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21st January 2010
UNITING TO FIGHT CRIME
M.G GEORGE

Will the new initiative to fight crime currently being worked out by the Ministry of Home Affairs in collaboration with the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force bring the type of results expected by Saint Lucians?
While this is something to ponder bearing in mind that crime, over the past few years has been on an upward climb, the success of the plan being hatched out by the above entities would depend on several factors.
Police Commissioner Ausbert Regis is already talking about putting more police officers on the streets, and he was referring to the times cruise ships dock at Port Castries and not during special events like carnival time, Christmas time and during the week long Saint Lucia Jazz event.
Even this act, simple as it might look, has its problems chief among them being the budgetary constraints of government to foot the bill for extra men and women for the Police Force.
Senator and Home Affairs Minister Guy Mayers last week noted the budgetary constraints associated with providing the Police Force with what it needs in the fight against crime.
Prime Minister Stephenson King last week spoke on the subject of equipping the Force to fight crime amid a tight budget.
The Prime Minister at the time condemned the shooting of Special Constable Lucan Lesmond who was shot several times by masked men last week, while on his way to work, according to police and not while he was at a bar in the area a report of which was carried in the press.
Police yesterday confirmed that Lucan was not in the bar but was going to the bar for shelter when after he was shot. Lesmond has been discharged from hospital and is now resting at his home.
The Prime Minister said he was disturbed by the shooting and vowed to provide the Police Force with the support it needs to curb crime.
 
 

The Prime Minister was of the view that attacks of that kind, brazen and with a total disregard for law and order will not be tolerated and that the police, mandated to protect citizens and the society cannot sit back and talk about new levels of crime in the country.
Prime Minister King promised that his government will stamp out those kinds of criminal acts and for law enforcement officials to assert their authority on the streets.
The Force has welcomed what appears to be a re-newed commitment from the government to fight crime but noted that government could help the fight against crime even more by putting in place social programmes that would help young people.
The Force was all about social development as a panacea in reducing crime.
But putting more police officers on the streets would require training more than the usual number trained at the Police Academy at La Toc.
In the next few weeks 60 recruits will be graduating from the Academy. This will not inflate the Force membership as expected because while those new ones come in others will be leaving due to retirement and other factors so that, according to Trevor Constantine of the Police Press Office, it will be more of a replacement than an increase in the numbers employed with the Police Force.
Government’s goal however is to place more police officers on the streets to increase police visibility and for the Police Force to assert itself on the streets.
This approach to crime comes on the heels of the shooting of SPC Lesmond, which is still being heavily investigated by police who so far have brought in several men for questioning in connection to the incident. All those brought in for questioning have been released.

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