Ozzie seeks answers to youth crime in Jamaica
Osbourne Bodden, Minister of Community Affairs, Youth and Sports
(CNS): The community affairs minister was in Kingston recently at a CARICOM crime prevention seminar on at-risk youth and vulnerable populations. Osbourne Bodden said that the root causes of crime across the region are very similar and it was instructive to learn of the different initiatives being employed in countries where the challenges may be greater than those faced in Cayman.
The Cayman Islands is an associate member of CARICOM and were invited to take part in the regional meeting, where family challenges emerged as a common problem, as well as drugs and unemployment. Bodden learned that community policing is being embraced by many Caribbean nations to tackle the root causes of crime.
However, this is an area where resources are scarce in Cayman and the RCIPS, which is down more than 30 officers, has to direct its staff to other areas. Police Commissioner David Baines recently told CNS that funds to finance the first pay rise for police officers in 15 years came in part from not filling those vacancies.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has committed significant funding to CARICOM countries to help them with the fight against crime with community development initiatives. In Jamaica, community resource centres are being built in the heart of vulnerable communities by the young people who live there as part of a vocational programme. The centres include a police sub-station as well as space for business enterprise activities. Bodden said that this was a very interesting approach for creating safer spaces within vulnerable communities and attended the opening of the first one of the centres in the Rockfort, Kingston.
The problem of data-gathering in the region regarding development and youth crime was raised and this will form the theme for the next meeting in 2016.
Category: Caribbean, Crime, Crime Prevention, World News
Stop blaming the Jamaicand for bad fathering. The immigration department dictates that for you to have a proper job in the Cayman Islands, you need to either be caymanian, from England or Canada or married to a caymaninan. So if I am not from anyone of those countries, all is left for me to do is to pick a woman or a man and get married. Then I work for 7-9 years then leave. The sad part is by then I may have three kids who the government of the day will have to take care of. That is just one example for immigration policies designed to keep a certain category of person’s out, but all it is doing is putting heavy burdens on the Social Services and the judicial department. Stop pointing fingers.
Maybe you should try to not have so many children to abandon.
The hiring of Caymanians and keeping $180 mil in the country would cease the need for crime. No jobs, how can one survive? Teenagers starting young, knowing they will most likely not be hired upon completion of Education. Why they give up?
All troubled “Caymanian” children have Jamaican fathers it seems, thanks to Mac and years of accepting the Jamaican culture of fathering without responsibility.
Rescue them yes
My advice-go to Jamaica, see what they do, then don’t do that. p.s. do somethng about your disfunctional schools.
The problem in Jamaica is absent Jamaican fathers. The problem in Cayman is absent…..
Laziness, ignorance, bullheadedness, alcohol, drugs, and free money. Take care of these (in any order) with the adults and they’ll start raising some law abiding kids.
You’re welcome for the $250,000 consultation for free.
Maybe the Wizard could give bad kids one of his LOUD TALKING TOs
Not probably the best location though! I was just reading their murder rate is sharply up again and their police are puzzled! 30 murders per month for the past 3 months or so …. what answers will they have exactly when their crime is NOT under control?
A man who takes no responsibility for breaking the law is now going to tell us we must listen to him because he now knows how to make others not break the law. Caymanians should be ashamed of themselves.
Jamaica is the problem not the solution… Blind leading the blind..
Good thing roaming free these days
Anyone takes this man seriously after the famous “driftwood” profane tirade?
careful ozzie…plenty of driftwood in jamaica….
True, but better known for big wood.
Free trip to see the old friends and Family.
That was a waste of public funds, we all know that all ready
Only one good thing come out of Jam since the 70’s. That’s what Cowcod Bodden need to be researching.
“There are none so deaf as those that will not hear. None so blind as those that will not see.”
Sad part is, the minister doesn’t remember cayman has tried that approach once before. Anyone remember the sub-station the police had in central (Martin dr). Didnt last too long because those in power don’t care about the low income areas of cayman. Let’s see Mr Bodden if you can convince your party to put the necessary funding in place to help the youth affected and influenced by crime.