The burgesses of the City of Port-of-Spain, the victims of attacks by street dwellers, and indeed, the entire country, owe three decades of gratitude to Mayor Louis Lee Sing and the Port-of-Spain City Corporation for actually planning and executing "Operation New Horizons." Homelessness or vagrancy-as it is commonly called in T&T-stems from a variety of causes: drug abuse, mental illness and, in some cases, unfortunate circumstances of life. The chamber recalls that one of the very reasons for the passage of the Mental Health Act Chapter 28:02 way back in 1975, was to provide legislative authority to address vagrancy. Thirty-five years later, we are even further away from a solution, still studying plans, always seeking new ways to fix the old problem. We recall Sharifa Walker now 95 per cent blind in her left eye from being struck across her face by a piece of iron swung by a vagrant as she went about her business. Does Dr Douglas, the Minister of State in the Ministry of the People and Social Development, really expect the Sharifa Walkers and other commuters in the country to continue to await the publication, approval and implementation of a "clear and continuing" plan to deal with street dwellers?
Are they to similarly sit and wait until someone untangles the complex legalities as well as attendant moral and ethical issues? It is imperative that something be done in the short term, even as the administration formulates appropriate medium- and long-term plans to address this crucial issue.
Should Dr Douglas drive or walk through Port-of-Spain in the day he can do so without risk from any deranged or "high" individuals, thanks to "Operation New Horizons," and, in this regard, he should support the initiative in true People's Partnership style of working together for the good of the people.
The chamber advises Mayor Lee Sing that Operation New Horizons must be sustained and continual, if it is to be successful. Senior Magistrate Lucina Cardenas Ragoonanan, before whom 30 of the detainees appeared on charges of loitering, also applauded the mayor's efforts while, at the same time, noting regret at the young age of the accused, the scarcity of rehabilitative programmes and fora where those in need could receive help.
The chamber views this as an opportunity for Minister Douglas and his colleagues to spend some time on also addressing these real needs, based on the magistrate's daily experiences in the Courts.
Not only has the initiative done something about the risk to those who live in and visit Port-of-Spain, but it has also contributed to winning the war on crime, judging from the array of knives, machetes, ice picks and other pieces of iron, all found on those detained by the Corporation. Some of them were also discovered to be deportees and this suggests the inadequacy of an appropriate social programme to address this continually growing national challenge. Surprisingly, some of those charged before the Court were referred by the magistrate to the St Ann's Psychiatric Hospital for observation but had to be turned away because of a lack of space there, and were therefore remanded to two police stations, then released. There seems to be some contempt of Court issues here, should the referral by the magistrate have been ignored and we say no more, as our information about this is sketchy.
What is the explanation for the lack of space at the hospital, when the former administration made it a point to publicise the additional accommodation being constructed there for the same type of patient around the time when another similar, short-lived campaign was conducted before the Summit of the Americas and/or CHOGM? Are we really to believe that between the Ministry of the People and Social Development, the Ministry of Health and NGOs-who work among the homeless on our streets-no space could have been identified to carry out this order and properly assess the needs of the accused?
Mayor Lee Sing and his team need to be also commended for their foresight in convincing magistrates to sit on a non-working day to adjudicate upon those brought before them charged with offences arising out of street dwelling. As far as the chamber is aware, such types of sittings only occur on Carnival days!
We salute the increased productivity of the Magistracy. The chamber supports the drive to continue the campaign to make our capital city a more welcome place: tidier and safer. This impacts positively on the Constitutional rights of the law-abiding who wish to go about their business in the free exercise of their right to freedom of movement.
However, the country does not comprise one city alone. Central government, through its Ministry of the People and Social Development, needs to expand the high-profile social assistance Ministers Ramadharsingh and Douglas have been rendering, by working with the Port-of-Spain Corporation and indeed, all regional corporations, to deliver what is required to extend the campaign and assure its success, assistance which only the ministry can provide. Let us start with the space to humanely assess and house those detained, the funds to sustain the drive, so that it is successful as a pilot project against the national problem of vagrancy and be employed as a blueprint for the future. Most importantly, political loyalty and patronage must be cast aside and focus directed on the common good and service to the people, the mandate of the new Government from the electorate on May 24. More than 91 of the socially displaced have been detained out of the 400 street dwellers and more are to follow. This will make the job easier and give a headstart to the Government as it seeks to provide appropriate facilities, engage the NGOs with the dedicated training for the job and set up the authority to continually manage the long-term solution. For the time being, though, we are grateful to the mayor and the corporation for this small step they have taken in the journey of a thousand miles.
