The Tribune

THE government would like Bahamians to believe that crime is on the decline. Police statistics are now being questioned because they are neither agreeing with the experience of Bahamians who live in these crime-ridden communities, nor with the medical evidence produced by hospital staff who are the first to see the victims being brought in. However, the statistics now being compared with police statistics still do not give the true picture. The murder and rape figures – with which the comparisons are being made – come only from the Princess Margaret Hospital. We do not have figures from either Doctor’s Hospital or the Rand Memorial Hospital in Freeport.

In today’s Tribune, Dr Sandra Dean-Patterson, director of the Bahamas Crisis Centre, has weighed in with a suggestion of what might be contributing to the discrepancy of what Bahamians are experiencing and what the police are saying is the true picture. According to her, there has been a “horrendous” escalation of sexual assaults against women.

She said that the police differentiate rape by age groups — a rape of a girl under 16 is listed as unlawful sexual intercourse. Therefore, with this category removed from the category of rape, the true picture has been whitewashed. What the police have to understand is that a rape is a rape is a rape — regardless of age. And whereas the community calls it what it is, the real problem is being watered down by age classifications. According to Dr Patterson, rape is the country’s most serious crime, second only to murder.

“We have to put a stop to this because it is an horrendous problem in this country that has us headed well on the way to developing a culture of rape,” said the doctor.

So also murder and attempted murder cases. The reclassification of these cases is cause for much concern. For example, some time ago Dr Duane Sands told of a case where doctors in the operating theatre fought valiantly to save the life of a woman who had been critically injured. Through the skill of the medical staff, her life was saved. However, instead of classifying her as an attempted murder case, she was classified in the bracket of “causing harm” — not even serious harm. This really is a grave insult to the intelligence of Bahamians, because it gives a false picture of the real problems in the community.

For example, a slap on the cheek could be classified as causing harm. However, the fact that a criminal goes out on a mission with gun in hand, shoots, but does not kill — mainly because of this country’s excellent medical team – does not lessen the intent of the criminal’s mission. He attempted to kill his victim. Anyone who goes armed with a gun, and shoots — the fact that he was either a poor marksman, or the doctor’s skill defeated his intent – does not by the stretch of anyone’s imagination make this a minor crime that can justify being brushed off as merely “causing harm”. It’s the skill of Bahamian doctors that is keeping murder statistics down.

From our years of covering crime — and even learning about crimes that were kept secret from the press — we gave up early last year on the police’s statistics under this political administration. What was crossing our desk did not match what the police were telling us. It certainly did not match the crimes, which they had not told us, but which members of the public later called to find out why we did not report them.

As we write this – 10:30pm – a member of our staff is trying to track down an incident that is supposed to have happened earlier today to a member of our judiciary. The police have said nothing about it. Maybe there is nothing to say. However, a member of the public has telephoned. The conversation always starts with: “Have you heard.....?” No, we haven’t heard, but we are checking. These calls are welcome, because they keep our staff on their toes and the public better informed.

Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade has taken offence to Dr Sands’ questions, and the doctor’s suggestion that he believes the disparity between police and hospital statistics is the result of “political interference”. He will probably also take offence to Dr Dean-Patterson’s statement, which also takes issue with police statistics on rape — this time with the explanation that it might be how the police classify crime. Whether it is “political interference” or questionable classification, the result is the same — the public is not getting the truth about crime in his country. And without a complete picture, there cannot be a proper solution. The situation is bad. It is about time the country is jolted into reality. It is only then that we shall get results.

“If you say it is doctored,” Commissioner Greenslade told Dr Sands, “whether it be on social media or the media or elsewhere, you are basically saying that your Commissioner, Ellison Edroy Greenslade, let’s not sugar coat this, is dishonest. And I look you back in the face and say I am insulted by that. You could not ask for a more honest Bahamian citizen.”

We are not questioning Commissioner Greenslade’s integrity. He is an honest man in a difficult situation, doing the best job that he can. However, we do join with Dr Sands in saying that although we are not questioning the integrity of the Commissioner, we in fact are questioning the truth of the statistics being released by the Ministry of National Security.