The annual September festivities are over, and as the euphoria fades the nation of Belize is forced to take a solemn look at the harsh reality that now confronts us. The country recorded a shocking 20 murders this September — a sharp contrast to the 11 reported in September 2009 and by unofficial indications, a record in our nation’s history.
Among the murder victims was the young Eyannie Nunez — shot mercilessly while she slept in her bed at the heart of the September celebrations, on Sunday, September 12. Her killing reignited the cry for serious action to help combat the violence that has already reached civil war proportions in Belize and drew an estimated crowd of 4,000 sympathizers out into the City’s streets, as she was laid to rest on Monday, September 13. Eyannie’s death was not a statistic — it was a signpost of a new era.
The data now in hand say that Belize’s murder rate for 2010 has also reached a record rate for this time of the year, averaging a murder every three days.
Belize’s most murderous year on record, 2008, saw a total of 103 murders. By the end of September, the count was only 4 shy of that tally.
In 2008, there were under 80 murders reported up to that September; this year, the count was 99.
On Monday, September 27, the Police Department issued a press release of its September 2010 operations.
“During the month of September 2010,” said the release, “police personnel attached to the various operational units within Eastern Division have embarked on a joint effort to interdict known criminal elements of the various gangs within Belize City Streets.
“Through this effort a number of firearms, ammunition, drugs and money have been confiscated by the Belize Police Department and several persons have been arrested and charged.
“The teams were made up of personnel from the Operation Shutdown, Operation Jaguar, Anti Drug Unit, Gang Unit, Special Branch and VICAP Unit.”
The police also presented images of the arrested persons and the items confiscated.
The release concludes: “The Belize Police Department continues to ask the general public for their support and wants to assure the public that although we cannot fully put an end to crime, we are working diligently to reduce the incidents of crime and bring criminals to justice. We will continue to improve our quick response and our directed patrols for optimal police effectiveness in the streets of Belize.”
(Amandala reporter Aaron Humes has been tracking the murder statistics and provides the 2010 and 2008 unofficial data for this report.)