Letter To The Editor

The Editor
The Anguillian

Dear Sir,

We commend Mimi Gratton for her courage in telling her horrific story in “The Anguillian”. When the attack took place on Mimi and her daughter April 7th, followed two nights later by the attack on a visitor to a house on the Jerry Gumbs Highway, the AHTA and the Anguilla Tourist Board awakened the slumbering police leadership to the gravity of the developing situation and the danger to the tourism industry on Anguilla. The public is relieved that the police have promised to pass on crime information to the radio and newspapers. The newly formed police liaison committee is certainly a step towards transparency and addresses from the Chief Minister about community involvement are a sign of leadership.

The police proposals to the AHTA meeting were a start, but the focus of this meeting was obviously the crime against visitors. It was not acknowledged that the average victim of crime on Anguilla is not a tourist but an Anguillian. As stoic and long suffering as Anguillians are, it is safe to say that a substantial number of incidents go unreported.

We had no idea when our home invasion (armed robbery) occurred on March 4th, that we were just the tip of the iceberg of crime on Anguilla. Within the week, the Lockrum attack had taken place, and we began to compare notes and hear reports from other people, Anguillians and expats alike, who had personally experienced the rising level of crime on Anguilla. Two taxi drivers told us how sorry they were about our robbery and suggested that if we passed around a petition, requesting more help from the Governor for the RAPF, that they would sign it and get others to do so as well.

Television has desensitized us all to crime violence, but when it takes place on a personal level, in your own bedroom, everything changes. We became sensitive to the experiences of other island residents. During this month we have met so many Anguillians who have told us their crime stories and the lack of confidence in the police so much so that many don’t bother to call up with a report. If you don’t report even small crimes, how will the police know how much crime is out there? If several people call in with similar crimes, there is a better chance that enough evidence can be gathered to put the perpetrators away.

Could Mimi and the island visitor have been spared their nightmare had the police handled the Lockrum case differently? That is something we will probably never know.However, according to the Chief Minister’s address, the crime rate nearly doubled in March over February to a figure of 87! The long awaited Police Report of April 10 called Anguilla crime “relatively low”. Relative to what… Kingston, Jamaica? Port of Spain, Trinidad? An island of less than 15,000 people should not have a crime rate averaging 3 incidents a day. The fact of the matter is that criminals have been emboldened by the low incidence of arrests and convictions.
We firmly believe that resources must be found to import investigative leadership that can provide the training and experience the RAPF currently lacks. The 20 green recruits touted by the police leadership to arrive at the end of the year, will have absolutely no effect on crime unless they are led by example by one who has survived the crucible of real world crime fighting. We don’t need help tomorrow! We need help today! Sign the petition today to send a clear message to the government.

If you want your voice heard, you may add your name to more than 1000 Anguillians who have already signed the crime petition to express their concern to the government. Drop by the one of the following locations by: Blowing Point Gas Station, West End Gas Station, Foods 95, Anguilla Drugstore, NAPA Auto Parts and Caribbean Cable Connection

Sincerely,
Althea & Bob Turner