[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 865 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 865

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the March 
  2007 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the 
    International Bank for Reconstruction and Development makes an 
important contribution to the understanding of the high levels of crime 
 and violence in the Caribbean, and that the United States should work 
 with Caribbean countries to address crime and violence in the region.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 11, 2007

Ms. Clarke (for herself, Mr. Engel, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Ms. Jackson-
  Lee of Texas, Mr. Rangel, Ms. Waters, Mr. Fortuno, Mr. Meeks of New 
York, Mr. Payne, Mr. Faleomavaega, Mr. Hare, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, 
Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. Doggett, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Sires, Mr. Davis 
    of Illinois, Mr. Al Green of Texas, Mr. Rush, Mr. Fattah, Mrs. 
 Christensen, Mr. Arcuri, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Ms. Lee, 
  Mr. Towns, Mrs. Maloney of New York, Mr. Ackerman, Ms. Watson, Ms. 
 Linda T. Sanchez of California, Mr. Scott of Georgia, Mr. Johnson of 
Georgia, Mr. Crowley, and Mr. Klein of Florida) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the March 
  2007 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the 
    International Bank for Reconstruction and Development makes an 
important contribution to the understanding of the high levels of crime 
 and violence in the Caribbean, and that the United States should work 
 with Caribbean countries to address crime and violence in the region.

Whereas, in his 2006 New Year's address, then Prime Minister of Jamaica, P.J. 
        Patterson, said, ``Without a doubt, the high level of violent crime 
        remains our most troubling and pressing problem.'';
Whereas, in opening the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago in September 2005, 
        President George Maxwell Richards said his country was in crisis due to 
        the escalating crime rate;
Whereas, in March 2007, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and 
        the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) 
        issued a report entitled, ``Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, 
        Costs, and Policy Options in the Caribbean'';
Whereas the UNODC and World Bank report presents detailed analyses of crime and 
        violence in the Caribbean region and offers possible policy responses;
Whereas the UNODC and World Bank report draws on input from governments, civil 
        society organizations, and Caribbean experts;
Whereas the UNODC and World Bank offer the following facts about crime in the 
        Caribbean:

    (1) the Caribbean region has the highest murder and assault rates in 
the world, with murder rates at 4 times the level of the United States; and

    (2) Trinidad and Tobago doubled its kidnapping rate between 1999 and 
2005;

Whereas the UNODC and World Bank report that high crime levels have long term 
        developmental effects on the Caribbean:

    (1) crime cost the Jamaican economy $12,400,000,000 in Jamaican 
dollars, 3.7 percent of its gross domestic product, in 2001; and

    (2) reducing the region-wide homicide rate by \1/3\ could over double 
the rate of economic growth per capita; and

Whereas the UNODC and World Bank report reached the following conclusions:

    (1) Caribbean countries are transit points and not producers of 
cocaine. Interdiction needs to be complemented by other strategies outside 
the region: principally demand reduction in consumer countries and 
eradication and/or alternative development in producer countries;

    (2) expansion of gun ownership and illegal gun trafficking is a 
dangerous outgrowth of the drug trade. Although reducing gun ownership is 
difficult, better gun registries, marking, and tracking can help, as can 
improved gun interdiction in ports. Policies should also focus on limiting 
the availability of firearms and on providing meaningful alternatives to 
youth;

    (3) deaths and injuries from youth violence constitute a major threat 
to public health and social and economic progress across the Caribbean. 
Youth are disproportionately represented in the ranks of both victims and 
perpetrators of crime and violence;

    (4) although the average deportee from the United States to the 
Caribbean is not involved in criminal activity, a minority of deportees may 
be causing serious problems, both by direct involvement in crime and by 
providing a perverse role model for youth. The report recommends that more 
services be offered to reintegrate deportees, with deporting countries 
contributing to the cost of these programs;

    (5) in general, there is an over-reliance on the criminal justice 
system to reduce crime in the region, but some types of crime, such as 
organized crime, and drug and firearms trafficking, are generally 
impervious to prevention initiatives; their control requires an efficient 
criminal justice system. Urgent priorities for improving the criminal 
justice system in the region include: the development of management 
information systems, tracking of justice system performance, monitoring of 
reform programs, and increased accountability to citizens;

    (6) several Caribbean countries are increasingly investing in crime 
prevention--using approaches such as integrated citizen security programs, 
crime prevention through environmental design, and a public health approach 
that focuses on risk factors for violent behaviors;

    (7) youth violence is a particularly serious problem in the region, and 
youth homicide rates in several countries of the region are significantly 
above the world average. To address issues of youth violence, Caribbean 
policymakers should invest in programs that have been shown to be 
successful in careful evaluations such as: (i) early childhood development 
and mentoring programs; (ii) interventions to keep high risk youth in 
secondary schools; and (iii) opening schools after hours and on weekends to 
offer additional activities and training; and

    (8) many of the issues facing the Caribbean transcend national 
boundaries and require a coordinated regional and international response. 
Demand for drugs emanates from Europe and the United States; deportees are 
sent back to the region from the United States, the United Kingdom, and 
Canada; and many weapons that are trafficked are brought from the United 
States: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) welcomes the recommendations contained in the March 
        2007 UNODC and World Bank report, ``Crime, Violence, and 
        Development: Trends, Costs, and Policy Options in the 
        Caribbean'';
            (2) urges the United States Government to consider fully 
        and carefully the recommendations in the UNODC and World Bank 
        Report and to take the recommendations into account when 
        developing United States policy toward the region;
            (3) urges the governments of United States and other drug-
        consuming countries to increase counter-narcotics assistance to 
        the Caribbean region;
            (4) urges the United States Government to increase 
        coordination on policy development and implementation with 
        Caribbean governments to help combat crime and violence in the 
        region;
            (5) urges the Department of State and the Department of 
        Homeland Security to work with Caribbean governments to 
        mitigate the negative effects of United States deportation 
        policy; and
            (6) urges governments of Caribbean countries to consider 
        fully and carefully the recommendations in the UNODC and World 
        Bank Report, and to take the recommendations into account, 
        especially regarding improvements in their criminal justice 
        systems.
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