Fellow Anguillians, Residents of Anguilla
The start of this New Year has been met with the very disturbing news of not only shooting incidents but also the unfortunate killing of a young 27-year-old man on Thursday, 4th January 2024. On behalf of the members of the Anguilla United Front Party, we extend deepest and heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of all persons who have been affected by gun violence.
In my statement to the people of Anguilla on 21st December 2023, I not only stated that urgent action is needed to preserve Anguilla but called for a collaborative approach between Government (including Opposition Members), civil society (our communities, community leaders and organisations, including the Church), local businesses and our Royal Anguilla Police. The Members of Opposition supported establishing and participating in the Select Committee to Consider Gun Crime, Gang Violence and its Associated Issues. We also expressed support for certain measures being taken by the Government Ministers and the Royal Anguilla Police Force – measures such as the strengthening of firearms legislation and installation of CCTV cameras.
The members of the Opposition in the Anguilla House of Assembly and the Anguilla United Front Party intend to do our part as well. We will be conducting a series of Meetings across the island to engage with you, our members of society, in order to understand your issues, concerns, ideas and suggestions as to how we can collectively address what is undoubtedly a national issue. We will also be looking at, among other things, establishing continuous youth conversations as well as a mentorship program, all of which are intended to embrace our young persons who would benefit from guidance and support as they develop into young, upstanding citizens of society.
We commend the Government on its commitment to installing CCTV cameras throughout Anguilla. It is anticipated that this will serve as a deterrent to those thinking about committing crimes. However, we believe our Government must go much further and commission a review of our social infrastructure to determine whether we are truly meeting the needs of our youth. A national programme should be developed and implemented to address conflict management. There is also a need for the Government to take the initiative and bring all stakeholders together to address the issue of crime in Anguilla, with the view of coming up with a national strategy to combat this scourge, which is negatively impacting our society.
I am again echoing the Members of the opposition’s commitment to working with the Government on these and other issues.
Let us all get involved. The African Proverb “It takes a Village to Raise A Child” is still relevant today. Let us do our part.
God Bless You and God Bless Anguilla
8th January 2024
