tolerate threats of any kind to the well being of the public.

On the matter of drugs, it is well known that the Government has provided the legal framework to stop the illicit trafficking in narcotics. The Misuse of Drugs Act was passed in 1973 and we have strengthened it by amendments in 1975, 1979, 1982, 1987, 1989 and 1993. Despite these laws and the introduction of strong machinery for the interdiction of drugs, trafficking has continued as has drug abuse.

The time has now come for us to end the vicious circle of drug related crime that accounts for a large proportion of burglary and break-in offences.

We have brought in tougher sentences for drug traffickers and those who deal in hard drugs.

More has to be done in the enforcement of the law.

The Government will increase the resources of the Police Force particularly the Drug Squad. Consequently, there must be full use of the many techniques available to the Force to bring those who commit these crimes to justice.

On the other hand, the magistracy needs to deal more firmly with drug trafficking offenders. If it comes to it, the Government will give the Director of Public Prosecutions the power to take sentences that are manifestly inadequate to the Court of Appeal.

What we need is a criminal justice system that identifies not just some, but every drug addicted offender and every drug trafficking offender, at every stage of the criminal justice system - from arrest, to bail, to the sentencing decision - and which aims to get each one of them off drugs and away from crime; or put them in custody.

Our society must be protected from the consequences of both drug trafficking and drug abuse.

I come now to illegal firearms. Illegal firearms which are used to kill or threaten people do not get into our country by magic. They are either smuggled in or they are provided to offenders by persons who were given them for some legitimate purpose for which they applied.

In any event, my Government intends to be extremely tough on illegal firearms. We already have the legislation in place that empowers the police and the magistracy to deal effectively with this problem.

The Firearms Act that was passed in 1973 was strengthened in 1986 and again in 1989.

In light of the use of illegal firearms to commit robberies and to kill and maim persons, I believe the time has come to strengthen the law even more.
The crippling of young John Hewitt Winter at Food Emporium Supermarket, in the most gruesome of circumstances, underscores in my mind the absolute necessity, of not only strengthening the Firearms Act, but enforcing it vigorously. While I take this opportunity to sympathise once again with his family and friends, and of wishing him well, I am resolved to do all in my power to ensure that his case is not repeated.

Therefore, I propose to introduce to Parliament an amendment to the law providing that the penalty for any crime aggravated by the possession or use of any firearm should be greatly increased.

At the same time, I expect to see increased vigilance by the Customs Department and the Police to rid our country of illegal firearms. Equally, I expect that the magistracy would grasp the mood of this nation which is to impose the stiffest penalties on persons who smuggle or assist in any way with the smuggling of firearms into Antigua and Barbuda, and upon those found to be in possession of such firearms.

I return now to the men and women who are the focus of our attention during this special week - the Police of Antigua and Barbuda.

You are our front line in the war against crime. We expect you to do your duty, and in doing so to employ tactics and practices that will win the support of the people in every village and of the media.

This may call for a change in your traditional method of operations. It will certainly call for more openness with the media and more communication with the people in communities across the country.

A greater level of trust and confidence has to be reposed in the Police even while they are carrying out their duties.

If that desired level of trust could be achieved, the Police may well find that both the people in every street and village and in the media will become willing collaborators in the fight against crime.

I am well aware that conditions under which the Police carry out their vital role are not ideal. They should be better compensated and their compensation ought to include a package of benefits such as better pay, access to land and mortgages to build homes, and insurance for high-risk operations.
They also need to be better resourced with vehicles, equipment and even well outfitted mobile police stations in certain trouble spots.

I give this solemn promise. In the next Budget, I will personally ensure a greater allocation of resources for the Police Force than it now gets. For you put your lives on the line for the rest of us. It is only right that we should recognise your worth and reward you for it.

Even before a new Budget, I would be interested in hearing from you of ways in which the Government can improve your conditions within the reality of our present constraints.

Mr Commissioner of Police, members of the Police Force, as you end this week of activities that focuses on your work, let me assure you that we, the people of this nation, recognise that your task is hard, and your burden heavy.

We are grateful for what you do. We ask that you keep on doing it, and in the process, keep this nation safe.

Thank you.