The residents of Tabaquite have been pleading with the authorities
to rebuild Brasso Police Station for over five years now, to
no avail.
While media reports focus on the rise in urban crime, the rural
areas have been suffering a similar fate.
The brutal rape and murder of 16-year-old Rebekah Sugrim reminded
me of that of Radha Pixie Lakhan in so many ways.
The outrage I felt at the casual indifference of the police,
who maliciously spread rumours that they had run away with a
man, the frustration of the villagers that eventually led to
the formation of the search gangs that discovered the decomposing
corpse and the deafening silence from the Government.
Most outsiders at the funeral service of the late Rebekah Sugrim
were distracted by the young girl’s home, which was crudely
constructed from tree trunks and branches.
I had to redefine my concept of poverty. It was unbelievable
and unimaginable. Her death was the third loss to a family that
had previously lost one child to cancer and another to brain
disease.
In the face of this, the misuse of a low-level public servant
in the form of the local district schools supervisor to represent
the Minister of Education was pathetic.
The hapless woman spoke for about ten minutes, during which
time she constantly reminded the mourners that she was sent
to represent her new, but much missing-in-action minister.
The Ministry of National Security and the Ministry of Social
Development were not represented. One would have thought this
was an excellent opportunity to present a caring face and start
off on the right foot, but who cares about that when the Prime
Minister doesn’t even care to convene Parliament and sees
politics in the sudden explosion of crime in the aftermath of
the general elections.
This family doesn’t just need counseling; a more tangible
offering must be made.
The Police Service was, understandably, not represented, as
they would have been attacked by angry villagers for turning
their backs on Rebekah. The village found their precious daughter
on their own, without the help of the police.
Still in the dark, the family has no idea of whether samples
were taken for DNA testing, and the community lives in fear
over the fact that a murderer and rapist might be roaming among
them.
This fear has intensified with a spate of robberies since Rebekah’s
murder. There has been a robbery almost every day since. Robberies
have occurred at Tabaquite Gas Station, the PTSC bus was robbed,
a Coca Cola truck was hijacked, and a car was stopped and robbed
by the Flanagin Cemetery.
Rebekah was raped and murdered by someone from the area. There
is evidence that she put up a fight.
Fingerprints and DNA tests can help, as her clothes, a gift
she went out the road to buy, her school bag and a piece of
bamboo that was used to batter her into submission were scattered
around her body.
She was stabbed several times, and her blue skirt, orange top
and grey sandals were discarded alongside her dream of becoming
an engineer.
With intelligent policing (pardon the oxymoron), this crime
should be solved.
If this PNM administration really cares for all our peoples,
then it would send a high-powered team to visit this family
to offer them a new HDC home or an enhanced renovation grant
for poor families from the Ministry of Housing.
Alternatively, the Self Help Commission should be utilised to
construct a proper home for what remains of this family.
The Prime Minister is yet to visit a single victim of crime,
and this might be a good start.
The children of Tabaquite are lost and forgotten. They live
in a different world, whose serenity and calm is being penetrated
by an evil wave of criminal activity.
I wish if middle and upper class children can see the hardship
some of these students in the rural areas experience. It is
certain to change the complacent attitude of taking things for
granted.
I have established a Remember Rebekah Fund with the aim of hosting
an annual Christmas treat at her old primary school for underprivileged
children and sponsoring an annual scholarship at Tabaquite Composite
School.
This scholarship will be called the Rebekah Reward for Excellence.
The deserving student will be selected by the teachers and the
award will be presented by the parents of the late Rebekah Sugrim.
Donations can make by calling Ruth or Selwyn at 650-0849/2692.
