Last Updated on July 26, 2024, 2:39 AM AST by Anthony Morris
St Kitts and Nevis: Prime Minister Dr Terrance Drew presented an address to the nation over the issue of increasing crime and violence in the twin-island Federation on July 24, 2024. He pledged to curb the crime by prioritizing national security.
Through the Ministry of National Security, the Government aims to discuss the increase of crime and violence, bringing together the senior government officials, along with the law enforcement personnel, civil society, non-governmental organisations, the youth and more for wide-ranging discussions.
Prime Minister Drew explained his objective and said that they should detect, charge and prosecute the destructive persons which are involved in the criminal activities. He also pledged to strengthen the intelligence capabilities of the security forces.
He further assured that two-thirds of the homicides were gang-related, and he explained that the increase in violence was due to significant money and sophisticated weapons that has been used in gang activity.
PM Drew vowed that there would be an expansion of the CCTV infrastructure island-wide and other instalments that would help in gathering evidence.
During the address, he also highlighted that every life is precious, therefore they cannot tolerate the wilful violence that has resulted in the unacceptable increase in the number of homicides over the last two decades in the Federation, and particularly the loss of life over the past few days.
The Prime Minister has also extended condolences to the loves and closed ones of the victims of the families on behalf of the government, the people of the federation, and his family.
The National Security Council Minister, Dr Drew, assured that they meet weekly to ensure that the strong policies are created to sustain a safe environment, which is responsible for any government supported by its people.
Notably, the new policies led have shown a 50% increase in the detection of homicides for this year but PM Drew said that that is still is not good enough for him and that the national security will find the criminals and put them in jail if they didn’t change their lifestyles.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
