Caribbean News
Social Media, Access to Guns & Lack of Focus on Young Men are accelerants to Crime says Jamaica’s Andrew Holness
By Rashaed Esson
Staff Writer
#TrinidadandTobago, April 21, 2023 – Andrew Holness, Prime Minister of Jamaica at the CARICOM Regional Symposium on crime said there is a “huge deficit presently in the architecture of our state, to treat with Crime and Violence, from a legislative point of view, from a law enforcement point of view and from a social intervention point of view.
During the panel discussion, he explained that the state must address how it will go about reformation to deal with the evolving problem of Crime and Violence to which he identified two “new accelerants,” the easy access to lethal weapons for citizens, particularly guns, and the evolution of social media; “the dissemination of information, that could influence or give insight to the use of violence.”
Holness stated that the epidemic of Crime and Violence has been exacerbated by the uncontrolled influx of illegal firearms, “small arms and light weapons.”
He hinted at the irony of how easy it is for criminals to obtain illegal guns despite the fact that they are not manufactured in our region.
For reference, statistics from Jamaica can be used. He revealed that in the last 10 decades, a total of 8,036 guns were seized and 12,641 Jamaican citizens were killed by illegal firearms.
Additionally, in his speech, the Jamaican Prime Minister highlighted that the last few decades have seen a rise in crime and the use of fatal weapons, further stating that the nature of violence has changed for which the region’s Law Enforcement, Justice System, Public Health Systems and Education and Social Intervention Systems are not prepared to handle, hinting to the lack of agility in the system to handle Crime.
In comparing the effects of Crime and Violence to diseases, Holness revealed that in Jamaica it is among the 10
causes for seeking medical attention and a leading cause of deaths.
During his address, leader of the largest English speaking country in the Caribbean repeatedly characterised Crime and Violence as threats to the Caribbean state, undermining its ability to deliver services as well as weakening citizens’ confidence in it for protection.
Not only that, he points to the fact that it threatens the region’s brand for tourism, “a safe place to visit.”
It is for these reasons and more importantly the continuous loss of lives of Caribbean people why Holness, who became Jamaica’s youngest elected prime minister in 2016, urged the region to make the necessary changes.
The Caribbean jurisprudence as he stated, was not designed to deal with Crime of this nature and magnitude and so legislative reform is required. He says the region is trapped in an “inherited archaic” system from which a break is needed in order to create our own laws to deal with our own problems.
And, he strongly expressed that there needs to be political consensus in the region on how to address Crime and Violence, separate from the competitive political space, to aid in long-term solutions.
He further maintained that the war on guns must be as strong as the war on drugs if the region is going to see progress.
In addition to that, he says the region should invest more time into preventing illegal substances from getting to other countries and not enough time on preventing guns from coming into “our countries.”
Prime Minister Holness also called on the region to put their “money where our threats lie,” and that the Governments should consider increasing investments on National Security.
Important points were also made regarding the reform of the education system and social services and to put more focus on Caribbean young males, according to Public Health evidence, as males are more prone to be involved in violence and make up most of the Criminal population according to statistics (90 percent of young males are perpetrators and victims).
To this, Holness expressed that something is wrong with the socialization of Caribbean males to which Public policy must fashion an urgent response.
Ahead of the Jamaican Prime Minister’s presentation at the Regional Symposium: Violence as a Public Health Issue – The Crime Challenge held at the Hyatt Regency, Trinidad was an opening session statement by his Commission of Police, Antony Anderson of Jamaica.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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