Garth Rattray
University of the West Indies Cultural Studies lecturer, radio talk-show host and motivational speaker, Dr. Kingsley 'Ragashanti' Stewart's recent horrifying gunpoint abduction and near-death experience holds many important lessons. His captors told him that they would not harm him if he kept cool, but changed their minds when their partner in crime found Dr. Stewart's (big, bright, red) firearm licence book. Only his training in psychology and grass-roots popularity saved him from a gruesome end.
Licensed firearm holders constantly exist between the devil and the deep blue sea. If they travel with their firearms but without the licence book, they face certain arrest if they are stopped by the police. And, if they travel with the book and it is seen by armed criminals, they face an almost certain death. I suspect that since most licensed firearm holders do a pretty good job of concealing their weapons, the big red book gets noticed by probing nefarious eyes and leads to them being targeted for robbery and murder.
The new Firearm Licensing Authority (FLA) started up in earnest on October 17, 2006. They tell me that replacing those big red books with credit-card sized IDs is a priority for the board. This, I feel, will save lives. I hope that they will fast-track those changes. If they stagger the March 31 expiratory date for firearm licences and only carry out random inspections, they will eliminate the very public annual pilgrimage that licensed firearm holders make to the various tax collectorates and police stations and save even more lives.
No rational explanation
Another aspect of Dr. Stewart's terrible ordeal bothers me. God forbid that they decided to murder him, what would people think? People would speculate that he was 'mixed up in something' or that he offended someone or that he was 'queer' or some other ridiculous thing. When no easy, rational explanation can be found for a murder, we seem to have a burning need to invent one so that we can make sense out of nonsense. Many Jamaicans still cannot accept that we live in a country where some warped individuals place zero value on life and would quicker kill you and me than change underwear.
Additionally, criminals sometimes kill people and discard their bodies in certain areas where they are never found. These include open pits, swampy areas, old cemeteries and the non-functioning sewage treatment plant in Greenwich Town. On the night of Thursday October 19, 2005, three women were abducted and raped. Two, Simone Vernon and Catrina Webb were murdered and their bodies dumped into the effluent. Now, although a security gate is closed between 5 p.m. and 6 a.m., the property remains a stomping ground for gunmen.
And, I recently discovered that criminals will kill anyone and take their car or sport utility vehicle just to make a quick buck. Thugs that steal vehicles worth two or more million dollars only get between $40,000-$50,000 for the 'job'. The real money is made by legitimate-looking business people that sell stolen parts or cloned vehicles. As consumers, we must always look out for such parts or vehicles and frustrate this practice.
It was also clear from Ragashanti's account that the poor that become criminals see their evil deeds as necessary to their survival in a cold and hostile society full of privileged but disposable people. Decent law-abiding citizens are therefore prey, worthless impediments or both. We need to focus all our efforts on changing that mindset.
Dr. Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
