Amidst the rising gun violence on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent, a divergence exists between the government and police leadership regarding the presence of gangs operating here.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, a “gang” is described as “an organized group of criminals,” highlighting the classic notion of a band of wrongdoers coming together for nefarious purposes.
In August 2024, during an appearance on WEFM’s “Voices” program, ACP Trevor Bailey stated that gangs were active in St. Vincent (SVG).
“I would classify them and say yes, because when I look at how some of them operate, I’m seeing a structure.” There’s a command structure. There are duties that are assigned to persons. Certain tasks require the express approval of the leadership. That is well defined. Should we allow it to go on? I would say a resounding no.”
At a police press conference on December 16, Bailey emphasized this once again, however, during the press conference, Police Commissioner Enville Williams asserted that there are no gangs according to textbook definitions.
In July 2007, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves addressed the issue of rival gangs in Paul’s Avenue. By 2013, he asserted that anti-gang legislation was unnecessary, and by 2018, he stated that there were no ‘Gangs’ on the island. In September 2017, former minister Julian Francis addressed the issue of ‘Gangs’ and the gun violence prevalent during that time.
The inquiry persists: Are there gangs functioning in St. Vincent? It seems that the government and police are still concentrating on semantics, as noted by OCIndex.
“There are many gangs operating in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; very few are mafia-style groups with a hierarchical structure and territorial control. The organized crime landscape in the country is dominated instead by loose criminal networks. Before the 2018 reforms, criminal networks were primarily associated with cannabis trafficking, but this has now shifted. Currently, less structured networks primarily operating on the Grenadine islands are involved in human and drug trafficking”, the OCIindex report stated.
The island has recorded 53 homicides for 2024 so far.
