Barbados Business Leader Urges Enhanced Border Security Amid Rising Gun Violence Concerns

The business community’s leading spokeswoman Wednesday suggested authorities place greater focus on border security as part of a broad-based approach to tackling the troubling upsurge in gun violence that is adversely affecting businesses.

Chairman of the Barbados Private Sector Association (BPSA) Trisha Tannis said brazen shootings in crowded public places such as shopping malls are of particular concern to business owners, and raise questions about how assault weapons are ending up in the hands of young men in the first place.

Tannis’ comments come on the heels of a government report which revealed a dramatic surge in murders this year, with 45 people killed compared to 20 in 2023. The death toll brings Barbados close to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic peak when there were 50 murders in 2019.

Tannis fears that if the flow of guns into the island and their possession by individuals intending to target others indiscriminately are not urgently reversed, Barbados could become hostage to these perpetrators.

“If you asked the average citizen, you can’t actually tackle this issue without [addressing] the gaps of our borders. It is a multi-phased, multi-pronged issue. It is not a simple issue at all. But there are some fairly obvious planks…holes that need to be plugged. The most obvious one is how are all these guns getting into the hands of these youngsters in the first place,” the business leader queried in an exclusive interview with Barbados TODAY.

She said that while the police cannot divulge certain intelligence in the interest of national security, there are aspects they need to communicate regarding the importation of illegal firearms and ammunition.

“We do need to say [something about] some movement, some traction as it relates to our borders and how these guns are actually coming in. We really can’t have our society pretty much at risk or hostage because anything could happen any time, anywhere, and that is really the concern,” Tannis said.

She noted the age of the perpetrators, mostly between 17 and 23, as a major worry for the private sector. But she expressed some comfort in the swiftness with which police have arrested suspects.

Nevertheless, Tannis contended that the root of the problem remains unresolved.

She said: “There is still a sense that we really are not getting to the bottom of this issue at the moment. And that is why the Barbados Private Sector Association is a willing participant in the National Advisory Council on Citizen Security. We do recognise that business cannot operate in a vacuum and that business is part of a society, part of a social ecosystem. Therefore, we welcomed the opportunity to participate in what we know is a broader discussion that can prevent crime in the first place, particularly among young men.”

Tannis also referred to the recent shooting at Sheraton Centre mall involving young men who have since been arrested and charged.

She suggested that Barbados was in a race against time as its value system had shifted, with young men, in particular, failing to make productive use of their time.

The business executive believes this may necessitate the provision of opportunities, including education, as part of a range of socioeconomic factors.

Tannis said: “The police obviously have to deal with these acts and try to keep the public safe. But from the business community’s perspective, a lot of us have had to tighten up our security; we are very vigilant in terms of cameras, security guards are deployed, and we do what we can to keep our customers and our staff safe.

“But the kind of brazenness we are seeing with these incidents, it is clear that there is no respect for boundaries and if you are determined to get your target regardless of who is injured, then we are dealing with a dynamic that is extremely dangerous, and something that we have not known in the past in terms of Barbados.”

She noted that there seemed to have been rules of engagement before, but those are now blurred.

“That is one of the more concerning parts for the business community because it means that persons can disrupt your business and do what they want to do,” Tannis said. “So, there is a callousness in terms of civic responsibility and concern for life, even concern for your own life.”

The BPSA chair suggested that a comprehensive strategy must be applied to identify the root causes of these issues, including a more structured, tailor-driven and purposeful desire to do things radically differently.

She advised that such a strategy must be at the forefront of society’s approach to tackling the crime scourge.

emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb