Three murders in 12 days and counting. This has been the lament of Barbadians following the daring Sunday morning gun attack at a popular St Philip petrol station that left a targeted individual dead and an employee seriously injured.
The event was shocking even for the most nonchalant of citizens who say such are expected developments given the changing way of life on the island.
Those who are not prepared to resign themselves to the belief that there is very little that citizens can do, are firm in their position that the condition can be arrested, that the situation is not too far gone if the country adopts a unified stand.
We fear, however, that seeking to establish a consensus on handling the social polycrisis confronting the island will be extremely difficult.
Why? The standards have been allowed to descend to the floor. There is too much that has been allowed to slide and the line between what is acceptable and what is not has become blurred.
In support of this argument, we begin with the illegal drug situation — and more specifically, the use of marijuana. The late Dr Tony Gale who dedicated much of his life and career to the battle against cigarette smoking must be turning in his grave.
It was part of an overall decades-long campaign in the fight against non-communicable diseases, and Gale was laser-focused on reducing the number of Barbadians who were smoking. In 2016, statistics showed, just six per cent of males smoked tobacco and just one per cent of females indulged in the practice.
It is not a stretch to suggest that Barbados faces a major problem with the smoking and use of weed. It is endemic among young people from across various strata of society and extremely problematic in poor and marginalised communities.
Officials have seemingly refused to directly address the explosion of illegal drug use in Barbados, its connection to petty and organised crime, and the illegal importation of guns and ammunition.
To compound the situation, many young people believe, given pronouncements from government officials, that weed smoking is legal. It is smoked more openly at every public event and even in the presence of law enforcement.
Visiting vloggers are also featuring themselves using cannabis and getting high in Barbados, perpetuating the stereotype of islanders who drink rum and smoke weed all day and party at night.
While we concede there is legitimacy in the argument that hundreds, if not thousands have suffered from having sullied criminal records due to a marijuana conviction, the point remains that the public policy is jumbled and incomplete.
The Drug Treatment Court that was established has been neglected into oblivion; there is inconsistency in the approach of lawmen and the public to smoking marijuana; there is widespread use of the drug even at state-sponsored mass events; the ticketing system for possession of a limited amount of cannabis, which was announced by the government, has seemingly not been effected; and young people seem to believe the pursuit of a medical marijuana industry equates to an endorsement of marijuana smoking.
The link between the drugs trade is inextricably linked to the illegal firearms trade. If there is an expanded market for spliffs, it will be filled by illegal importation.
If marijuana traffickers are stealthy enough to get the drugs into the island despite the efforts of law enforcement, what stops them from satisfying the demand for guns as well?
Who are the people in Barbados with the financial resources and the contacts to engage in the trafficking of drugs and guns? The question also has to be asked whether leaders have become so accommodating and permissive in their approach to what acceptable standards in our society are.
There is a reticence to speak out for fear of offending. And while this is occurring, Barbados slides further into disorderliness, with the divide between people of different social and financial statuses widening.
Repair and restoration of the society are made harder under such conditions and so the urgency of the situation is now.
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