‘I appeal youth not to settle differences with guns’: St Lucian PM Pierre

Castries: Prime Minister of St Lucia, Phillip J Pierre appealed the youth of the country not to indulge in criminal activities to take revenge. While speaking during a recent press conference, the prime minister expressed concern over the rising violence in St Lucia, adding, he is ‘deeply troubled’ by seeing youth indulged in criminal activities.

“I appeal to the young population of our country not to settle their differences with the power of the gun. We are starting to look like a nation engulfed in anger and rage”.

“We already have for the month of January two murders. As a country, we must return quickly to having respect for life. That respect comes with recognizing the rights of others and giving to every citizen what is their due,” he appealed.

PM Pierre assured the police authorities full support of the St Lucian administration in order to eliminate the crime from the Caribbean island, noting that the ‘guns should not be in the hands of the youth, who is responsible for the future of the country’. He added, even during the limited fiscal space, the government continues to provide the police with the resources for this battle against the criminals.

He stated, “I am calling on the management of the police to do more and take control of our streets and communities when crime appears to be flourishing. There are legal means by which we can do that. We are required more stringent actions to get those unlicensed firearms off our streets”.

While hoping for a full stop to the rising murders, the prime minister stated that in the forthcoming weeks, he is expecting some stringent initiatives on the part of the police officials to curb the level of crime.

The prime minister cited, “We cannot have another year of so many homicides in St Lucia,” meanwhile calling on in support of the St Lucians to help the police authorities.

“The social and economic cost of crime is becoming a heavy burden on our country. We can do more – the government, the police and the citizens, to correct this growing problem of violent crime,’ he further emphasized.