Barbados Democratic Labour Party Unveils Crime Commission to Address Rising Homicides

Thorne criticised a recent announcement by Prime Minister Mia Mottley regarding a new organised crime unit within the police service to deal with gang violence. He argued that this move overstepped legal boundaries.

“The prime minister has gone beyond her legal bounds,” said the senior counsel. “That is a matter for the Commissioner of Police to deal with. The prime minister does not have that power. Under Section 8 of the

Police Act, the Commissioner of Police is responsible for the superintendence and administration of the police force.”

He criticised the government for failing to provide the necessary infrastructure in the courts. “They’ve been boasting about how they increased the number of judges. They increased the number of judges and have failed to provide the infrastructure in the courts that has allowed cases to move at a quicker pace. In other words, the transcription staff and the clerical staff haven’t increased.”

Thorne emphasised the opposition’s commitment to addressing crime and engaging with the public, while also criticising the government’s cultural response to the issue: “We don’t have all of the solutions. We don’t have them all, but we want to engage with them. This government comes and engages with the people when the crisis reaches its highest point.”

The opposition leader was particularly critical of the government’s approach to addressing the issue: “The government has a moral, legal, and political obligation to deal with the question of crime through the Parliament, the passage of laws, the cabinet, and the implementation of policy.”

One of the key solutions proposed by Thorne is the implementation of anti-gang legislation, similar to measures taken in other Caribbean nations: “If they want leadership on the issue of anti-gang legislation, the other countries have done it. We’ve had an attorney general plodding along for the last six years and have not talked about passing anti-gang legislation. It is known in this country that a lot of the crime is localised within gang activity. The logical thing to do is what Jamaica did, what Trinidad did—anti-gang legislation.”

The opposition leader also took aim at what he described as the government’s inadequate cultural response to crime, particularly criticising the promotion of revelry: “This government has promoted revelry at the expense of the rights, interests, and welfare of young children in this country. They’ve gone as far as the young children.”

He cited a specific incident to illustrate his point: “They opened the National Botanical Gardens, and the Barbados Labour Party sponsored an event a few months ago, and there was a DJ standing over a 13-year-old girl who was lying on the stage and gyrating. Now they want a five-minute prayer. It’s a good thing. But everybody at this table is praying every day.”

The DLP crime commission aims to take a grassroots approach to understanding and addressing crime in Barbados. “We will be going into the communities of Barbados,” said the DLP leader. “Into the school halls and church halls, and we will be asking people to literally come and give evidence. What do you know about crime? How is crime affecting you?”

This approach, according to Thorne, contrasts with the government’s method of engaging with the public which he said “engages with the people when the crisis reaches its highest point”.

(RG)