Letter to the Editor – Dear Deandrea 

#TurksandCaicos, March 16, 2022 – I was impressed with your recent article about crime and the response in TCI. Or rather lack of response. So many cases are hidden in a conspiracy of silence that permeates society. I share a recent experience.

I witnessed firsthand the immediate effect and subsequent emotional trauma on guests visiting in February who were ambushed by three armed robbers in an area frequented by tourists AND in the daytime.

The guests understandably said they will not return.

As one of them put it: “TCI is too dangerous for tourists to visit and why hasn’t the government put a stop to it”.

The core problems encouraging crime will take years to solve. There are several things that can be done to improve safety right now:

1. Public street lighting – a comprehensive survey and plan to install more lights to stop dark spots and make people feel safer at night. This must now be a priority for the islands’ infrastructure strategy.
2. Resorts to collectively plan for managed CCTV coverage throughout the islands. It is ad-hoc and post-event currently. Several residents and villa owners in the area are willing to contribute funds.
3. Just laying the onus to resolve crime at the door of the Police alone is no solution. The feedback from the guests is that the Police were professional, responsive, AND frustrated by their inability to track cars. Removal of the issuance of car number plates from the Road Safety Department to the Police could be easily done. The current organization responsible is not fit for purpose. A police organization can check identities, legal entitlement to run a car and manage an accurate database.
4. A local online Victim Support service to be set up. It can provide facts and immediate support using “Chat” and calls. It would have helped our feelings of abandonment once the Police had completed their interviews.

I am interested to learn if anyone else has responded to your article.

Kind regards