ANTIGUA-CRIME-Government announces re-introduction of gun amnesty

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua– The Antigua and Barbuda government says it will reintroduce a gun amnesty that will last until the end of the year.

A statement issued following the weekly Cabinet meeting said the illegal guns could be turned over to any police station in exchange for a sum of money to be offered. The last gun amnesty was in 2017.

“The object is to take illegal guns off the streets and out of the hands of criminals. The start of the program will soon be announced,” the statement said.

Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister, Lionel Hurst,  says while Antigua and Barbuda is a reasonably peaceful place and accounts f” for our success in tourism…we’ve learned through our parents, churches and educational institutions how to settle our differences peacefully. But the drug trade is part of why many Caribbean countries have so much violence.

“Since the drug dealers are unable to use the courts to settle their differences, they frequently resort to the kind of violence that we see on the streets,” said Hurst, noting that while no pronouncements have yet been made on the specifics, the process will likely be similar to that in place when the amnesty was previously done.

“It will very likely follow the path that has been taken in the past, but I don’t want to say that because the decision (will come) after consultation with the police, the Defence Force [and] several other law enforcement agencies.

“We have agreed to begin the process as soon as possible, almost immediately, and I’m 100 percent certain that we’re going to see very similar kinds of offerings made to those holding illegal arms,” Hurst said.

The last gun amnesty took place in 2017 to address a spate of gun-related crimes in the country.

Last year, the island recorded 16 murders, including senior Customs officer Zorina Benjamin, whose body was discovered at her home with a gunshot wound to the head.

Meanwhile, police are investigating the deaths of two Mexican men who were shot at a hotel.

The authorities have identified one of the victims as 36-year-old Cesar Santos Ramirez, who was found at the hotel with multiple gunshot wounds.

The identity of the other deceased, who was reported missing earlier, was not released.

The double murder has taken Antigua and Barbuda’s murder toll for 2022 to eight.