CARICOM Heads reaffirm commitment to fight crime and violence head-on

CARICOM Heads who concluded their 46 th Heads of Government meeting on
Wednesday, say they remain committed to finding solutions to the prevailing dire
state of crime, violence, and public safety amongst its member states.
The CARICOM Heads discussed the issue in caucus during their February 25 to 28
meeting in Georgetown Guyana. That caucus session was a follow-up to the
inaugural symposium on Crime and Violence as a Public Health Safety Issue and
the Declaration of the Heads made in Trinidad and Tobago on 17-18 April 2023.
CARICOM Heads reiterated their firm commitment to the principles stated in, and
to the implementation of the actions set out in the Declaration on Crime and
Violence as a Public Health Safety Issue.
In reaffirming the right to freedom of expression and to public speech CARICOM
Heads strongly condemned the development, presence, tolerance, or acceptance of
violent, anti-social music and social media content that denigrate women and
encourage or promote or support the use of violence, guns, and other anti-social
behaviour, particularly targeted to the region’s youth.
CARICOM Heads affirm their support for engaging with young people in the
creative economy, including the entertainment and music industry, and the sporting
industry to develop, support and spread across the region positive content to offset
the negative impact of anti-social, violent, and criminal behaviour which some
elements in that sector promote and support.
Given the serious, significant and chronic negative developmental impact that
crime and violence is having on member states, CARICOM Heads commit to
working with all sectors and institutions, including civil society, academia, labour,
churches, the creatives, law enforcement, the judiciary, political parties, employers
and businesses, and our external partners to implement all of the measures set out
in the Declaration on Crime and Violence as a Public Health Safety Issue.
CARICOM Heads remain committed to maintaining this region as a zone of
domestic peace and safety to ensure the preservation of our Caribbean civilisation.