UN’s report paints a distressing picture of escalating violence and intra-regional gang activity

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Dear Editor,

At the 47th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Govern-ment of the Caribbean Community in St. George’s, Grenada, the President voiced concerns about rising crime and criminality. His remarks align with the findings of the 2024 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which paints a bleak picture of escalating violence and gang activity across the Caribbean. Over the past decade, many Caribbean nations, including Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, have experienced a troubling surge in homicides and gang-related killings, with Jamaica now ranking among the countries with the highest homicide rates globally.

Guyana is not immune to these challenges. The report highlights how the resurgence of the international drug trade has led to a concerning increase in gang activity across the region, including in Guyana. While the Caribbean was a major transit route for cocaine heading to the U.S. in the 1980s, efforts to curb trafficking eventually shifted these routes to Mexico and Central America. However, recent pressures on these routes have brought drug trafficking back to the Caribbean, with Guyana’s porous borders and vast interior posing significant challenges to law enforcement.

Local gangs in Guyana, as in other Caribbean nations, are playing a pivotal role in this resurgence. These groups are deeply involved in drug trafficking, extortion, and violent crimes, often collaborating with larger transnational criminal organizations from Colombia and Mexico. The report also notes that in countries like Jamaica and Haiti, gangs have moved beyond criminal

activities, establishing political alliances and exerting significant social control within their communities. This is a worrying trend that could have serious implications for the political and social landscape of Guyana if not addressed.

The report underscores the myriad challenges Caribbean nations, including Guyana, face in tackling these issues, from limited economic resources to corruption within security forces, a point cemented by the recent arrests in Guyana. There is also a pressing need for improved regional cooperation to combat the growing influence of these criminal networks.

For those interested in a deeper exploration of this issue, the full report is available on the UNODC website.

Sincerely,

Keith Bernard

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