Ex-Gangsters Participating in Truce Told to Stay the Course

Chester Williams

Williams’ departure from Belize City has raised serious concerns about the fate of the existing gang truce which was struck several weeks ago with various rival groups.  Those individuals have also sought the assistance of Williams and others, including Dianne Finnegan and Nuri Muhammad, in staging interventions.  Today, a handful of young men from those gangs were present at the farewell ceremony.  ACP Williams acknowledged the efforts they have all made to curb gang violence in Belize City.

ACP Chester Williams, Outgoing Regional Commander, Eastern Division South

“The young men and women who participated in our intervention program and Mr. Hyde had highlighted some of them earlier, you guys, I must say thank you to you all because we were at a time when, for the most part, society has written you off, “oh, you all are no good for nothing.”  But you know what, myself and Mrs. Finnegan and Brother Nuri, we always believe in you, we always sit and we say to ourselves, you know, these guys behave the way they do for a reason and we must find out that reason.  And we sat down with you all, we dialogued with you all and at the end of the day they eventually decided, you know what, enough is enough.  As I depart Belize City, I want to leave this with you all guys, please don‘t forget our discussion.  Please don‘t forget, please don‘t forget what you mean to your family.  Please don‘t forget the crying faces of the mothers that you see on TV almost on a nightly basis.  The pain and the grief that they go through, and say to yourselves I do not want to see my mother in that position, even though you will not see them you know, just imagine your mother in that position.  Respect your lives and respect the lives of others.  We can disagree on issues but I‘m sure that as human beings we have many things in common.  Please focus on those things that we have in common as human beings and work more on those instead of the things that we have in difference.  Each life does matter, yours matters.  Please don‘t allow anybody, and I mean absolutely nobody to allow you to go back to where you once were.  You have decided to move away from there, stay the course and remain positive.”