Only a fraction of Guyanese get into crime (part 1)

Dear Editor,
I would like to dwell on a letter which captions “Give ghetto youths a ladder to climb out of that despair “by Dr Mark Devonish so as to put the murderous crime situation that has engulfed this country into perspective. The world needs to be informed that in this country, hardhearted bandits chronically kick down the doors of helpless citizens to gain access to their homes to brutalise, rob and murder them. Of course, such a problem tarnishes our national image, divides Guyanese and destroys our economy. So, there is nothing good about crime. Also, I would like to remind Dr Devonish that the majority of Guyanese never fall into crime, even though Guyana is poverty-stricken and most communities can be described as ghetto-like.
If anything, poverty should at least instinctively drive Guyanese into survival mode to unite as one, to work hard, to make sacrifices, to penny- pinch, to show empathy and to respect others but never to engage in inhumanity.
And most Guyanese have been doing exactly this.  I remember how my family made our meals without oil and various necessary ingredients to cut cost and to save money for our house rent which was our priority.
Also, I remember walking miles and miles to and from my school even in bad weather so that I could hold onto money to buy school supplies etc. And in spite of having very little, we tried our best to save for a rainy day.
In short, we handle poverty though thrifty means, personal sacrifice and hard work. Such values enable us to survive on our own sweat and I am extremely proud of this.  So Dr Devonish, even if we did not raid trash cans like you did, it does not mean that our lives are great.
We also never entertained the idea of doing anything criminal because we are cultured to see crime as inhumane and shameful. These are part of our value system that steers us away from crime. And in the face of our difficulties, I am understandably angry that we also become victims of brutal criminals who are nothing but lawless bullies.
This then sparks all sorts of logical questions, including why is it that only some Guyanese fall into crime and the majority of us don’t, even though we are all sailing in rough waters?
And the answer primarily lies in the differences in our values, not poverty. Examples of this analysis are practically seen everywhere in this country.  Editor, just look around you and you will see that most Guyanese lives in poverty but only a fraction get into crime and destroy this country.  Any behaviourists would agree that human behaviours are driven by good and bad moral values. Good moral values entail: respecting others, working hard for success and living off of one’s own sweat. Bad moral values are the opposite.

Sincerely,
Annie Baliram