Caribbean News
Trickle Down effect of Gun Violence in Caribbean Countries
By Dana Malcolm
Staff Writer
May 27, 2022 – Violence exists everywhere, it is a worldwide cancer, still, despite ongoing wars in parts of Africa, the Middle East and Ukraine, the most violent cities in the world in 2021 were here, in the enchanting countries of the Caribbean and Latin America.
The list of 50 cities is compiled each year by Seguridad Justicia Y Paz, a human rights group in Mexico. Three of the most violent cities were in the Caribbean:, Kingston Jamaica, Puerto Principe Haiti and San Juan in Puerto Rico.
But if you zoom out and apply a wider outlook of the entire country and not just cities, more Caribbean nations start
Trinidad and Tobago was 4th with 32 per 100,000; Guyana in 12th with 15.2 per 100,000; Haiti in 14th with 13.7 per 100,000 and the Dominican Republic in 17th with 10.3 per 100,000.
Additionally the International Police say 70 percent of all murders in the Caribbean are committed by gun. Guns are also twice as likely to be used in robbery and three times as likely to be used in assault in the Caribbean than the global average.
Firearms heavily feature in violent crimes of all kinds. Jamaica, Trinidad, The Dominican Republic, The Bahamas and Puerto Rico are all listed as countries in which firearms account for the majority of homicides.
Over the past decade the Caribbean has nearly consistently had the highest murder rate per 100 thousand. Additionally since 2003 the homicide rate for firearms has hovered between 65 – 80 percent.
While Lowering the amount of illegal firearms will not immediately eradicate gun related crimes it will certainly help as proven by initiatives carried out in areas like London where a stranglehold on illegal guns recently greatly reduced murders by gun.
Photo Caption: Major General Antony Anderson, in a press conference in 2021 at his Old Hope Road office.
PHOTO BY JAMAICA INFORMATION SERVICES