I DO not think persons in Guyana are really taking note of what is going on in our country, Region 4 in particular. I mean the real impact of what is taking place in Guyana. I speak of the spate of blood-curdling murders that seems to hit the headlines on a daily basis. This is indeed shocking!The spate and level of these horrific crimes are beyond comprehension, and to add fuel to the fire is the youthfulness of the offenders, teen-aged girls included. Truly, I believe serious crimes of a juvenile nature has reached an all-time high; and if something is not done soon enough, our country will become one of those crime capitals, if not the crime capital, of the Caribbean. We are most certainly nearing the top, judging from Guyana’s low population and the high incidence of murders, we are at the pinnacle of things. We have now grown accustomed to the notoriety of being called the murder capital of the Caribbean.
Like the proverbial ostrich that hides its head in the sand, I would like to think that it is not happening here, that these horror stories are taking place somewhere else such as in a North American capital, but quite to the contrary, it is all happening right here in Georgetown right before our very eyes; people killing people as if there is no tomorrow.
Now, let us review a few of these horror stories. The murder of taxi driver Rubindranauth Jeeboo – his life brutally snuffed out by three teenagers who stole his car then strangled him. Just a week later the same trio ambushed Raphael Campbell and did the very same thing, stole his taxi and killed him too. This is reminiscent of serial killers of the North American type, where cold-blooded murderers can go on a rampage, lynching their victims indiscriminately. These are horror stories of the worst kind and, most troubling to say the least, committed by youngsters who can be so bold and daring at such a tender age. Then, heaven help us; what would our country be like when these become adults and are still allowed to roam free among us?
The story is not always lopsided, that is, on the side of the criminal, but victims of these heinous crimes are also fighting back – an example being the young man who was slain at Paradise on the East Coast of Demerara. In that armed home invasion, one of the perpetrators met his demise at the hands of a licensed firearm owner, the armed bandit being a mere teenager of 15 years. While I commend Mr Evans for stoutly defending his family – and I wish all armed home invasions turn out this way – the spine-chilling reality still remains that all of these cases are youthful offenders. Youthful and of a certain ethnicity, which is certainly worrying; in the afore-mentioned matter, two teenaged girls are also implicated. What in the world is going on in our country?

So, let me sum up here: heinous crimes are more and more bearing a juvenile face. We must “man up” to the harsh reality that this situation has reached epic proportions due to the following reasons;
(a) The Opposition, by their mindless antics in parliament, have given these bandits and would-be bandits tacit support. They have not, to date, openly condemned these acts of criminality; rather, they’ve been politicising the whole issue by blaming the victims and the Government, among other things. These acts only embolden the felons and, as seen in those matters cited above, encourage new and younger recruits for criminal activity.
(b) These serious crimes are taking place in their strongholds, so what have they done to rectify or turn this around? What have they done for the youths in their constituencies? Instead of using them to gain cheap political mileage in times of so-called protests, why not go down into their communities and source out avenues that would lead them away from a life of crime?
(c) Thirdly, some justices are into the habit of freeing the felons, releasing them back into the mainstream society to commit more crimes.

I shall deal with the last item in a more detailed way in a subsequent letter.
NEIL ADAMS