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  • 3 weeks ago
A small arms study, a partnership between several institutions, exposes gun violence not only as a criminal epidemic but also it has been described as a public health emergency that needs to be dealt with across the Caribbean.

Mark Bassant explains.
Transcript
00:00Professor Ivlo Griffith, who was part of CARICOM Impact's Regional Expert Advisory Committee,
00:06said that the Caribbean still has far to go to address the 17 Sustainable Development Goals
00:11as it relates to health and well-being tied to gun violence and crime.
00:15There is a long road still to be traversed in meeting these goals.
00:20And when you were to drill down into certain Caribbean countries,
00:23you find a healthy discomfort with where we are,
00:28which means there is a long journey still to be traversed in pursuing those goals as an objective set of realities.
00:36Professor Griffith pointed out several realities on a criminal scale affecting this region,
00:41but warned there was one that stood out more than the others.
00:45The third harsh reality is partly because of the complexity, the transnationality and the multidimensionality.
00:52The phenomenon about which we speak is not amenable to a quick fix.
00:57It is always useful for members of the public to think of the police solving problem.
01:05But these are not problems that are easily, quickly fixed.
01:09And it's not amenable to a quick fix partly because of financial and other resources that are scarce.
01:18It is not amenable to a fixed pick because these are not simply national issues.
01:23You've got to connect with partners near and abroad, near and far,
01:27in regions beyond the Americas to deal with them.
01:30Health Minister Dr. Lackramboudi spoke about the effect of gun violence in this region
01:35that has become a burden on the health sector of many nations.
01:39...violence is a public health issue.
01:41Across our region, hospitals and health systems are burdened with thousands of cases of gunshot wounds,
01:48stabbings and blunt force trauma each year.
01:52These are not abstract numbers.
01:54They represent lives disrupted, families fractured and communities destabilized.
02:02Economies are affected.
02:04The $8 billion expenditure on the health sector, I would say, is better spent on treating our NCDs.
02:12He said that in the Eastern Regional Health Authority for the period October 2024 to September 2025,
02:18they dealt with 24 gunshot victims.
02:21That figure swelled exponentially in the North Regional Health Authority to 150 gunshot victims
02:28and rose further in the Southwest Regional Health Authority to 202 gunshot victims treated.
02:34He said that this joint effort by All on Board was critical to curbing gun violence.
02:39Violence must be treated as a preventable public health issue.
02:42It is not just a criminal justice matter.
02:45This joint research effort, bringing together CAFR, CARICOM Impacts,
02:50the George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Center and the Small Arms Survey,
02:55marks a milestone in bridging the worlds of public health and security.
03:00It provides evidence-based recommendations that can guide our member states
03:05in strengthening surveillance systems, trauma registries and inter-agency coordination.
03:12Minister of Homeland Security, Roger Alexander, said that while 92% of the 624 murders last year were gun-related,
03:21we cannot only focus on the victims, but there is a bigger picture here in play.
03:26One that entails the collection of data on policy and strategic shift to one of prevention and protection of the citizens.
03:34The effect that it has, not just on the victim, if we look at it, if we dissect it from every angle,
03:41we're looking at the victim, the victim's family, the neighborhood, law enforcement, the health sector.
03:56Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:03Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:04Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:12The victim's buddy's wife dong Peshant.
04:16Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:18They're running both ways ago.
04:20Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:22Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:24Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
04:27Mark Bassant, TV6 News.
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