Only a few weeks ago, Foreign Affairs Minister in the federal government of St. Kitts and Nevis and Deputy Premier of Nevis the honorable Mark Brantley, had occasion to address delegates attending the 7th summit of the America's.
Brantley lamented on several key points that resonated with his contemporaries and certainly thousands others privy to his speech. He declared the people of our federation, "Imperfect Vessels Achieving Great Things."
In March, St. Kitts and Nevis Ambassador to the US Ms. Jacinth Henry-Martin shared with the world the new post she will assume this May as Chief of Staff to the OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro, proving her worth as a woman on the world stage and as an accomplished servant of the people. Henry-Martin and Brantley join a cadre of men and women the world over who, with very limited resources, have managed to exceed the expectations of others, shattering walls of doubt and excelling in various aspects of their lives.
Their remarkable stories are in stark contradiction to the growing number of men with promise in our twin island federation who never get the opportunity to live out their dreams or realize their full potential.
Too many young men; fathers, brothers, husbands, uncles, friends with promise have become a news snippet; a sad statistic; their lives cut short by another who schemed successfully to inflict harm upon them.
When the stories of the lives of many of our nation's murdered victims are told, citizens of our budding independent federation will reflect on the loss of potential value to nation building each life bore.
There was a time not long ago when some of our citizens labeled homicides in the federation as merely "gangsters killing gangsters." We shrugged our shoulders on crime when we learned the back stories of some victims of murder. Some of us seriously believed that once these self-proclaimed gangsters annihilated each other, the killing would eventually cease and a sense of normalcy would eventually grace our once peaceful shores.
Instead, the number of homicides has steadily remained over 10 per year since 2009. In fact, for the first quarter of 2015, our people contend that 14 murdered victims in a small independent federation is alarming.
It's not just the number of homicides that is unsettling but also the cold, barbaric and calculating manner in which remorseless criminals pounce upon their unsuspecting victims, before aiming, shooting and destroying. The culture of crime has seeped into our communities and many citizens have become silenced by fear. It's no longer those perceived to be on the wrong side of the law who are victims of murder.
Our leaders must now wrestle with the obvious questions. How can we collectively make inroads to save our boys? What can we do differently as a community to teach our children how valuable they are despite their imperfections? How can we impress upon our next generation that they will face life changing consequences if they refuse to obey society's laws? How can we convince our sons that life in prison is enslavement, disempowerment, and sheer handicap?
Frank Wolf, a former U.S. state congressman once remarked, "We can't just rail against crime. We must speak of the root problems - devastating family breakups, an insidious culture of violence that cheapens human life, skyrocketing prisoner recidivism rates that rob our communities of husbands and fathers - and recognize that there is a societal role in rehabilitation and restoration."
How can we unearth the social ills in our federation that affect victims and perpetrators of crime and seek ways not just to punish offenders but to rehabilitate them?
We begin by canvasing our neighborhoods to weed out our troubled youths who believe life offers no other alternative to solving disputes but to pump bullets in the body of another. Criminal activity involving our youth has a deep root cause. Each unique story is a cry for help. If we can somehow unearth these causes that trigger the breakdown in social behaviors of some of our youth, maybe we can begin to find solutions to crime and ultimately reap favorable results.
We never leave our familiar havens to venture on any new journey in life without directions to help us find our way. The arrival at our destination requires accurate directions. Once we become familiar with a place, we don't easily forget the route by which we first got there; in fact it becomes innate.
So too in life's journey we require a road map; a plan of action to get from one point in our lives to the next.
As imperfect beings who can acquire great things, our children eagerly require a foundation that sets out for them a roadmap for success. Although at times, they will wander from those directions that to them seem archaic, when they are taught from an impressionable age how to be model citizens, they will aspire to achieve great things.
Our law enforcement personnel also requires a roadmap to crime solving.
A well-crafted policy addressing crime in our federation on a short and long term basis ensures that more of our imperfect vessels achieve great things rather than waste away in prison or become victims of homicide.
If we are serious about stemming violent and senseless crime in our federation, we must urgently subscribe to engaging our young men more, involving our communities in a more wholesome way, and shifting gears in our overall seemingly reactive approach to crime fighting.
Imagine having the power to change lives for the better yet doing nothing with that power?
Some of our nation's youth are wandering aimlessly through our communities waiting for a helping hand and not just a handout. Their successes or failures are a reflection of us. More of our imperfect vessels can readily achieve great things when we become as actively involved in solution finding as we are in casting blame.
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