Editorial

Recently someone not belonging to Anguilla, walked down the road with an offensive weapon threatening to harm another youngster (who may also have been at fault) and was taken into custody following a report to the police. If this action was not executed in quick time, one can only surmise that Anguilla may have had another crime to deal with. The reporting of this matter underscores how important it is for members of the public to convey information to the police, about anything they see or know, to enable them to prevent or solve a crime.

The tripartite Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Police, Customs and Immigration Departments on Wednesday, March 10, may be regarded as a necessary tool to help ensure cooperation and homeland security. It is in fact placing on paper an agreement which perhaps was previously thought to be automatic and an obvious expectation under all circumstances when it comes to safeguarding Anguilla on all three fronts. Their duties to protect the territorial integrity of the island are inter-woven to a great extent. They may be seen as separate departments yet the nature of their functioning, when examined, makes them three in one and one in three - each dependent on the other as guardians of the gateways to Anguilla.

At one of his recent press conferences, Commissioner of Police Keithly Benjamin, indicated that there were a number of illegal firearms in Anguilla. No one will challenge this claim when there have been frequent incidents of gunfire reported in some areas of the island culminating in the wounding of a family of three in their Sandy Hill residence last year, the shooting death of Roger Clarke of Old Ta also last year and that of Courtney Hodge of East End in the Forest Bay area just last week.

Anyone who witnessed the handing over of the petition to Governor Peter Johnstone by Jamida Webster’s parents calling for Scotland Yard to investigate her brutal murder might have had it hard to restrain a tear. The occasion not only brought back painful memories of the perplexing crime that shocked the island, but the difficulties to access the evidence particularly to get people believed to have useful information to speak out. The long delay in solving the crime has been a frustrating and vexing experience for the grieving family, the people of the island in general and the police.

The march against crime two weeks ago, part of a series of activities to commemorate the 32nd Anniversary of the Royal Anguilla Police Force, may have sent some small message to criminals and other would-be law-breakers that the community is angry about their deviant behaviour. The rally was a show of protest mainly by youth and community organisations. It lacked however the involvement of the greater mass of members of the public. They should have gone forward not only to inflate the number of marchers, but to demonstrate their solidarity with the younger folk, their disgust with the acts of crime cropping up in our society and their call for the active pursuit and punishment of offenders.

The above question is not to be taken lightly. The fact is that our community appears to be changing rapidly and the spirit of self-help and civic responsibility may be disappearing. There is a need for the jollification days of old to return when everyone helped each other and worked together for the common good of the island. One only has to take a look at the overgrowth which is closing in on some of our village roads following the recent rains to see how absent is the community spirit. Nobody in the neighbourhoods seems willing either individually or collectively to trim the trees or remove litter rather than waiting on the public services to do everything.

Life is not easy in Anguilla these days and even the Government which is supposed to be the provider for the people in so many ways is having difficulty meeting its obligations. One of the steps taken to curtail expenditure is what is regarded as a freeze on employment in the public service. Certainly there is no reason to unnecessarily inflate the number of employees in the sector beyond what is really required to adequately staff the various departments.

On many fronts 2004, which is still only days old, is going to be a challenging year not just for Anguilla and its Caribbean neighbours but the world at large. The thing about this region is that whatever affects the international scene impacts squarely on the economies and peoples of this area and all of a sudden we realise how dependent we are on the outside countries and how vulnerable we are when they falter. The saying is true that when America sneezes, the rest of the world (and certainly the Caribbean region in particular) catches a cold.

Whoever arranged for the group of students to attend Tuesday’s session of the Anguilla House of Assembly should be complimented. For too long we find ourselves talking about preparing our young people to take an active interest in important matters pertaining to national life and development. The fact is, however, that they are often denied that opportunity and dismissed as being too young, not ready or in the worse cases disinterested and irresponsible. Surely, if nobody is willing to encourage and involve them in the affairs of the island and offer them a helping hand in that regard, it is difficult to accuse them of disinterest.

It is becoming increasingly clear that some of the burglaries reported in Anguilla have a cross-border involvement from St. Martin. It is understood that investigations are now taking place in both islands relating to a recent burglary at East End, here in Anguilla, where a motor cycle and other items were stolen from a residence. To add insult to injury a fishing boat, which later disappeared from Sile Bay, was discovered abandoned and wrecked in Grand Case. It is said that motor cycle wheel tracks were found at Sile Bay. The suspicion is that the boat was used to ferry the loot across the water.

Editorial
IMPROVING THE WORK ETHIC

One of the things that often gives rise to negative comments in Anguilla, with good reason is the attitude to work by employees in the public and private sectors.

The view has long been held that in order to be in Government there must be consensus and unison on every issue among its members.

Successive Commissioners of Police in Anguilla over the years have complained openly about the lack of personnel to properly police the island.

The deliberate and obvious inclusion of youth at the programme for the observance of CARICOM Day on June 29th at the Christian Fellowship Church was a gesture full of symbolic undertones. Intentionally or unintentionally, it articulated that youth do have a rightful place in political affairs.

This week David Carty has again brought the issues of constitutional reform to the forefront. It may beg the question by some people: ‘Who wants to think of a constitution and constitutional reform in the face of high prices and mounting bills?’

No one needs to be convinced that our youth are an endangered group in our population. It is with this view that we hail the efforts of the Anguilla Football Association to continue to develop football on the island. Sport is just one discipline where the character of our youth can be moulded, and their energies harnessed in a positive, productive manner.

There seems to be a crescendo of voices among the populace in Anguilla which is worth listening to by those in positions of governance and in other leadership roles on the island. The people are saying that they want to hear from their political leaders on a number of matters which are worrying them and affecting their every day lives. They point to the recent increase of fees for telecommunications services; the high price of food items as businesses pass on some of their operational costs to the consumers; taxes; unemployment particularly for the large number of school leavers who will shortly be looking for jobs in the public and private sectors; further job opportunities for bread winners in general and the list of complaints go on and on.

The coming establishment of a Health Authority within the next six months to manage the delivery of health services is a major step for a small island like Anguilla. It is perhaps a desperate move, but at the same time a well thought out plan, to place the services under a different and more professional and workable system to guarantee better returns in health care and administration. As an up-market tourism destination and at a time when there are greater demands on our social services, we cannot afford to have our medical and health sector in disarray and in some areas perhaps dysfunctional.

Imagine Anguillian men and women who are 40 years old today, know nothing about the 1967 Revolution, the 36th Anniversary of which we are now celebrating. They were far too young to understand or retain anything about the political event.

The point has been made to the United Nations Special Committee of 24 on Decolonisation that the will of the Anguillian people must not be misunderstood when it comes to self-determination. Indeed our turbulent history reveals that we are a fiercely-independent-minded people, never liked subjugation from any outside power, as the courageous battles against the French and Wild Irish invasions of the 18th century demonstrated. The upheaval and rebellion against union with, and dominance by St. Kitts over a century and a half, culminating in the 1967 revolution and quest for self-determination, was another demonstration of our resolve to handle our own affairs without foreign force or interference.