Dear Editor,
This piece, written in pain from my heart, is an appeal to the President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Attorney General, and Cabinet. The continued armed robberies in this country need to be seriously addressed, and not left idle for normal police investigation and prosecution. With this in mind, I ask that the Government of Guyana in particular pay attention to my appeals with ideas listed hereunder:
1. The Establishment of a Three Strikes Law
I wrote on this more than once in previous decades (Ref. Letter to the Editor 15th Oct, 2015, 12th Aug, 2018; 12th Jan, 2023 – just to note a few). It is simple and to the point. Our government needs to face the reality of the dangers of weapons in the hands of unauthorized persons who are using these firearms to rob individuals, stores and residences; and even committing murder.
This idea of a Three Strikes Law will empower the system to put armed robbers, using any kind of weapon on the third infraction, away for life. If, after the first occasion they do not learn, and on the second they still do not learn their lesson, then on the third one they must be put away for life, as they do not seem able to be rehabilitated into normal social life with human beings.
Countries that have this law enacted include New Zealand, France, Japan, U.S.A (New York, North Carolina, Arizona, Maryland, Alabama, Texas, Florida, Colorado, California etc.).
2. The Establishment of a Power Force
One may call it a task force with systems, equipment, budget in order to get these criminals before they can hurt, rob and murder. They need tracking devices of the highest calibre which can link with satellite to target conversations on the phones.
They would need special eavesdropping equipment that can identify exact positions where these conversations are taking place. The systems must be able to record their voices, along with other corroborative evidence.
The aim of this law is to apprehend them before they can commit the crime, and it must be similar to the Three Strikes law, i.e. being involved in these kinds of conspiracies to rob, hurt, to hold illegal firearms or to sell firearms illegally.
This is where the Three Strikes law applies: if they keep on conspiring to hurt, rob and kill, they should be put away for a long time, if not for life, on the third occasion.
The above thoughts have been lingering in me for a while. I now think it is time for me to raise it again to the attention of the President and the citizens of this country, in order for the idea to circulate far and wide.
It is my hope that if the Government starts to work on these suggestions, and in finally doing such, they will create a proper budget for the intelligence people around the country, who can forward information physically as well.
Such information from groups and individuals is as important as the technology. In crime and investigations, one cannot only depend on the informers or technology only. We need a combination.
