PERMIT ME to add my voice to the extremely unsettling and destabilising events which appear to be contaminating our generally peaceful landscape.
Practitioners of law often posit that a thorough assessment of the circumstances and the motives are needed if one is to draw an objective conclusion in relation to an act that has been committed.
Research has also demonstrated that when violent and heinous acts are carried out in the public domain, the upshots generally have a particularly deleterious effect on the psyche and sensibilities of the people who live in small peaceful societies like ours.
Now while the circumstances and motives are yet unknown, I am certain that a cold chill would have traversed the backbones of all law-abiding and peace-loving Barbadians who saw the security footage of the shooting near the Lucky Horseshoe restaurant in Warrens.
As Barbadians we can take great pride in our capacity to be tolerant to many things, but circumstances and motives aside, what I saw in that video was cold-blooded murder; the type that must be appropriately punished.
I have read that the death penalty is not considered to be an effective deterrent in reducing the incidence of serious crimes like murder in other jurisdictions. But as far as I am concerned, just like the circumstances and motives need to be weighed when an act is committed, I aver that the culture, accepted behaviour and social sensibilities must also be factored if a determination is to be made as to whether or not persons convicted of murder in Barbados should be granted an appointment with the gallows.
I am aware that Barbados is a signatory to several international human rights conventions and by extension retains membership with several organisations, some of whom are anti-death penalty activists. Just recently, there have been renewed calls by some for Barbados to remove the death penalty from the statute books.
It is therefore clear that given our need to retain a safe and peaceful society, while maintaining our commitments to international treaties, the topic of hanging will be difficult and contentious. But given the recent upsurge in gun-related violence and serious criminal activity, I believe that the time has come for us to have a very serious conversation about the merits and demerits within the context of our localised uniqueness.
Some commentators I am certain will submit ideologies of rehabilitation while others may draw on scripture for guidance and perspective. While I can certainly appreciate the validity of those opinions, my focus rests in this instance on the destabilising effects that these gun-related crimes are having on the Barbadian psyche.
It may be argued that the circumstances associated with other tragic events of late may suppose that while there was loss of life, the victims may not have been the intended targets of the attack; but in my opinion, the same cannot be said about the gruesome shooting in Warrens.
As a society therefore, we must send a very clear signal to anyone who is willing to callously take the life of another. With a unanimous voice we must never allow this type of behaviour to take root in our country and hence the instituting of the appropriate deterrents is absolutely necessary, particularly at this time.
– SEAN ST CLAIR FIELDS
