Amid what appears to be a national consensus that the courts are delivering judicial slaps on the wrist for some serious crimes, the President of the Saint Lucia National Youth Council (SLNYC) has called for a change.
Yaniqueca Jean-Bart William spoke during a St. Lucia Times interview, against the backdrop of an alarming spike in homicides – 53 so far for the year.
Many of the homicides involve young people as victims and perpetrators.
The SLNYC President suggested the perception of minimal penalties for some crimes could be one factor contributing to criminal activity.
“For example, you’ll hear people say, “Oh, I can pay money and just go and sit at Bordelais (Correctional Facility) for you,” Jean-Bart William stated, referencing court fines for certain offences.
She described such an attitude as ridiculous.
The NYC President asserted that people should not want the experience of going to prison.
“When you hear a person say that, it means there are some flaws in the law that we need to fix. I am not saying if somebody kills you need to execute them. I don’t believe in taking someone’s life,” Jean-Bart William told St. Lucia Times.
Nevertheless, she suggested that getting away lightly with relatively minor offences, could lead to committing bigger ones.
“So we need to restore confidence in the law,” the SLNYC President declared.
She praised the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF) for continuing to fight crime, including frequent firearm and ammunition recoveries.
“They are working, but we really need to restore confidence in the law and also nip crime in the bud,” Jean-Bart William said.
In this regard, she noted the need to tackle ‘low hanging fruit’ such as illegal parking.
The SLNYC President described such offences as being relatively petty.
However, she warned that unless consistently addressed, people would believe they could get away with breaking the law and become emboldened to commit serious transgressions.
Some of the concerns Jean-Bart William expressed came up recently at a meeting of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders in Grenada.
The leaders discussed strengthening their countries’ legislative responses to violent crime, firearm trafficking, and corruption.
Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell told an end-of-summit news conference that the leaders also discussed a regional approach to comprehensively reviewing all firearms-related legislation.
According to Mitchell, an Attorney at Law, the empirical data was clear that many of the most violent crimes, particularly those associated with firearms, are committed by persons who are known to the police, who are known to the law, and who often are on bail.
well ok Miss simple solution is you are caught with a gun we cut one hand, you steal people cars we cut one hand , you kill someone life , you rape life in prison we must see a reduction within the first few months of implementation.
The only thing the popo hot on is illegal guns. Catch them, take them to the magistrate, they pay their ten to fifteen grand and they are out….. To be caught 3 months later with another illegal fire arm. I am beginning to wonder whether the police are getting their cut from all that bail money.
Lucians you all crying you all have alot more crying to do
Enough of that talking, having summits and not enough moving quickly to implement policies. These politicians are just dragging their feet on something of national importance while the society buckles under the weight of criminality. These politicians are out of touch with what is happening to the people. They are clueless as to how to move forward…in the meantime another young man will be on his way to be worm food.
We blame the laws and the justice system everyday for crime in the country but ask yourself this: Who collects the evidence needed to prosecute criminals? You cannot prosecute anyone without sufficient evidence. The police force is sitting on its a$$ allowing crimes to go unpunished.
All the solutions to crime are steering us straight in the face but do those who can implement changes give a damn? St. Lucia is one of the best countries to commit a perfect crime. Perfect in the sense that you will not get caught. What a shame! The criminal justice system is as useless as the government in terms of crime. That is why people turn to vigilante justice. The system is broken and don’t expect any government is going to fix it. St. Lucia has degenerated into a lawless country and only the people can save themselves. Hopelessness and despair are in every community. Yet the government does not see the need to enact a state of emergency. St. Lucia is devouring itself. In 2023, Japan had 912 homicides out of a population of 125 million whereas in St. Lucia with a population of 172,000, we had 75 homicides. Do the math! New York City had 386 homicides last year out of a population of about 8 million. Isn’t it time for the people to issue a clarion call to the government to wake up?
Miss be mindful, how legally corrupted we are. Please remember our judiciary is not the legislature. The judiciary only can follow what the legislative provide and how it is sign into law. They cannot subject themselves to imaginary interpretation or assuming. They must work with what’s available to them. This is the core issues. A judge or magistrate cannot implement laws and pronounce on it on a case by case business. We need to hammer the legislature part of it, so they power then lies within.
@Ras Biko you are correct …how can some of these idiots who are allergic to school be made to realize that you can not compare homicide statistics in St. Lucia with other countries which are significantly much much larger in size as well as population to their 238 square miles and population??????
It does not look good for St. Lucia at the moment. This is very sad state of affairs on every level.
Am an alien, a stranger, but I have never heard of as Safe, BEAUTIFUL and WONDEFUL,such a Lovely Island 🇱🇨 St Lucia,
O LORD Save St Lucia, though they may curse her, but you will bless her ❗
It is better to put your trust in GOD,than to depend on the legs of Pierre for strength and to put your confidence in the LORD,than to depend on the arms of Pierre for strength ❗
I completed high school in St Lucia, and I was never interested in NYC. I went to SMC and some of the guys were involved in the NYC. It felt like a click for connected youth. Everybody had an association to someone powerful either casually or through family.
I was then and now—still confused about its purpose. I thought it was a grass-roots advocacy organization, but as the president has shown through her statements, it is not. The NYC cannot mobilize the youth to come out tomorrow to demonstrate, or next week or next year! They are just not connected to the young people on the ground in that way.
I see NYC as a place (yes a place) where executives (the people who take it seriously) can make a name for themselves. Perhaps this has a lot to do with how NYC is funded. They probably have very little development and grant writing skills and no system to support them.
And it strikes me as odd that while most of the murdered and arrested/accused are youth (the people the NYC seeks to advocate for), NYC’s response is repeating points from daily talk shows. Talk shows are opinion that a not supported. Most people repeat comments made by others because tey have no factual basis to support their points. If anything, talk shows tell us more about how ignorant the people are the opposite. Also most talk shows are an echo chamber. Take NewSpin or instance, if you listen to that show daily for a week, you will believe that St. Lucia is at the brink of collapse. Its the same callers (you can sit with pen and paper at 11AM on Monday and list who the callers will be), saying the same things (the echo chamber).
I am willing to bet a kidney that the NYC has not met with the AG or DPP or Police to learn more about how the criminal justice system works and to advocate directly. Advocating directly is always better than press statements. You have to be around the table and have a sit around the table to have impact.
The current structure of the NYC continues to baffle me!!