The successful lawsuits against the Government of Saint Lucia as it relates to the treatment of prisoners came at the right time, with the right government in place I might add. Why? This government, at least at face value, appears to be determined to deal with the social issues and underlying psychological problems that affect crime.
The Prime Minister’s advocacy for the Criminal Backlog Reduction Court and the introduction of Night Court are steps in the right direction and continue to underscore the progressive outlook needed to deal with crime .However, as with this government there is always the sense that they are behind the 8 ball or at least a few years behind in their steps to ameliorate the issues that exist. It is not necessarily an indictment on the Philip J Pierre administration but on those who preceded them and their lack of insight and social and cultural acumen in dealing with issues. There is a growing mental health crisis brewing within our society, beyond the obvious “mad” persons we see out there. Work, family and school life are becoming incredibly strenuous, and the reality is that our mental health services lack the capacity to deal effectively with the load. Mental health is not really a priority; many often shun the idea of mental health days or personal care days in pursuit of self-care. It matters though that self-care is often stigmatized as either lounging by the pool sipping an amaretto sour or a deep tissue massage solely (which is not to discriminate against such avenues). As a society we must first realize how deeply important health care protection and prevention of illness are as we do our physical health. Or else we will suffer the consequences.
There is a sense that in order to solve the crime problem or “more importantly’’ our escalating homicide problem we need to have not only more recruits but more social workers, youth workers and counselors at the school. The question though is are we as a people intuitive enough to understand this and place pressures on our government to ensure that they ensure these areas and safety nets are fully secured if we are to prevent devolving into a chaotic society. Do we have the stomach to ask for added funding at our schools and other institutions to ensure that these needs are met. Are we ready for our lives to be probed into, our forms of parenting and discipline to be adjusted and revisited.
Will we understand the “hit him back” culture we have inculcated within our children rather than teaching conflict resolution and de-escalation?
Are we ready to recognize that crime fighting goes beyond just the boots on the ground and the fighting and continuous refreshing or reorganizing of elite and tactical units to combat the scourge? A systemic approach to deal with these issues must be targeted at those who are quickly becoming our lost boys. The form three appears to be the benchmark between where males are either salvageable or prone to blowing in the wind to becoming part of the criminal element. If one were to visit the RSLPF page in recent times we would be surprised, or perhaps not, as to the ages of persons being arrested for serious crimes such as possession of ammunition and or high-powered weaponry. Therefore, this ‘future’ generation is already at its seams, and we need to understand that prevention or intervention is cheaper than any cure or fix like prison.
There is also a need for us to consider avenues for our youth, especially the boys, to get out their aggression that is not a fete or anything such adjacent. Recreational outlets are often the cinema and the cinema with no arcades or rage rooms or skate parks or the like to encourage the youth to engage with emotion in a safe environment. The cadets, girl guides and scouts of our youth are limited in pockets and appear to lack the value and appeal that they used to have when I lacked grey hair. Moreover, programmes for the youth sprout up only when the children are on vacation, plentiful and necessary then though, but sorely lacking all year round.
Let’s make it our business to deal with societal issues, before they deal with us.