Rajiv Gopie logo3
Donstan Bonn
The government of any country comes in for a beating any time there is a problem. It seems like a logical response, given that the government is responsible for overseeing a country and ensuring good governance. Understandably, then, when there are issues related to defence, natural disasters, public unrest, etc, the government is called to account.
One of the principal functions of any government is the formulation, passing and implementation of laws. Laws, as defined in legal statutes, outline appropriate conduct, procedures and punishments for infractions. Laws, however, are nothing more than words typed in ink on sheets of paper. The power of laws comes not from their passing or proclamation, but from implementation and, more importantly, from the acceptance of the populace.
Our country is in the grip of a crime epidemic. The media is supersaturated with reports of rapes, robberies, assaults and murders. All the while victims, families of victims, interest groups and civil society are calling on the State to solve crime. But can the Government really "solve crime"? Is crime a single identifiable phenomenon that can be, like a virus, treated with a shot or a pill?
Crime is complex and ever changing. There are possibly millions of articles and studies done on the many facets of crime, its roots and effects, etc. What I will be focusing on are the social and popular attitudes that fuel crime and the inability of laws, even if fully enforced, to do much by way of rectification in the face of cultural resistance.
Popular norms and values within Trinidad and Tobago do much to birth, nurture and protect criminals and the perpetration of crime. The average citizen who, without question, buys commodities and goods off strangers on the streets because they are a steal of a deal, knows even subconsciously they are probably buying stolen or ill-gotten goods. Receiving stolen property is a crime that is covered in our statute books, but the police do not do much to stop it; but, more importantly, the average "law-abiding" citizen sees no problem in receiving these goods.
Cultures of silence and protection also foster crime and criminals. Parents, families and associates of people who have no job, no form of income, yet always have money or jewelry turn a blind eye to the obvious ciminal in their midst. Furthermore the unwillingness of citizens to come forward with information or report what they have seen has been one of the major reasons why there are many criminals walking the streets. "Dat is not my business" is the popular refrain. It is indeed true that State witnesses have a tendency to be killed, but there are alternative means of reporting criminal activities, such as Crime Stoppers, that can be done securely and anonymously.
A further testament to our cultural breeding of criminal activity goes to the acceptance of violence as a legitimate form of expression. The condoning of fighting among young men as "boys being boys" sets the stage for later killings and assaults. On that note, we don't even like to recognise incidents as assaults, which carry legal ramifications, and instead refer to them as a fight or somebody get a good cut-a**.
Violence is also condoned in the family unit. A man beating his wife is termed as "bedroom business" and not worthy of the time of the community or the police. Parents beating their children beyond reasonable force is also ignored as "dem business", and a blind eye is turned to child abuse.
Violence on weekends at bars, fetes, during Carnival time, etc, are all chalked up to legitimate means of dealing with a problem or an issue, and are not seen for what they are: crimes. When we begin to turn a blind eye or, even worse, accept some violence as understandable and reasonable, we are sowing the seeds of societal destruction. When we agree a man who gets "horn" has the right to break his wife's bones and hospitalise the "horner man", we are condoning the disregard for human life. We all think it's fine and well and maybe even just desserts, until it is our daughters or sons who end up being the affected victims.
Disregard for traffic regulations, for personal property, paying bribes, vengeance and blood lust are all deeply ingrained aspects of our culture. Of course many people will disagree and will vehemently deny they have violent tendencies or support violence, but when cases of child molestation and murder come forward our blood lust surges, we call for street justice and capital punishment.
Some may argue this is only "natural" in the face of horror, but I challenge this convenient and myopic use of the word "natural" by pointing to Norway where, in 2011, a lone gunman systematically killed over 70 young people after detonating a bomb that killed eight people in one of the most gruesome and atrocious massacres in peace time.
In the face of losing promising youngsters, public reaction was not to re-impose the death penalty (most polls revealed support under 20 per cent), but rather to respond with due process, justice and law.
No number of laws passed can change the mind of a killer who sets out to take revenge for a slight. No number of statutes can blunt the urges and lust of a paedophile as he/she seeks out a child to abuse. These are forces that need to be contained and policed by vigilant and open communities.
Society, family units, support services and civil groups are the ones who have the power to sway people from crime, or at least ensure they are held accountable. In no way is the Government given a free pass as it is its responsibility to successfully prosecute criminals and develop rehabilitation programmes, but society also has a part to play.
We need to change our cultures of silence, shame, violence and indifference if we are to control crime. Laws can only do so much and they are only given power if citizens respect and follow them.
• Rajiv Gopie won the President's
Medal in 2006 for business/modern
studies. He is an MSc candidate in
international relations at the
London School of Economics.
—rajivgopie@hotmail.com
