We have noted an upsurge of violent crimes and banditry since February this year, when five hardened criminals broke loose from jail. They carried out the most heinous crimes our relatively small republic on the South American continent has ever known.

In their trail of plunder and destruction they left dark tales of rapes, murder, thefts and other acts of lawlessness, never before witnessed in a peaceful Guyana.

We view with a sigh of relief that regional police Chiefs have passed a resolution on Caribbean crime fight.

The resolution came at the end of a two-day meeting in Barbados of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police (ACCP).

Many people believe that at last the Caribbean lawmen are making a determined effort to fight the scourge of crime.

Because of their low popularity rating and failure to win political power through the ballot box, some opposition activists in their desperate bid to assume power cling on to the loincloth of seasoned criminals as their last hope. Guyanese believe that such activists should thoroughly reexamine and make a critical analysis of themselves in an effort to find out if siding with criminals and giving blessings to criminal activities will be in their best interest.

We believe that if poverty, as some may want to put it, is the mother of crimes, want of sense is the father of them.

We welcome the communique issued at the end of the two-day caucus in which the ACCP appealed for assistance to bring the perpetrators of crimes against lawmen to justice.

We must commend the Commissioners for recognising that no one man could successfully fight against crime, as lawmen themselves are becoming victims of wanton and ruthless acts of violence.

We support their communiqué, which says in part: “ An attack on a Police Officer is an attack against the entire society. These acts of violence must be and will be fully investigated.’’

Most Guyanese believe that too many people and law enforcement officers are losing their lives at the hands of vicious criminals.

Every Guyanese as law-abiding citizens must support the local law enforcement officers in their battle against the criminals. Our lawmen are making inroads into the crime situation and this has forced criminals to change their activities to hijackings and extortion.

It is distressing to note that so far this year, some 16 Police officers in Jamaica have been killed in violent crimes which also claimed the lives of 1,000 civilians there, while in Guyana, 11 policemen and about 50 others, 30 of whom have been criminals have been killed in an ongoing crime wave which is worrying to all Guyanese.