Fellow Anguillians, residents and well-wishers of our beloved Anguilla. I bring you greetings for a new week and trust that the following message will resonate with us all and lead to a united effort to preserve Anguilla. However, I recognize that this address comes on the heels of our Mothers’ Day Celebration, so I extend belated Mothers’ Day greetings to all of our amazing Moms (biological and adopted), as well as our dads, aunts, sisters, cousins etc., who have played, and continue to play the role of a mother in one way or the other. I trust that your day with family, friends and other loved ones was well spent and will long be remembered.
But while we are in the season of celebrating the ones who give birth to precious life, we are also in a season of mourning the loss of life – and our mourning is not due to natural causes. It is a season where life is taken away from us in the most heartless and unapologetic fashion. It is not lost on us that, over the past few weeks and months in particular, our children and young persons have been exposed to a heightened level of gun violence in this our quiet, peaceful island. I therefore feel a personal and moral sense of responsibility as Leader of the Opposition, to publicly address this spate of violence that is eating away at our society. It is fast becoming a cancer in our society and must not be treated with silence.
In the spirit of love, peace and togetherness, I pause, on behalf of the Anguilla United Front Party and Members of the Opposition in the Anguilla House of Assembly, to extend our deepest condolences to those mothers, fathers, and other family members who have recently lost loved ones due to gun violence. By the same token, I convey best wishes to those who are recovering from related injuries.
Fellow Anguillians, it is an irrefutable fact that violence in all its forms has serious negative effects on our small island community. Apart from the fear it inflicts on communities, gun violence encourages migration and loss of able-bodied citizens to other countries; it tears families apart; it discourages tourists from choosing Anguilla as a vacation spot; it discourages foreign investment; and it retards the growth of local businesses. And yes, my people, violence touches every Anguillian or resident in a way that activates feelings of anger and revenge. After all, from East End to West End, we are all neighbours, friends and family. We all know each other, our children, our parents and great grandparents. And so, a painful hollow is left each time one of us is taken too soon – or worse yet – every time someone is gunned down. I wish to use this medium, then, to not only condemn the acts of violence, but ALSO to appeal for peace and love across the island.
Fellow Anguillians, my reaction to gun violence as an individual and as Leader of Opposition has not just begun. I can specifically recall that at the last sitting of the Anguilla House of Assembly on 9th May 2023, I publicly expressed my deep concern with respect to the recent incidents. At that sitting, I urged the members of Government to take this issue in hand as a matter of urgency and to work towards preventing the kinds of situations that are taking place in other parts of the world from taking root here in Anguilla. Little did I know, that my words would prove prophetic when two days later a gun incident occurred during a high school physical education class and sent shock waves across the school’s community and across the entire island. And while some might say that nothing detrimental actually happened on that occasion, I believe that what transpired is enough to warrant a pragmatic treatment of this localized issue and the broader issues at hand.
We as Opposition members feel obligated to share our ideas and, where necessary, expertise, we are more than willing to come to the table with government to brainstorm, devise, and decide on a comprehensive plan of action to address these issues in a holistic way. But we believe that innovation is key, and so a targeted approach to addressing the factors that are the root cause of school and community violence is even more critical. It is for this reason that I have today written to the Premier, the Honourable Dr. Ellis Lorenzo Webster to re-confirm the Opposition Members’ interest and willingness to participate in a joint committee to discuss this important issue of gun violence and arrive at real solutions to the same.
You see, my dear people, community violence is NOT a political issue! It is a national issue, with far reaching national consequences. This increase in acts of violence signals that we simply CANNOT relax. It certainly is time for all hands to come on deck with the one goal, one mission – to protect our people and save our country. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child. This saying is as true today as it was many years ago.
As I draw to a close, I want to encourage all of us to continue to show love and concern for each other. To all parents and caregivers, let us pay closer attention to our children and our young people, and let us ensure that we are doing all that we can to steer them away from the negative influences that are no doubt present in our country.
Yes, my people! The time to act is NOW. Each one of us has a responsibility to ourselves and to our communities. If not now, then when? And if not you, then who? Let us band together to protect Anguilla. Let us move forward in unity and work towards a violent-free Anguilla.
God Bless You and God Bless Anguilla
15th May 2023
