Partnerships integral to regional and hemispheric crime fight – Rohee
…US injects further $77M to efforts
PARTNERSHIP at the international level is a sine qua non of detecting and fighting criminal activity at the regional and hemispheric level in all its manifestations. This is according to Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee, who was delivering the feature address at the opening of the Second Commission Meeting of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative at the Guyana International Conference Centre, Liliendaal.
“We are very pleased to host this meeting of the Caribbean Basin Initiative Commission; and when we were notified of the request to host this meeting, we had absolutely no hesitation in stating our willingness to do so,” the minister said.
He said that the Government of Guyana is committed to ensuring that the partnership between the Caribbean countries and the United States grows from strength to strength, and that the Government of Guyana will play a meaningful role in advancing that process.
“I was very encouraged to learn of the progress that has been made over the past year, and I believe that those who have contributed to the progress that has been made so far must be congratulated for the service and dedication they have given to the region,” the minister said.
But he said that much more work must be done to strengthen the partnership. “There is urgent need to get to the stage of implementation, so that the fruits of the partnership can [trickle down] to the people of the region,” Rohee said.
“Of importance is the urgent need to begin rolling out programmes that go to the heart of countering trafficking in narcotics and firearms, which, as we all agree, poses a major threat and challenge to the national security of the respective countries,” Rohee said.
He said that of critical importance is the rolling out of programmes aimed at tackling gangs and violence. “We need to formulate programmes that would divert youths from becoming gang members,” the minister said. “This cannot be over-emphasised.”
He said that in this regard, more youth programmes are of vital importance to assisting in diverting youths. “We need to energise the process in order to begin delivery to benefit [the region],” he stressed.
“We are very fortunate to have the United States as a partner on regional security matters. It has long been accepted that only through partnerships can we effectively fight crime in all its manifestations,” he said.
He said the inexplicable link between the fight at the national level and the fight at the international level is unavoidable, “and it would be a serious error of judgement for the two to be divorced from each other.”
He said that the partnership of the initiative is meant to maintain this link. “Guyana is committed to fighting crime in all its manifestations,” he said, adding that Guyana has passed several laws aimed at strengthening the crime fight through various agencies, such as the Police, Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit, and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), and other law enforcement agencies. “The political will to fight drug trafficking is not to be found wanting in Guyana,” he said. He said as a result, two task forces were re-established to address the twin concerns of drug trafficking and illegal firearms. They will also address the smuggling of contraband and fuel.
“I would like to take this opportunity to call on the participants of this meeting to do their level best to ensure that resources allocated for the various projects are fine-tuned and hammered out, so at the end of this process, the meeting ends on a positive note with clearly defined targets, programmatic and budgetary figures that can be rolled out and bring appropriate and relevant benefits to our people,” he said.
Speaking at the opening, Ambassador at Large for The Dominican Republic, Juan Guiliani Cury, said that the government of his country would work closely in order to achieve the tasks. “Our aspiration as human beings is to have peace and security that will assure that all of our citizens… [have economic and social prosperity],” he said.
US Ambassador to Guyana, Dr. Brent Hardt, said that through the working meetings and other engagements, the CBSI has emerged as a genuine partnership. “We certainly welcome the active engagement of the Canadian, British, UN, OAS and other partners who are making valuable contributions,” he said.
“We are pleased today to be able to convene this second meeting. This follows the first meeting held in Jamaica,” he said. He outlined that there are working groups on law enforcement information sharing, law enforcement cooperation and capacity building, crime prevention and maritime security cooperation. “Each concluded by identifying key regional priorities in areas for action and follow up,” he said.
“They have proven valuable as a vehicle to inform our programming and funding under CBSI. It is our goal and our hope that they have served to refine and improve the individual regional security efforts of all CBSI partners, as well as those of other international donors with interests in the region,” Dr. Hardt said.
He said that the second meeting offers the opportunity of the partners to take stock of their collective accomplishments and then to review the results of the technical working groups.
Astona Browne, Permanent Secretary of the St. Kitts and Nevis’ Ministry of National Security, expressed gratitude to the Government of Guyana for agreeing to host the meeting and for the warm hospitality extended to the delegations.
“We are indeed appreciative of the resources committed by the United States in our effort to further secure the Caribbean [and] to reach our common goal,” Browne said. “Together we endeavour to advance the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, which for us is the flagship for cooperation on security matters in the region at this time,” she said.
“We are cognisant of the changing security landscape. The threats to global security are real and know no boundaries,” she said.
In 2012, the Caribbean is to benefit from another injection of $US77M from the U.S. to develop projects to fight crime and violence in the Caribbean Region, under the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative.
At yesterday’s meeting, Ms. Julissa Reynoso, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central America and the Caribbean, Bureau of Western hemisphere Affairs, United States Department of State, announced that the 2012 budget of US$77M would be used to support greater coordination and control of border and maritime routes, training and capacity building for law enforcement and the justice sector.
Ms Reynoso, who is co-chairing the meeting with St Kitts and Nevis, announced that in the next few months, her country would be delivering to the Eastern Caribbean, high-speed interdiction boats and relevant equipment, as part of the US Secure Seas Effort. She said that those boats would complement ones provided to the Bahamas, The Dominican Republic and Jamaica, as part of a broader regional maritime security programme. According to her, Guyana and Suriname will also receive patrol boats and related equipment in 2012.
“We are proud of the accomplishments of the past year under the CBSI,” she said. “We have encountered many challenges, but we believe that the CBSI provides a useful and necessary framework for coordination and collaboration with our partners in the region.”