Page 5 - jus aug 11

It requires a lot of effort
from the entire community

to combat crime

According to Minister Arthur Dowers

“BEFORE attacking the Police or Justice depart-

ment we need to take a moment to appreciate the
tactical and professional investigation taking place,
which has led to many suspects being arrested.” Min-
ister of Justice Mr. Arthur Dowers said. This was part
of Minister of Justice’s reaction against the recent
criticism including criticism received by officials due
to the recent robbery cases.
The Minister finds it unfair that these officials are
being critical since investigations were immediately
underway soon after the occurrence; they even man-
aged to arrest the suspects.

July 26 in the early morning hours, an armed robbery respect for their achievements and work ethic. crime rates go up.
took place of which the suspects were relatively young, “However we are aware that we can’t always count on
one of the suspects shot the victim which happens to support from the private sector,” minister Dowers said. “We need more people that are willing to help, people
be a taxi driver. The police started a rigorous investiga- Usually the ones that get themselves in trouble with that focus more on the solution instead of the problem,
tion, under orders of experiences detectives from the the law are young ones without many opportunities people that volunteer to contribute to coming up with
“Robbery team” this investigation proved successful that fall in the vicious crime circle. They are usually a solution.” Minister Dowers said. Standing on the side
since after a few days of interrogating witnesses and kids that drop out of school ora re kicked out of school lines complaining does not help or improve anything.
going through camera footage they already narrowed because of misbehavior, since they can’t find a job they Reality is that we can’t station police officers on every
down the suspects and were ready to request a permit usually resort to easy ways of earning an income, like corner of every street to protect every business and
from the Commissioner Judge to enter their houses stealing or committing heists. house on Aruba. That’s why we rely on the support
and arrest all of them. of the entire community in combating crime on our
Minister of Justice along with many other justice island.
The fact that this robbery took place in the hotel area department representatives regularly meet with nu-
does not make it any different from all other judicial merous commercial unions such as ATIA and AHATA The point that Minister Dowers wants to make is that
cases, since the police department handles all cases to deliberate on the developments of the community, crime is a problem that affects all of us so it is up to all
with the same amount of determination. Most rob- so all these unions are aware of the efforts being of us to contribute towards combating it.
bery and heist cases that have taken place the last few made to prevent crimes and they are also aware of The Government is doing their part by investing mil-
months have been handled with the same efficiency the achievements. lions every year in our police force, to provide them
and just as fast, resulting in most of these criminal It is lamentable that most hotels that usually try to with more materials, courses, cameras and much
cases already been handled in court. save more money on security measures by not install- much more.
ing security cameras to protect their property and not Now it’s up to the private sector to do their part in
“I can proudly say that the Aruban Police Force has one hiring enough employees in the security department making our island safer for our tourists and locals,
of the highest crime solving rates in the Caribbean.” are the first ones to come out and complain when for all of us.
Minister Dowers mentioned.
He is sure that there is always room for improvement,
but the police force despite being young and their lim-
ited resources and insufficient funds have managed to
transform themselves into one of the most respected
police force in our region.
Especially the United States and Holland have a lot of

ARUBA TRAVELLER - Tuesday, August 11 2015 3LOCAL