The Tribune

By MALCOLM STRACHAN

KEVIN Andrews was reportedly standing at a fruit and vegetable stall in Gamble Heights when he was shot and killed on Thursday.

He was not the owner of the stall, just a bystander spending time in the company of people in the area, when two men got out of a car brandishing guns and opened fire, killing him.

Hours later, in the Joe Farrington Road area, a man who was on a forklift truck was shot and killed by a lone gunman. He was apparently working on behalf of his company for another company at the time. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

These are just two of the latest killings to affect our nation. Last month was one of the deadliest on record.

In response, it is no surprise to see that the US Embassy has issued a warning to American citizens about the risk of violent crime.

An alert issued on Wednesday of last week said that four armed robberies had been reported that had taken place in areas frequented by tourists, as well as on site or in the vicinity of short-term vacation rental properties that do not have private security.

The alert also warned about the gang war that has been going on in The Bahamas, saying “there has also been an increase in homicides that are primarily gang-related and affecting the local population in areas of Nassau generally not frequented by tourists”.

The embassy’s advice is for citizens to be aware of their surroundings, be cautious at night, not to resist any robbery attempt, and to keep objects of value out of plain sight.

Warnings from the US on crime are sadly a familiar occurrence – though the drop in crime during the pandemic brought a lull in alerts too.

As the lockdowns have lifted, crime has been back on the rise too – and worse, now we find ourselves in the middle of a gang war.

Crime has hung over The Bahamas for far too long. The alert from the US tells us nothing we did not already know – but it does show the stain that marks our reputation internationally. Visitors who take note of the warning may well approach our nation with caution, and rightly so – our own people could use such warnings and guidance from our government.

Too many of us are having to live in fear from the crime that affects our nation.

There have been too many victims already, and each of those has a family who will mourn and grieve for their lost relative.

Beyond that, there are those in the same communities as these victims, who wonder about their own safety or the safety of those they love.

There are those who know people who are in a gang, or may be in a gang themselves, who wonder where the next gunshot will be aimed.

The period of COVID lockdowns aside, the simple truth is that crime has been a problem that has faced The Bahamas for many years – and solving that is not something that will be solved in a day, a week or a month. Long-term problems require long-term solutions – a young man who has grown up alongside fellow gang members is not likely to leave them tomorrow unless he is shown a path that offers a real alternative.

Those solutions should also be bipartisan – so that a change of government doesn’t throw away one set of ideas for another, or take away that path a gang member may have glimpsed.

Until then, we will keep hearing about the next murder victim at a fruit and vegetable stall, or the next victim shot dead at his job.

We know the world is watching, but it is not the world we need to solve this for – it is for ourselves, and for the young men whose blood is on our streets.