Many Guyanese became familiar with the expressions ‘drug-gang’ warfare and ‘phantom gangs’ from the mouths of PPP/C administration officials to explain the massacres and murders during the ‘Troubles’ in the early 2000s. In fact, a senior Guyana Police Force official admitted that the murder rate was actually reduced only after a notorious narcotics-trafficker and gang mastermind was incarcerated in a foreign country.
These facts were reported by former President David Granger who pointed out that narco-trafficking was the root cause of gang violence which plagues the country today. Speaking during his weekly ‘Public Interest’ programme, he noted that large gangs are recruited to traffic in illegal narcotics and acquire weapons to expand their business and extend their territory by the use of violence if necessary.
Medium-size gangs commit armed robberies, banditry, carjackings and small-scale ‘runnings’.
Small gangs of a few youths, armed often with a rented revolver, commit street crimes on small businesses such as petrol stations. ‘School’ gangs are copycats of behaviour exemplified by the ‘Gaza vs Gully’ rivalry ‘dancehall’ sub-culture.
The former President said that current criminal violence is connected to gangs which created a sub-culture based on guns, drugs – two imported elements of transnational crime. The landings of illegal aircraft at Bisaruni, Issano, Kuruduni, Kwakwani and the ‘King Coca’ incident at Mahdia in the hinterland over the last thirty months were examples of the narco-gangs’ geographical, logistical and organizational proficiency.
Mr. Granger believes gang violence could be reduced by improving the public education system to attain ‘real’ universal primary and secondary education by augmenting attendance; expanding ‘real’ employment and training opportunities for young persons by re-establishing the Guyana Youth Corps; encouraging ‘real’ social cohesion in order to promote cooperation within, and reduce inequality among, communities; reforming the public security system by promoting ‘real’ community policing; and empowering neighbourhood democratic councils to ensure ‘real’ inclusionary democracy (Article 13) through the timely conduct of Local Government Elections.
The former Head-of-State warned that gang violence should not be ‘normalised’ as an inevitable social calamity. It can be curbed by the administration’s enlightened enforcement of the National Drug Strategy Master Plan, re-establishment of the National Anti-Narcotics Agency and implementation of the Security Sector Reform Action Plan.
