THE LAST WORD

Terrorism

by Barrie Quappe
Host/Producer for
“Cayman Crosstalk with
Barrie Quappe”

Friday,  October 14, 2005   

Listeners send me some great information. Recently an article from the New Yorker Magazine entitled, The Terrorism Beat, by William Finnegan was sent my way. It was an in-depth look into the extraordinary work by the NYPD since the 9/11 attacks on that US city. The article inspired my thinking to ask, ‘Are there any ideas we can learn to help stem the rise in violent crimes right here in Cayman?’ The first commitment to an anti-terror group came in the form of funding. The mayor basically told the police – do what it takes and I will find the money.

So far in the Island Cayman, our new Government has budgeted an unprecedented amount of money to fight crime.

Next I read about the feeling the NYPD had regarding the Feds; that they let them down on 9/11. Cayman too has recently felt let down not only by other countries but by the mother country herself, Britain.

However, Caymanians have a strong history of resiliency and that is shining through. This hasn’t been the first time we have felt alone. The next was the wider casting of the recruitment net the New York police took and with specialist backgrounds. They looked for persons with ‘military, intelligence and diplomatic backgrounds, with deep knowledge of international terrorist organizations.’ They have worked for example with cyber-intelligence specialists to help its people learn how to navigate jihadist chat rooms.

Do our police know how the criminal element that is currently terrorizing our Island gets their information on us? How do they communicate with each other?

What do we know? Have they been trained to understand the backgrounds of these perps? When the NYPD’s Commissioner consistently produces a reduction in crime back to the Mayor, they know that every penny spent is achieving its mission.

What units of measurement do we have in place to know how we are accomplishing the task? While we await a new Commissioner ourselves, more violent crimes continue. The sudden attack on a Sunday afternoon into a family home is evident.

The attempted attack on a local Government official that ended up terrorizing women and children again in a private home. Who are these criminals and why are they committing these heinous acts in broad daylight?

Do they have a boat or plane to catch?

The kids seem to be learning. Recent police reports state 14 and 16 year old perps. It doesn’t take long for this spiral down to become a toilet flushing of our country. We need the ‘A’ team and we need them now. Even though the people fighting crime now have to be dedicated to work under some of the conditions we’ve heard about it is obviously not enough. Let’s get tough and let’s do it now. While visas are a start as they relate to high-risk countries, I doubt a visa programme is much comfort to the recent victims of violent crimes. Perhaps even tougher Immigration control should temporarily be put in place until the ‘A’ team arrives, trained and ready to go.

What are we waiting for?

Comments/questions: barriequappe@hurleysgroup.com

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