Dennie Quill, ContributorCHRISTMAS SEASON is supposed to be a time of cheer. But this Christmas will be blighted for far too many people who have suffered violence in 2004.
The countdown to Christmas has been shattered for me because of the experience of a dear friend. I have been trying to comfort my devastated friend whose house was broken into earlier this week. It happened in the middle of the day while she was slaving away at her computer. This is how she earns her living. It is because she works long hours, and on weekends that she was able to hand out hefty envelopes to a number of needy persons as she believes Christmas is about giving and making others happy. Yet, while she was at work, someone broke into her house and cleaned out everything of value that she owned. Now she is overcome by that sickening feeling of being a victim of crime, of being violated in her own home.
In trying to comfort her and soften the effects of this wrong, friends have said, "It could be worse". Yes, she could have walked in on the thief and one never knows how he would have reacted. Kill her, rape her or maim her, perhaps. Then others say it could have happened in the dead of night, when the encounter may have been dramatically different.
OPERATION KINGFISH
Operation Kingfish is designed to nab the heavyweights in crime, specifically drug and arms dealers. But from what I hear on the street, our security administrators may by now have come to the realisation that they are in a catch 22 situation. One of the things that endear drug dealers to their community is the willingness with which they share their wealth. Beneficiaries brand them 'god-send' for putting food on their tables and sending their children to school.
I recall many years ago an attempt by the police to wreck illegal airstrips in well-established ganja-growing areas. As a senior officer explained to me, as soon as the police turned their backs, the residents in one St. Elizabeth community got a backhoe and shovels and restored the landing area.
To the extent that Operation Kingfish has put a dent in the activities of the druggist, it has also deprived significant numbers of unskilled persons who live on the edge from "eating a food". I am not for one moment endorsing this kind of illegality which we know has shattered many lives. But that's the reality of 21st century Jamaica - the druggist survives by peddling deadly merchandise, and others enjoy his generosity. There are many hungry bellies out there this Christmas. An army of hustlers found a livelihood in garages, car wash and such enterprises financed by the drug trade. Many of these jobs no longer exist. Many of them genuinely want to work, but the prospects are slim. So for scores of people this Christmas the immediate problem is hunger. So how do they feed their children? Many will steal.
And while the Minister of Finance cavorts with the cash-rich business and funds management communities who continue to pop champagne corks this season, neighbourhoods such as Havendale, Meadowbrook, Cherry Gardens, Beverly Hills, Cassia Park etc., are becoming notoriously unsafe. The high risk of burglary and theft is leading to near paranoia. Many are afraid to venture out of their homes after dark.
NO WAY TO LIVE
Surely this is no way to live. So how do we go about creating safer neighbourhoods? The police alone cannot provide the answers. I submit that we need a unified response to crime and a hands-on approach, which involves sharing information. The cash-rich businesses, community organisations including the churches and schools, need to create a strong consensus about how to deal with this problem.
For starters, the Neighbourhood Watch programme needs to be dramatically strengthened and expanded. We have to look out for each other and be our brother's keeper.
There are many filthy neighbourhoods in the capital. Since there is apparently no money to provide the usual Christmas work, I believe many of our communities could come together and create a fund for cleaning up sidewalks and verges. There are many willing hands to take up this offer. This may even result in a safer Christmas for some of us.
Dennie Quill may be reached at denniequill@hotmail.com.
