EDITORIAL: Be your neighbour’s keeper

IT is heartening to hear of the launch of a few Neighbourhood Watch Programmes in Barbados. A Neighbourhood Watch is one of the oldest and most effective crime prevention programmes known to man. It brings citizens together with law enforcement, to deter crime and make communities safer.

However, we are aware that in Barbados, these programmes have been dying. Senior Superintendent of Police, Colvin Bishop, was recently quoted as stating that, “There are a number of neighbourhood watches which are inactive.” He further suggested that when communities become incident free, then some watches become dormant. However, he issued a word of caution, noting that crime can escalate at any time and as such, residents must be vigilant and sustain the watch programmes, to ensure that crime does not become a problem across communities.

So given the above, it seems that here in Barbados, neighbourhood watches need to be strengthened and in some cases revived, in an effort to reduce the incidence of certain types of crime carried out in vulnerable communities. We have all grown up hearing that we need to be our brother’s keeper and though the society is growing more and more individualistic by the minute, some things do require a group effort. While the idea of a neighbourhood watch may not appeal to some who have decided to keep to themselves and mind their own business, we can easily see how such positions taken may easily turn around when crime becomes widespread. Hence why we must push the concept of not only being “your brother’s keeper”, but extend it to being “your neighbour’s keeper”.

Whilst the focus at present is on the ever-increasing spate of gun violence, which many say is being fuelled by the illegal drug trade, we must not forget that there are other types of crime that are being committed, that are being overshadowed by violent crime. For instance, some persons in Barbados can easily recount a story or two about a break-in that happened in their community or one close-by. Let us not forget a recent spate of criminal activity, which saw the criminal element dressing in a professional manner and trying to impersonate personnel from various local businesses, in an effort to gain entry into the homes of citizens. It is fair to say that burglars are usually looking for cash and other key valuables that can easily fit into whatever bag they may be carrying, but who is to say that a startled burglar or one who forces his way in, will not turn violent?

Homeowners really need to consider not only instituting neighbourhood watches as part of a community-based crime prevention programme, but they need to generally think of what they can do to make their homes and communities safer. Neighbours who are home during the day can perhaps be on the lookout for suspicious activity. Homeowners can then go the extra mile to secure windows and doors, install motion sensor lights and even alarm systems, if they deem necessary.

Remember, the aim is to reduce preventable crime, all the while promoting closer ties in the community. While neighbourhood watches do place some responsibility on homeowners to protect their property and those of others, we should all remember that the aim is to work in partnership with the police force as well, to ensure that we all have safe communities in which to live and thrive.