But not anymore. "We aren't seeing the benefits, it's time now for us to get back to business as usual," she says. Luxury lifestyles According to the government, there have been 305 murders so far this year, down on 443 at the same time last year. The security crackdown had taken 173 weapons off the streets, and 13,000 rounds of ammunition have been seized. But some feel the crime measures are not tackling the heart of the problem. …. Mr. Griffith says that going after illicit funds will be the next stage of the fight against the traffickers. "When you look into their bank accounts or salary they have £500 but yet they have luxury cars and boats," he says. Local people are convinced that big business, like in much of the world, is involved in the drugs trade. "When you hear of TT$1.5bn of drugs being taken off the road, it's not the small man, they can't afford it. So it doesn't make us feel good that there are members of the business community who are involved," says Ms Kumar. Given the scale of the crime, the prime minister has insisted that the drug traffickers still pose a threat to Trinidad and Tobago. She has also indicated the state of emergency is not likely to continue beyond 5 December, according to local media. But the longer the measure continues, the more polarizing it becomes between those who believe that restrictions on civil liberties are a price worth paying to reduce crime and others who believe that the measures have gone far enough already. Source: [www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-15964364] Guatemalan Police Rescue Kidnapped Mexican Boy (GT) 5 DECEMBER 2011 Mena
But not anymore. "We aren't seeing the benefits, it's time now for us to get back to business as usual," she says. Luxury lifestyles According to the government, there have been 305 murders so far this year, down on 443 at the same time last year. The security crackdown had taken 173 weapons off the streets, and 13,000 rounds of ammunition have been seized. But some feel the crime measures are not tackling the heart of the problem. …. Mr. Griffith says that going after illicit funds will be the next stage of the fight against the traffickers. "When you look into their bank accounts or salary they have £500 but yet they have luxury cars and boats," he says. Local people are convinced that big business, like in much of the world, is involved in the drugs trade. "When you hear of TT$1.5bn of drugs being taken off the road, it's not the small man, they can't afford it. So it doesn't make us feel good that there are members of the business community who are involved," says Ms Kumar. Given the scale of the crime, the prime minister has insisted that the drug traffickers still pose a threat to Trinidad and Tobago. She has also indicated the state of emergency is not likely to continue beyond 5 December, according to local media. But the longer the measure continues, the more polarizing it becomes between those who believe that restrictions on civil liberties are a price worth paying to reduce crime and others who believe that the measures have gone far enough already. Source: [www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-15964364] Guatemalan Police Rescue Kidnapped Mexican Boy (GT) 5 DECEMBER 2011 Mena
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